StackFi Tools
Scrap Silver Calculator
Free scrap silver calculator at today's live spot of $63.90 an ounce. Sterling is worth $1.90 a gram, coin silver $1.85, .800 $1.64 — weigh in grams or on a kitchen scale, and see what a dealer offer leaves behind.
This calculator prices scrap silver — flatware, tea services, candlesticks, jewellery, anything marked sterling or with a millesimal number — by the silver actually inside it at the live spot price. Choose the purity from the mark, weigh the pieces, and it returns melt value.
Two things decide whether that number is right, and both come before the arithmetic. Silver plate is not silver in any recoverable sense, and a weighted knife handle or candlestick is mostly not metal. Sort for those first, then weigh what is left.
Melt value per gram, at $63.90 spot
.999 fine silver
$2.05
0.999 fine · per gram
.925 sterling
$1.90
0.925 fine · per gram
.900 coin silver
$1.85
0.9 fine · per gram
.800 continental
$1.64
0.8 fine · per gram
Silver is $63.90 a troy ounce, or $2.05 a gram of pure metal. Sterling is 92.5% silver, so a gram of it holds $1.90 and a 100 gram set is $190.04. Before trusting any of that, check the two things below — they change the answer far more than the spot price does.
1 · Is it silver at all?
Solid: sterling, .925, 925, a millesimal number such as 800 or 835, or
the British lion passant.
Plate, and worth close to nothing as scrap: EPNS, EP, A1, "silver on
copper", "triple plate", and most marks containing the word plate. The silver is microns thick and costs more
to recover than it is worth.
2 · Is the weight silver?
Knife handles are a thin silver shell around cement or resin. Weighted candlesticks and some bases are filled with pitch or plaster. The scale reads the filler; the buyer pays for the shell. Weigh filled pieces separately from flatware and holloware, or the total will overstate what a refiner pays — often several times over.
What you would actually receive
Scrap silver usually takes a wider discount than gold, because the same handling cost spreads across far less value per gram. Put your actual quote in. A buyer who will not state an offer as a percentage of melt has told you something.
Silver marks, fineness and what a gram is worth
Silver content by mark, with live melt value per gram, per troy ounce and per kitchen ounce at the current $63.90 spot.
| Mark | Fineness | Typically | Per gram | Per troy oz | Per kitchen oz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .999 fine silver | 0.999 | Rounds, bars, modern bullion coins | $2.05 | $63.84 | $58.18 |
| .958 Britannia | 0.958 | British Britannia standard | $1.97 | $61.22 | $55.80 |
| .925 sterling | 0.925 | Most flatware, holloware and jewellery | $1.90 | $59.11 | $53.87 |
| .900 coin silver | 0.9 | US coin silver, much antique American flatware | $1.85 | $57.51 | $52.42 |
| .835 continental | 0.835 | Common German, Dutch and Scandinavian mark | $1.72 | $53.36 | $48.63 |
| .800 continental | 0.8 | German and Italian standard | $1.64 | $51.12 | $46.59 |
| .720 older coin | 0.72 | Older Mexican and European coinage | $1.48 | $46.01 | $41.93 |
Melt is the floor, not the price
Everything above values the metal and nothing else. A complete service by a known maker, an early American piece, a Georg Jensen pattern — these can be worth several times melt to a buyer who collects them, and a refiner will pay you melt without mentioning it. If a set is matched, marked and in good order, price it as an object before you price it as metal.
And if the silver is leaving regardless, the proceeds are a second decision. Flatware is a costly way to hold silver: you paid for craftsmanship the scrap price ignores. What form the exposure should take next is a different question from what the metal weighs.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate the value of scrap silver?
Multiply the weight by the purity to get pure silver content, then multiply by spot. Sterling is 92.5% silver, so with silver at $63.90 an ounce — $2.05 a gram — every gram of sterling holds $1.90. A 100 gram set of sterling flatware is $190.04 of metal. The calculator above does any purity and any weight, but the arithmetic is that short, and knowing it is how you check anyone else's number.
Is silver plate worth anything as scrap?
Essentially nothing, and this is the single most common disappointment in the category. Plated pieces carry a layer measured in microns over a base metal, and recovering it costs more than the silver is worth, so refiners either decline plate or pay a token amount by weight. Marks that mean plate rather than silver include EPNS, EP, A1, "silver on copper", "triple plate" and most marks containing the word plate. Marks that mean solid silver include sterling, .925, 925, a millesimal number such as 800 or 835, and the British lion passant.
Why do my knife handles weigh so much more than they are worth?
Because they are not solid silver. Knife handles are typically a thin silver shell filled with cement or resin, and weighted candlesticks and some bases are filled with pitch or plaster for stability. The scale reads the filler, the buyer pays for the shell. Weigh filled pieces separately from flatware and holloware, or the total will overstate what any refiner will pay — often by a large multiple.
How much is a gram of sterling silver worth today?
$1.90 in melt value at the current $63.90 spot. Coin silver at .900 is $1.85 a gram, .800 continental is $1.64, and .999 fine bullion is $2.05. These are melt figures — the metal content — not an offer.
How much do buyers pay for scrap silver?
Less than melt, because the spread is how they earn, and typically a wider discount than on gold — the same physical handling costs are spread across far less value per gram. Ask for the offer as a percentage of melt rather than a lump sum, get more than one, and enter the percentage above to see the gap in dollars. Antique or maker-marked pieces are a separate question: a Georg Jensen or early American maker can be worth several times melt to the right buyer, and a refiner will pay you melt for it without mentioning that.
Should I weigh in grams, troy ounces or kitchen ounces?
Whichever your scale reads, as long as you know which one it is. A kitchen scale measures avoirdupois ounces, which are about 28.35 grams; precious metals are quoted in troy ounces of about 31.10 grams. The two differ by roughly 10%, which is more than the difference between two dealer offers, and mixing them up is the most common arithmetic error on this page. The unit selector above handles all three plus pennyweight.
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