Which Australian coins contain silver?

Many Australian coins made before 1966 contain silver. The date on the coin tells you how much.

Last updated 05/11/2026

Silver content by year

Threepences, sixpences, shillings and florins dated 1910 to 1945 are 92.5% silver. The same coins dated 1946 to 1964 are 50% silver.

The round 50 cent coin dated 1966 is 80% silver. Australian pennies, halfpennies and other decimal coins are not silver.

How much silver is in each coin

A florin weighs about 11.3 grams, a shilling about 5.65 grams, a sixpence about 2.8 grams and a threepence about 1.4 grams. Multiply the weight by the silver percentage to get the pure silver in the coin.

For example, a 1940 florin holds about 10.5 grams of pure silver, and a 1960 florin about 5.7 grams.

Metal value and collector value

We price these coins on their silver content. A rare date in very good condition can be worth more to a coin collector than its metal, so it is worth checking before you sell anything unusual.

Selling your coins

Sort your coins by date if you can, then bring them to our Booragoon store with photo ID. Our calculator gives you an estimate before you come in.

* 100% of spot applies to pure gold, silver and platinum bullion, up to 100 g of gold, 10 kg of silver or 100 g of platinum per person per day; above that we pay 98% of spot. Any single item over 50 g of gold or 1 kg of silver (for example a 100 oz bar) is 98%, and any platinum item over 1 oz is 96%. Gold items over 5 oz, silver items over 5 kg and platinum items over 100 g are priced individually on the day. Non-pure gold such as 22ct sovereigns is 95% of the pure gold content; non-pure silver such as pre-decimal coins is 90% of the pure silver content. We do not buy jewellery or scrap. Rates are set when we test and weigh your metal.

General information only. It is not financial or tax advice.