A $20 gold piece in a dresser drawer, a few small $5 coins in a velvet pouch, a roll of $2.50 pieces a grandparent put away decades ago. Old US gold coins turn up in estates all over the Triad, and most families are not sure what they have or how they are priced. This guide explains how pre-1933 US gold coins are identified, how much gold is in each size, and how selling them works at Apex Gold Silver Coin, 605 Walnut St SW in Winston-Salem. We make a straight buy offer on the counter. We do not offer appraisals.
What counts as an old US gold coin
The US Mint struck gold coins for circulation until 1933, when gold was pulled out of everyday use. These are the coins people usually mean by old US gold. Most are 90% gold, and the size of the coin tells you how much gold is inside:
- $20 double eagle: the big one, about 0.9675 troy ounces of pure gold. Two main designs: the Liberty Head (1850 to 1907) and the Saint-Gaudens (1907 to 1933), which shows Liberty striding forward with a torch, like the coin in the photo above.
- $10 eagle: about 0.4838 ounces of gold. Liberty Head and Indian Head designs.
- $5 half eagle: about 0.2419 ounces of gold. Liberty Head and Indian Head designs.
- $2.50 quarter eagle: about 0.1209 ounces of gold. Small, and easy to mistake for a token or charm.
- $1 and $3 gold pieces: older and much less common. The $1 coins are tiny, about the size of a dime or smaller.
These are different from modern gold bullion coins like the American Gold Eagle, which the Mint has made since 1986. If that is what you have, see our guide to selling American Gold Eagles or selling Krugerrands and Maple Leafs.
How old US gold coins are priced
For most pre-1933 gold coins, the starting point is the gold inside: the coin’s gold weight multiplied by that day’s gold price. Common-date coins in ordinary condition are priced mostly on gold content, and they are priced as coins, not as scrap jewelry. Our page on gold coins vs scrap gold explains why those two piles are handled differently, and bullion vs collectible coins covers the difference between metal value and collector value.
Rare dates and mint marks are a separate question. We buy rare coins as rarities only when they are already graded and sealed in a holder by a third-party grading service. An ungraded gold coin is priced on its gold content, even if it might be a better date. Our page on why we only buy graded rare coins explains the reason.
Coins that were made into jewelry, such as a $5 piece soldered into a pendant bezel or a coin with a hole or loop, are usually priced on gold content, since the damage takes away collector value.
Watch out for fakes
Counterfeit US gold coins, especially $20 double eagles and small $1 and $2.50 pieces, have been around for a long time. Some are gold-plated base metal and some are made of real but lower-karat gold. That is why we test every coin before we make an offer. We check weight, size, and metal content on the counter, and we tell you plainly if a coin does not test as gold. Our guide on how a precious metal verifier works shows one of the tools we use.
How selling old gold coins works: three steps
1. Bring it in. Walk in Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm or Saturday 12pm to 3pm with your coins and a government-issued photo ID. No appointment needed. Keep coins in any holders, flips, or pouches they came in.
2. We test it. We identify each coin, weigh it, and verify the gold on the counter while you watch. If you have a mix of coins and jewelry, we sort the piles in front of you.
3. Get paid. We explain the offer coin by coin before you decide. If you accept, you get paid. If not, you take everything home.
Tips before you sell
- Do not clean the coins. Rubbing, polishing, or dipping gold coins leaves marks and can lower what a coin is worth.
- Handle by the edges. Fingerprints on the face of a coin can leave marks over time.
- Leave graded coins in their holders. Do not crack a slab open. The sealed holder is what makes a graded coin a graded coin.
- Check the day’s gold price. Gold moves every day, so a coin’s value does too. Looking at the spot price before you come in helps you follow the offer.
- Bring the whole group. Estate boxes often mix gold coins, silver coins, and jewelry. That is normal. Our guide to selling inherited gold and coins walks through it, and what to bring when selling gold and silver has a short checklist.
If you also have gold jewelry, we generally pay about 75% of melt for the scrap gold we confirm. That rate is for scrap gold only, and coins are priced separately. Silver coins are separate again; see selling pre-1964 silver coins and selling Morgan and Peace silver dollars. Our gold coins page has more on what we buy.
Quick answers
Do you buy old US gold coins? Yes. We buy pre-1933 US gold coins including $20 double eagles, $10 eagles, $5 half eagles, $2.50 quarter eagles, and $1 and $3 gold pieces. We test every coin on the counter and make a straight buy offer.
How much gold is in a $20 gold piece? A pre-1933 US $20 double eagle has about 0.9675 troy ounces of pure gold. A $10 eagle has about half that, and a $5 half eagle about a quarter.
Will you pay extra for a rare date? Only if the coin is already graded and sealed by a third-party grading service. Ungraded gold coins are priced on their gold content.
Do you offer appraisals? No. We do not offer appraisals. We identify, weigh, and test the coins and make a buy offer you can take or leave.
Do I need an appointment? No. Walk in Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm or Saturday 12pm to 3pm with your coins and a photo ID. Call (336) 505-9503 with questions.
Visit Apex Gold Silver Coin
Apex Gold Silver Coin
605 Walnut St SW, Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Phone: (336) 505-9503
Hours: Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm, Saturday 12pm to 3pm, closed Sunday
Jeff owns the shop and Tania runs the counter day to day. We see customers from Greensboro, Lexington, Mount Airy, and Reidsville; the shop is the one on Walnut Street in Winston-Salem. Questions before you come in? Contact us or call (336) 505-9503.
Featured photo: Augustus Saint-Gaudens, “Double Eagle” Twenty Dollar Gold Piece (obverse), struck 1907, National Gallery of Art, via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (public domain). Resized and converted to WebP.
