How Much Do Coins Weigh? A List Of Official Weights For Each Denomination Of U.S. Coins

Many people have asked the question, “How much do coins weigh?”

The United States has many different types of coins — so naturally there isn’t a single answer, but rather several.

With regard to denomination, the most asked questions we get about coin weights are:

“How much does a quarter weigh?“

And…

“How much does a dime weigh?“

So today I’m going to show you how much all U.S. coins weigh — by denomination.

Can You Weigh Coins To Count Them?

Yes, you can!

In fact, many coin counting machines can accurately calculate a quantity of coins simply by weighing them.

If you want to weigh coins to count them yourself, versus using a coin counter, then your best bet is to buy a coin electronic weighing machine — a digital coin scale.

The Best Coin Scale To Use

A digital coin scale is probably the most convenient method for weighing coins, but an analog coin scale could work, too.

Whichever type of coin scale you decide to use, be sure that it can provide an accurate, unrounded weight down to at least 1/10th of a gram and preferably 1/100th of a gram.

Scales that measure only in whole grams will round off the fractions to the nearest whole gram and can therefore provide incomplete readings — that’s not good when weighing coins, especially those whose metallic variants are distinguished by weight differences of less than 1 gram.

Conventional kitchen scales and postage scales are handy and probably what you most easily have access to. However, they generally provide readouts only to the nearest whole gram — so it’s best to avoid using food scales and stamp scales.

If you want to weigh coins accurately and like a pro, buy a good coin scale! (These are my coin scale recommendations.)

In this video, I’m showing you the 5 things you need to know before weighing coins PLUS my favorite coin scale:

How To Count Coins By Weight

So, you want to group all of your coins together and count them by weighing them, right?

Here’s how to do that:

1. Separate all of your coins by denomination.
2. Now, within each denomination, separate them by type of metal (pre-1965 90% silver dimes, quarters, and half dollars vs. post-1982 zinc pennies, etc.)
3. Next, place all coins of the same denomination and metal type on a coin scale.
4. Finally, divide the number in the weight readout by the standard weight of a single coin of that type. (See individual coin weights listed below.)

Voila… The quotient of your calculation should be the number of coins on the scale!

How Much Coins Weigh By Denomination

If you’re going to weigh coins to count them, then their weight in grams is absolutely important to know.

So let’s explore all U.S. coin weights by denomination…

Other Questions About How Much Coins Weigh

How much does a silver coin weigh? How much do gold coins weigh?

We’ve already listed silver coin weights in the dime, quarter, half dollar, and dollar coin weight sections above.

Hopefully, that info answers your questions about how much silver coins weigh.

But what about the weight of gold coins?

Let’s look at the weights of some of the most common types of classic U.S. gold coins:

• $2.50 gold coins made from 1834 to 1929 weigh 4.18 grams
• $5 gold coins made from 1839 to 1929 weigh 8.359 grams
• $10 gold coins made from 1838 to 1933 weigh 16.718 grams
• $20 gold coins made from 1849 to 1933 weigh 33.436 grams

What coin weighs a gram?

There aren’t any U.S. coins that weigh precisely 1 gram. But there is a common Chinese coin that does. The Chinese yen coin weighs 1 gram to a tee!

Specifically with regard to United States coins, there’s always the chance that a very well-worn example of a pre-1982 U.S. penny could weigh a little over 1 gram.

Here’s why…

U.S. pennies minted before 1982 were made from 95% copper and 5% zinc, and they weighed 3.11 grams when they were brand new. The amount of weight loss due to wear typically ranges from 10% to 50% for circulated pennies — meaning that a well-worn penny from circulation could weigh as little as 1.55 grams.

What coin weighs 2 grams?

If you’re looking for coins that weigh 2 grams, check out the reform coinage of Chile. A 1975 1 centavo coin made from aluminum weighs exactly 2 grams!

If you’re talking about U.S. coins, then the answer could be a well worn nickel.

Pre-1960 nickels were made of 75% copper and 25% nickel, and they weighed 2.5 grams when they were brand new. Some well-worn examples of these nickels from circulation today could weigh closer to 2 grams.

Other than that, certain commemorative or collector’s coins issued by the U.S. Mint might have unique compositions and weights closer to 2 grams. However, these wouldn’t be considered “regular” circulating coins.

What coin weighs 200 grams?

You’re not going to find many coins, medals, or much of anything else in the numismatic arena that individually weighs 200 grams — that’s 7.05 ounces, or nearly half a pound!

But, there is a handy coin you can find in pocket change that, in multiples, easily adds up to 200 grams. That’s the nickel, which — again — weighs 5 grams. It takes 40 nickels to equal 200 grams.

You know what else 40 nickels adds up to? A $2 roll of nickels. And that’s a great segue into this next question about weighing coins in rolls…

How much do rolled coins weigh?

To answer this question, you need to know how many coins come in a standard bank roll:

• A roll of pennies contains 50 coins
• A roll of nickels contains 40 coins
• A roll of dimes contains 50 coins
• A roll of quarters contains 40 coins
• A roll of half dollars contains 20 coins
• A roll of large-size dollars contains 20 coins
• A roll of small-size dollars contains 25 coins

As you’ve already learned, each denomination of coin has been produced in different metals and weights over the years. So if you want to find out how much rolled coins weigh, then you’ll need to:

• Know what period or generation of coin is inside the roll.

OR

• Resort to using coin weight averages — not an exact number, but close enough.

Using the coin weights listed above, the number of coins in each roll by denomination, and the unique weight of a paper coin wrapper for each denomination, here’s how much a roll of coins weighs — by denomination:

• Pre-1982 pennies weigh 3.11 grams each x 50 pennies per roll = 155.5 grams unwrapped. When you add an empty penny wrapper’s weight (between 0.1 to 0.2 grams), a roll of these pennies weighs 155.6 to 155.7 grams wrapped.
• Post-1982 pennies weigh 2.5 grams each x 50 = 125 grams unwrapped. With the empty penny wrapper’s weight, a roll of these pennies weighs 125.1 to 125.2 grams wrapped.
• All U.S. nickels weigh 5 grams each x 40 nickels per roll = 200 grams unwrapped. When you add the empty nickel wrapper’s weight (between 0.15 to 0.25 grams), a roll of nickels weighs 200.15 to 200.25 grams wrapped.

You can perform those same types of calculations with the other denominations (dimes, quarters, half dollars, and dollar coins) using these weights for the empty coin wrappers:

• Empty dime coin wrappers made of paper weigh between 0.15 to 0.2 grams
• Empty quarter coin wrappers made of paper weigh between 0.25 and 0.35 grams
• Empty half dollar coin wrappers made of paper weigh between 0.3 to 0.4 grams
• Empty dollar coin wrappers made of paper weigh between 0.25 – 0.35 grams

Do banks weigh rolled coins?

Some do. But even banks that weigh rolled coins may do so only as a secondary means of verifying the number of coins in a roll.

For example, a roll of 50 pennies that are all copper-coated zinc coins made since late 1982 will weigh some 30 grams less than a roll of 50 bronze pennies struck prior to 1983.

Therefore, weighing rolls might provide some rough idea as to the number of coins within — but because of differences in weight caused by tolerances, heavy coin wear, various metallic compositions, and other factors, weighing rolls of coins can be tricky business.

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