1964 Quarter Value: Silver Melt, 1964-D, Varieties and SMS

A 1964 quarter is 90 percent silver and worth about $10.50 for its metal as of October 2026, with silver at $58 an ounce. The 1964 and 1964-D were struck by the hundreds of millions, so a worn one is worth its silver and nothing more. Real premiums come only from top uncirculated grades (the PCGS Price Guide lists an MS67 at $400-550, though MS67 coins have mostly sold for $240-600 at auction), two reverse die varieties worth roughly $50 to $1,500, and the rare 1964 SMS quarter, which sells in the thousands.

The 1964 date matters because it is the last year of silver quarters made for circulation. From 1965 on, quarters are copper-nickel clad and worth 25 cents, which is why the date and the edge are the first two things to check in any jar of change.

Quick answer

• Every 1964 and 1964-D quarter holds 0.1808 troy ounces of silver, about $10.50 at $58 silver, as of October 2026.
• Typical uncirculated coins sell close to melt. PCGS guide values: MS66 $45-55, MS67 $400-550, MS68 $10,000 (1964) to $32,500 (1964-D). Real MS67 auction sales mostly run $240-600.
• The 1964-D with the Type C reverse of 1965 (FS-901) has PCGS guide values of about $36 in XF40, $575 in MS65 and $1,500 in MS66; PCGS MS65 coins have sold for about $410-480 at recent auctions.
• The 1964 Philadelphia quarter with the Type B reverse (FS-901) has guide values of $110 in MS65 and $450 in MS66, but auction sales run lower, about $50-95 in MS65 and $135-360 in MS66.
• A genuine 1964 SMS quarter carries PCGS guide values of $6,500 in 65 to $25,000 in 67; an SP67 sold for $24,000 at Heritage in August 2025 and SP66 coins for $7,800-9,000 in 2019-2020.

How do you value a 1964 quarter, step by step?

Confirm the silver, read the mint mark, then decide whether the coin is anything more than silver.

1. Read the date. On the Washington quarter the date sits on the front, below Washington's neck. Any quarter dated 1964 or earlier is 90 percent silver.
2. Look at the edge. Hold the coin edge-on toward a light. A silver quarter shows a solid silver-gray edge. A clad quarter from 1965 on shows a copper stripe between two gray layers. A 1964 with a copper stripe is a misread or altered date.
3. Weigh it if you can. A 1964 quarter weighs 6.25 grams; a clad quarter weighs 5.67 grams. A worn silver coin can come in a little under 6.25 g but will not drop to 5.7. Our guide on how to tell if a coin is silver covers other tests.
4. Find the mint mark. On 1932 to 1964 quarters it is on the back, just below the wreath under the eagle. D means Denver. No letter means Philadelphia. Do not look beside Washington's hair; that position only starts in 1968.
5. Decide whether it is circulated. Look at Washington's cheekbone and the hair above his ear, and at the eagle's breast feathers. Any flat, dull or gray patch means it has been in circulation and is worth melt.
6. Check the wreath on uncirculated or nice coins. On a 1964-D, compare the leaves of the wreath with a 1965 to 1967 quarter. If the leaves look the same, sharper and more detailed than on other 1964 quarters, it may be the Type C reverse. On a Philadelphia 1964, a reverse with proof-style detail may be the Type B variety.
7. Check for doubling. PCGS lists doubled die obverse and reverse varieties for both 1964 and 1964-D. Look at IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY and the reverse lettering for a clear, rounded second outline.
8. Price from sold results for the exact date, grade and variety.

What is a 1964 quarter worth?

Silver sets the floor; grade and variety set everything above it. The values below are the PCGS Price Guide as of October 2026 for graded coins, with circulated coins priced at melt.

Real sales give the top end a reality check. PCGS lists the auction record for a 1964 as $9,760 for an MS68 at Heritage in May 2026, and for a 1964-D as $38,400 for an MS68 at Stack's Bowers in March 2021. Those are single coins at the very top of the population. Lower down, sales often trail the guide: PCGS MS67 coins of both mints have mostly sold for about $240 to $600 since 2019. An ordinary bright uncirculated 1964 from a roll is an MS63 to MS65 coin and sells for a few dollars over melt.

How much is the silver in a 1964 quarter worth?

About $10.50 at $58 silver. A 1964 quarter weighs 6.25 grams and contains 0.1808 troy ounces of pure silver, so the math is 0.1808 times the spot price. Silver traded near $54 on October 23, 2026 according to Kitco, which puts the melt near $9.75 that day; each $1 move in silver changes the value by about 18 cents.

Dealers usually buy circulated silver quarters by face value. Four quarters are $1 face and hold about 0.72 ounces of silver (dealers often figure 0.715 to allow for wear), so $1 face is worth roughly $41.50 at $58 silver. Expect an offer somewhat under that and compare two buyers. Our guides to silver quarters and silver coin value explain how 90 percent silver is priced.

What are the 1964 Type B and 1964-D Type C reverse quarters?

They are quarters struck with reverse dies that do not match the regular 1964 design. The Mint modified the quarter's reverse over the years, and collectors label the versions Type A, Type B and Type C. Most 1964 business strikes carry the standard reverse used for circulation.

• 1964-D Type C reverse, FS-901. This is the reverse introduced for the 1965 clad quarters. PCGS describes it as having sharper detail on the leaves of the wreath and calls the 1964-D with this reverse a very scarce variety. It is the one worth hunting: the PCGS Price Guide lists it at about $20 in VF20, $36 in XF40, $100 in AU58, $575 in MS65 and $1,500 in MS66. Actual PCGS MS65 sales since 2018 have run about $410-480, and MS66 coins $850-2,350. The PCGS auction record is $8,400 for an MS66+ at Stack's Bowers in June 2023.
• 1964 Type B reverse, FS-901. This is a Philadelphia coin struck with a reverse commonly described as the style used on proofs of the period. Its premium is modest and mostly in high grades: the PCGS guide lists $110 in MS65 and $450 in MS66, but PCGS MS65 coins have sold for about $50-95 and MS66 coins for $135-360, with an auction record of $494 for an MS66 at Heritage in 2017.

Searches often mix these up as a "1964-D Type B." The two listed varieties are the Type B on the Philadelphia coin and the Type C on the Denver coin. The practical test for the Type C is simple: put your 1964-D next to any 1965, 1966 or 1967 quarter and compare the leaves of the wreath. If yours matches the clad coin and not other 1964-Ds, it is worth a close look by a specialist. A loupe and a reference photo in the Cherrypickers' Guide by Fivaz and Stanton help with both varieties.

What other 1964 quarter varieties and errors are worth money?

PCGS lists several doubled die reverse varieties on the 1964 (FS-801 to FS-804), a doubled die obverse on both the 1964 and 1964-D, and repunched mint marks on the 1964-D (FS-501 to FS-503). Most are minor, sales are thin, and the premiums are modest and concentrated in mint state. Doubling should show as a separate, rounded second outline on letters or digits. Flat, shelf-like doubling on one side of the letters is machine doubling, which is common and adds nothing.

Genuine mint errors such as off-center strikes, clipped planchets and broadstrikes exist for both dates and are priced individually. A 1964 quarter that weighs 5.67 grams and shows a copper edge would be a striking error if real, but it is far more likely to be an altered date or a misread 1984. Show it to a specialist before getting hopeful.

What is a 1964 SMS quarter?

A small number of 1964 coins of all denominations were struck with a satin finish and very sharp detail, unlike either a business strike or a mirror proof. Collectors call them 1964 Special Mint Set, or SMS, coins. Their origin is still debated; they may have been trial strikes for the Special Mint Sets the Mint sold from 1965 to 1967. PCGS guide values are $6,500 in 65, $10,000 in 66 and $25,000 in 67. Real sales back that up at the top: an SP67 brought $24,000 at Heritage in August 2025 (the PCGS auction record) and another $23,400 in 2023, while SP66 coins sold for $7,800 to $9,000 in 2019 and 2020.

Almost no one finds one. Three things get confused with it:

• 1964 proof quarters have mirror fields and came in proof sets. They are common and worth a modest premium over melt.
• 1965 to 1967 Special Mint Set quarters were sold by the million and are clad, not silver.
• Sharp business strikes have the normal frosty luster of a regular coin.

Only PCGS or NGC can attribute a 1964 SMS coin. If yours came out of a 1964 proof set, it is a proof.

A worked example

Say you inherit a coffee can of quarters and sort out every coin with a solid silver edge. You end up with 36 silver quarters, 21 of them dated 1964 or 1964-D, the rest from the 1940s and 1950s.

Thirty-six quarters are $9 face. At about $41.50 per $1 face, the lot holds roughly $375 in silver at $58, a little less at the day's actual spot. Before selling, you check two things. First, you look over the 1964-D coins for a reverse that matches a 1965 quarter's wreath, putting a clad quarter beside each one under a lamp. Second, you look for any coin that still has full luster with no wear on Washington's cheek. Nothing stands out: every coin shows wear and an ordinary reverse. The can sells as silver, and you compare two dealer offers per $1 face rather than selling coin by coin.

Common mistakes

• Expecting the date to be rare. More than 1.26 billion 1964 quarters were struck. Worn ones are worth melt.
• Looking for the mint mark in the wrong place. On 1964 quarters it is on the back below the wreath, not on the front.
• Calling a 1965 to 1967 SMS quarter silver. It is clad. Check the edge.
• Treating any sharp reverse as a Type C. Compare directly with a 1965 to 1967 quarter, and let a grading service attribute it.
• Paying for "1964 SMS" from a listing. Real ones are attributed by PCGS or NGC and sell at major auctions.
• Cleaning silver quarters. It does not raise melt value and destroys any collector premium. Leave the toning alone.

How WorthPic reads 1964 quarter photos

WorthPic runs on the newest and most capable AI model available, tuned for exactly this kind of identification. From photos of both sides and the edge it reads the date, finds the mint mark below the wreath, checks the edge for a copper stripe, judges wear on Washington's cheek and the eagle's breast, and looks at the wreath and lettering for the listed varieties. It then gives an honest value range in US dollars with a most likely figure, based on silver at the current price, and says which close-up would settle the question. It cannot weigh the coin, cannot reliably separate a satin SMS finish from a sharp business strike, and cannot attribute a Type C reverse with certainty from a phone photo. It identifies and estimates. It does not authenticate, grade or appraise.

What to photograph

• Both sides straight on, in even light, filling the frame.
• The edge, tilted toward a light, so a copper stripe would show.
• The reverse wreath close up, for the Type B or Type C question.
• The mint mark close up on any 1964-D.
• The coin on a scale reading to 0.01 grams, with the number visible.
• Original packaging if it came in a proof set or holder.

When to get it looked at in person

Worn 1964 quarters do not need an expert. Sell them as silver to a coin dealer or bullion buyer after comparing two offers. A 1964-D that matches the 1965 reverse, a coin with clear doubled lettering, a possible SMS coin or a fully lustrous coin with almost no marks belongs with PCGS or NGC, which attribute varieties and assign grades that buyers pay for. A local coin club or dealer can give a quick first look before you spend a grading fee. For other dates, see what quarters are worth money, and for the first clad year, the 1965 quarter value guide.

Sources

• PCGS CoinFacts: 1964 25C: mintage, weight, price guide values and the $9,760 MS68 auction record.
• PCGS CoinFacts: 1964-D 25C: mintage, price guide values and the $38,400 MS68 auction record.
• PCGS CoinFacts: 1964-D Type C Reverse, FS-901: description of the Type C reverse, guide values and the $8,400 record.
• PCGS CoinFacts: 1964 Type B Reverse, FS-901: guide values and the $494 MS66 record.
• PCGS CoinFacts: 1964 SMS 25C: guide values and the $24,000 SP67 Heritage sale.
• Kitco silver price: silver near $54 an ounce on October 23, 2026.