Grading Circulated Coins

This chapter explores a few important basics of grading circulated coins. Before getting into it, we'll make sure everyone is on the same page regarding what defines coin wear.

Grades 1-59 on the 70-point ANA scale are allocated for coins with circulation wear. There is a coin grading chart summarizing how the scale is structured, followed by grade descriptions and photos.

What is Coin Wear?

The duty of a coin is to circulate as a frontline exchange medium in our everyday economy. When the store’s cash register runs dry, it causes headaches for those on both sides of the sales counter. Almost everyone in U.S. society today has lived through at least one coin shortage and can painfully relate.

As a circulating coin carries out its duty over a period of many years, it experiences wear. What exactly is meant by coin wear?

Coins are subjected to all manner of treatment in our everyday lives. Counting machines and coin tosses are just two examples how coins encounter wear and deterioration.

From the moment they’re released to public, coins are subjected to all manner of treatment in our everyday lives. Counting machines and coin tosses are just two examples how coins encounter wear and deterioration. Images by Go Graph and Shutterstock.

When considering wear, we normally think of metal being slowly removed from a coin’s surface as it goes about its daily journey. As a coin is passed from one hand to the next, slid across hard surfaces, mingled in coin purses, ran through counting machines, flipped to decide who gets the opening kickoff, exposed to water and chemicals, and many other forms of damage, it loses a little bit of its initial composition at every turn. This is how wear occurs.

The squeeze coin holder, popular in the 1950s and 60s, did more than its share to wear down coins.

The squeeze coin holder (called a Quikoin) like the one pictured above may invoke nostalgic memories for Baby Boomers and older folks. Back in the 1950s and 60s, they were ubiquitous giveaways by businesses promoting their name on the underneath side of the holder. Although quite handy at controlling pocket change, the coins inside might have screamed to get out if they could. It’s a safe bet no coin today grading in high Mint State grade ever spent much time riding in one of these. Image by Dan Goevert .

Wear is generally first observed at the coin’s highest points. Determining the amount of wear is the primary deliberation in grading circulated coins. Since there are no instruments or scientific means to measure and quantify wear with precision, evaluating the degree of metal removal and assigning a grade is subject to opinion.

There are no tools to precisely measure the quantity of metal removed, so it is left to the grader to estimate the degree of wear and then place the coin accordingly on the grading scale.

The red arrows indicate a few of the high spots where wear is usually first detectable on the reverse of Seated Liberty half dollars. There are no tools to precisely measure the quantity of metal removed, so it is left to the grader to estimate the degree of wear and then place the coin accordingly on the grading scale. Coin image by Stack's Bowers Galleries.

Coin Grading Chart: An Overall Summary

As mentioned in the Boogeyman chapter, the ANA’s 1 to 70 point numeric system is the broadly accepted touchstone applied to assign coin grades in today’s marketplace. It's now time to delve into this a bit deeper.

Grades 1 to 59 are allocated for coins showing circulation wear. Grades 60 to 70 are reserved for uncirculated coins displaying no wear, also called Mint State condition. Grades 60 to 70 are also used for Proof coins as well, unless somehow they show evidence of wear.

We'll explore Mint State in the next chapter, but for now, let's start out with circulated coins (psst... they're also easier to grade).

The coin grading chart below summarizes how traditional adjectival grades are correlated to points on the ANA scale. Please note that while numbers from 1 through 59 are continuous, the ANA has found it practical to designate specific intermediate numbers to define grades, resulting in steps.⁽¹⁾

This explains why in the numismatic mainstream we normally do not see grades such as VG-9 or F-14 utilized. However, for example, grades VF-25 and AU-53 are frequently invoked.

This coin grading chart summarizes the ANA scale. Any coin grading less than 60 has at least some circulation wear. Traditional adjectival grades have been correlated with point ranges on the scale.

The ANA scale consists of 70 discrete points. A coin grading less than 60 has been judged to possess at least some wear. Traditional adjectival grades (e.g., Good, Fine About Uncirculated, etc.) are correlated with points on the scale. Not every point on the circulated side of the scale is normally utilized; rather recognized steps such as VF-25 or AU-53 are applied. This explains why grades like F-19 or VF-27 are almost never assigned. On the Mint State side, every point is available for grading, because small nuances in the Mint State range can be critical in assessing a coin’s value. Image by Dan Goevert .

Every coin type (for example, Lincoln cents) has a specific set of grading descriptions because wear patterns occur in spots according to the coin’s design. When you are ready to actually grade a coin, you must refer to the set of standards written for that particular coin type.

The "Go To" reference for specific set of grading descriptions is, of course, The Official American Numismatic Association Grading Standards for United States Coins, 7th ed.

Technical Grading vs. Market Grading

The process of assigning a numerical grade to a coin based on the amount of wear it has received is called technical grading. For circulated coins up to those in Extremely Fine condition, technical grading is used to express a coin’s state of preservation.⁽²⁾

Assessing wear boils down to, for example, counting the number of letters still visible in the word LIBERTY. In technical grading, the standards as established in the ANA grading publication are followed, leaving less room for opinion and subjectivity.

Another thing about technical grading is that detractions to a coin that occurred at the Mint, such as number and location of contact marks, or strength of strike, do not factor in assigning a grade.

So far, things seem fairly straightforward, don't they? Yes, but now it gets more complicated.

For About Uncirculated, Mint State, and Proof coins, a nuanced process called market grading is employed.

Market grading is used by many coin professionals today. As is true with technical grading, the state of preservation of a coin is determinant in assigning a numerical grade. Market grading evaluates four attributes that define the state of preservation and are also of high importance to coin buyers.

The four market grading attributes are location (not just number) of contact marks, strength of strike, mint luster, reflectivity, toning, and eye appeal. These are covered in greater detail over at the Mint State Grading section.

The goal of market grading is to render a final grade more in line with its value in the marketplace.

Technical grading, for the most part, does not weigh these additional attributes. Technical grading is more objective and more transparent compared to market grading, although it may have niceties of its own....

As you are about to see in the section immediately below, eye appeal can minimally impact a circulated coin’s grade as well.

The Eye Appeal Factor in Grading Circulated Coins

As we already know, for a circulated coin, the degree of wear weighs heaviest in assigning a grade. However, eye appeal can bear an influence in the final analysis.

Like everything else involved in coin grading, eye appeal is purely subjective, but most experienced collectors agree that a circulated coin possessing these characteristics has above average attractiveness:⁽³⁾

Even pattern of original strike, wear, and coloring
Clean surfaces, free from porosity or corrosion.
Few to no marks, particularly in focal areas.
An original look (color and surface particularly important on early coppers)

Yep, even lower grade coins in AG to G grades can be said to have positive eye appeal.

Although this is somewhat controversial, good eye appeal may be enough of a factor to lift a coin a few points on the grading scale, such as from VF-20 to VF-25, but seldom is it enough to move a coin one adjectival grade higher. Alternatively, an “ugly” profile can sink a coin by more than just a few points.

One thing for sure is true: a coin judged by the majority of collectors to have high eye appeal will almost always sell for a premium price.

When PCGS grades a circulated coin, 85% of its grade is based on wear assessment, while eye appeal counts for only 15%.⁽⁴⁾

Both have nearly the same amount of wear, but most collectors would vote the coin on the right has greater eye appeal.

These Capped Bust quarters illustrate the eye appeal factor. The coin on the left has a dark color with an unnatural two-tone appearance. The coin on the right has good, uniform original color, with no marks or distractions. Both have nearly the same amount of wear, but most collectors would vote the coin on the right has the greater eye appeal. Images by PCGS.

Now that we've gotten the preliminary stuff out of the way, it's time to have a gander at the vast spectrum of circulation wear.

The Spectrum of Circulation Wear

The grades, descriptions, and photos below provide a generalized view how the spectrum of wear on a coin is evaluated, starting near the top where the wear is barely perceptible and moving down toward the bottom where the coin is so heavily worn it is almost unrecognizable.

If you're reading this on your mobile device you should be able to zoom in on any of the pics for a closer look. If on a desktop or laptop, just hover above an image and you will get a chance to click to a larger image (then hit the back button to get back to this page)

The grades and descriptions are taken directly from the ANA’s official grading standards publication.⁽⁵⁾ All photos are courtesy of PCGS.

Very Choice About Uncirculated-58

AU-58