MELT VALUES / MODERN
Washington Quarter (Clad, 1965– )
Designer
John Flanagan; dozens of reverse designers since 1999
Years struck
1965–present
Mints
Philadelphia (P), Denver (D), San Francisco (S)
The State Quarters program (1999-2008) drove some of the largest mintages in history and pulled an estimated 140 million Americans into checking their change.
THE STORY
The clad quarter is the workhorse of US commerce, and since 1999 the Mint's marketing canvas: State Quarters, America the Beautiful, American Women. For collectors it is the great gateway drug; for stackers it is 9 cents of copper-nickel dressed as 25.
The State Quarters program generated an estimated $3 billion in seigniorage — coins bought and never spent.
KEY DATES WORTH REAL MONEY
Check these before treating any coin as melt.
| 1970-S proof on 1900 planchet | Famous six-figure error |
| 2004-D Wisconsin Extra Leaf | The variety that made national news |
| 2019-W | First circulating West Point quarters — 2M per design, seeded into circulation |
Think you have one? Check recent auction records before selling — and read our grading basics first.
SPECIFICATIONS
Grading: where wear shows first
Not a factor for value.
Never clean a coin. Ever. Cleaning permanently destroys collector value — dark original toning is worth more than shiny damage.
Counterfeit check
None worth noting - hunt varieties instead: the 2004-D Wisconsin Extra Leaf and 2019-W quarters.
Gear that settles it: an electromagnetic verifier, a calibrated scale and calipers — counterfeit basics.
QUESTIONS PEOPLE ACTUALLY ASK
Are State Quarters worth anything?
Circulated ones: face value, with rare exceptions (Wisconsin Extra Leaf, some errors). Uncirculated rolls and silver proofs carry modest premiums.
Coin image: Wikimedia Commons — Public domain — Numismatic Guaranty Corporation.
