How to use this compare
Enter your budget, today's silver spot, and the two asking prices you're actually being quoted — dealers quote junk silver per dollar of face value and Eagles per coin. The comparison converts both into the only currency that matters: ounces of silver per dollar spent. Defaults reflect typical premium relationships, not today's market — replace all three numbers with real quotes before drawing conclusions.
What your result means
The effective price per ounce is the honest yardstick: total dollars divided by ounces of silver actually acquired. Whichever side shows the lower number buys you more metal for the same budget. The premium-over-melt figure shows how much of your money is buying product instead of silver — junk typically runs a thin premium, government coins a fatter one. Neither number says which is the better holding; it says what each dollar converts into.
When to trust it
Trust the arithmetic with fresh, real quotes — junk premiums and Eagle premiums move around, and the gap between them widens and narrows with demand. What the comparison can't price: divisibility (junk silver comes in small dimes, useful for small transactions), recognition (.999 government coins are the most universally accepted form), and personal preference about what you'll actually keep. Those are real differences worth weighing after the math, not instead of it — and whether to own silver at all is a question for a financial advisor, not a calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to buy junk silver or Silver Eagles?
On ounces per dollar, junk silver usually wins: 90% coinage carries one of the thinnest premiums in the silver market because it's abundant, has no minting cost to recover, and trades almost as a commodity. Eagles are government-minted .999 coins with a brand, and that costs extra per ounce. The gap shifts with demand — during retail silver rushes, Eagle premiums can widen dramatically while junk premiums barely move. Run both quotes through the comparison to see today's spread.
Why does the junk silver side use 0.715 ounces per dollar?
It's the trade convention for circulated 90% coinage: unworn, $1 face contains 0.7234 troy ounces, but decades of wear shave off roughly one percent, so bags are quoted at 0.715 ounces per dollar — a $1,000-face bag at 715 ounces. The comparison uses the worn figure because that's how dealers actually buy and sell it. The junk silver calculator lets you switch between worn and unworn conventions.
Which one is easier to sell?
Both are liquid, but differently. Silver Eagles carry instant recognition — the most widely accepted one-ounce silver coin in the US market, and dealers quote them readily, sometimes above spot. Junk silver sells on weight and face value, with a bid typically a few percent under melt. Eagles trade widest in whole-ounce quantities; junk's advantage is divisibility — you can sell or spend $5 face at a time. Recognition favors Eagles, granularity favors junk.