Buffalo Nickel Value Chart
The Buffalo Nickel (also called the Indian Head Nickel), designed by James Earle Fraser, was struck for circulation from 1913 to 1938 at the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints in a 75% copper / 25% nickel alloy (no silver; melt value is negligible). The series is famous for its rapidly wearing date, which on heavily circulated coins becomes flat and unreadable (a key value diagnostic), and for celebrated rarities and errors such as the 1937-D 3-Legged, the 1918/7-D overdate, the 1916 Doubled Die Obverse, and the low-mintage S-mint dates of the 1920s. The 1913 issue exists in two reverse types (Type 1 raised mound, Type 2 recessed FIVE CENTS), with Type 2 introduced because the denomination wore off too quickly on Type 1. No Buffalo nickels were struck dated 1922, 1932, or 1933; no 1921-D, 1923-D, 1930-D, 1931-P/D, or 1934-S exist; 1931-S and 1938-D were single-mint years; the final 1938 issue came only from Denver.
Key & semi-key dates to look for
Red = key date · yellow = semi-key. Tap any for its value page. Everything else is a common date worth melt or a small premium.
| Date / mint | Mintage | Melt today | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 Type 1 | 30,992,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1913 Type 2 | 29,857,186 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1913-D Type 1 | 5,337,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1913-D Type 2 | 4,156,000 | $0.06 | Type 2 D-mint, lower mintage |
| 1913-S Type 1 | 2,105,000 | $0.06 | Lower-mintage first-year Type 1 S-mint |
| 1913-S Type 2 | 1,209,000 | $0.06 | Lowest-mintage S Type 2; famous key date |
| 1914 | 20,664,463 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1914-D | 3,912,000 | $0.06 | Low mintage; classic key date |
| 1914-S | 3,470,000 | $0.06 | Lower-mintage S issue |
| 1915 | 20,986,220 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1915-D | 7,569,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1915-S | 1,505,000 | $0.06 | Very low mintage; key S-mint |
| 1916 | 63,497,466 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1916 Doubled Die Obverse | - | $0.06 | 1916 Doubled Die Obverse; dramatic date doubling rarity |
| 1916-D | 13,333,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1916-S | 11,860,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1917 | 51,424,019 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1917-D | 9,910,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1917-S | 4,193,000 | $0.06 | Lower mintage; scarce in high grade |
| 1918 | 32,086,314 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1918-D | 8,362,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1918-D Overdate (1918/7-D) | - | $0.06 | 1918/7-D overdate; one of the most famous Buffalo rarities |
| 1918-S | 4,882,000 | $0.06 | Lower mintage; scarce well-struck |
| 1919 | 60,868,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1919-D | 8,006,000 | $0.06 | Weakly struck; scarce in high grade |
| 1919-S | 7,521,000 | $0.06 | Scarce well-struck; condition rarity |
| 1920 | 63,093,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1920-D | 9,418,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity; weak strikes |
| 1920-S | 9,689,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity; weak strikes |
| 1921 | 10,663,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1921-S | 1,557,000 | $0.06 | Very low mintage; major key date (no 1921-D struck) |
| 1923 | 35,715,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1923-S | 6,142,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity; weak strikes |
| 1924 | 21,620,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1924-D | 5,258,000 | $0.06 | Lower mintage; scarce well-struck |
| 1924-S | 1,437,000 | $0.06 | Very low mintage; major key, rare in high grade |
| 1925 | 35,565,100 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1925-D | 4,450,000 | $0.06 | Lower mintage; condition rarity |
| 1925-S | 6,256,000 | $0.06 | Notorious condition rarity; very scarce well-struck/Mint State |
| 1926 | 44,693,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1926-D | 5,638,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity; weak strikes |
| 1926-S | 970,000 | $0.06 | Lowest mintage of the entire series; supreme key |
| 1927 | 37,981,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1927-D | 5,730,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity |
| 1927-S | 3,430,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity; very scarce in high grade |
| 1928 | 23,411,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1928-D | 6,436,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1928-S | 6,936,000 | $0.06 | Condition rarity |
| 1929 | 36,446,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1929-D | 8,370,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1929-S | 7,754,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1930 | 22,849,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1930-S | 5,435,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1931-S | 1,200,000 | $0.06 | Low mintage but widely hoarded, so available; only mint that year |
| 1934 | 20,213,003 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1934-D | 7,480,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1935 | 58,264,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1935-D | 12,092,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1935-S | 10,300,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1936 | 118,997,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1936-D | 24,814,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1936-S | 14,930,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1937 | 79,480,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1937-D | 17,826,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1937-D 3-Legged | - | $0.06 | 1937-D 3-Legged; famous die-polish error, missing front leg |
| 1937-S | 5,635,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1938-D | 7,020,000 | $0.06 | Common date |
| 1938-D Overmintmark (1938-D/S) | - | $0.06 | 1938-D/S overmintmark variety (S punched under D); S-mint dies repurposed for Denver |
Melt value is computed live from the coin's fine-metal content and today's spot price; it is the price floor. Collector value above melt depends on grade - open a key date's page for recent sold prices. Methodology.