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eBay launched another eBay Bucks Bonus promotion this morning. This time around the eBay Bucks Bonus amount is raised to 10% on purchases over $100.
Even though gold and silver prices are down dealer premiums have remained steady or increased slightly. The usual net cost gold coins below spot price deals that can often be found during eBay Bucks promotions on Gold Francs and Gold Sovereigns don’t seem to be available this time around.
When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a small commission. More information about our affiliate programs can be found here.
eBay Bucks and Bullion Frequently Asked Questions
What is eBay Bucks?
eBay Bucks is a rewards loyalty cash-back type program run by eBay that gives a 1% credit on eligible purchases that can be used towards future purchases.
eBay Bucks credits are earned throughout the financial quarter up to a maximum of $500 in eBay Bucks per quarter. eBay Bucks are available to spend on eBay at the beginning of the quarter after they are earned. Earned eBay Bucks must be spent during the first month of the quarter after they are earned.
Periodically throughout the year eBay runs promotions that increase the earnings amounts of eBay Bucks. Typical promotions have increased the eBay Bucks earnings to 8%, 10% or 15% above the base amount of 1%.
Items listed in certain categories, including the Bullion category and subcategories are ineligible for earning eBay Bucks. However, many of the trusted and reputable dealers that sell bullion products on eBay will list bullion products for sale in alternate categories that do earn eBay Bucks.
How can I earn eBay Bucks when buying Bullion?
The base 1% reward can be earned by buying bullion that is listed outside the Bullion category, including those listed as Silver Bullion or Gold Bullion. Items in those categories are not eligible for earning eBay Bucks.
That being the case, there are lots of bullion products that are listed in alternate eBay categories including other subcategories in Coins & Paper Money.
Not all items are eligible. Sometimes items that are cross-listed in multiple categories that includes the Bullion categories.
The best way to determine if an item is eligible for earning eBay Bucks is to look at the item page. In most cases, an eligible item will display the amount of eBay Bucks that you can earn, similar to this:
Notice at the bottom of the image you can see the green “Bucks” logo with the earning amount.
How often are eBay Bucks promotions run?
Historically, eBay Bucks promotions are run several times throughout each financial quarter. They are sometimes run several times each month. There’s no set schedule for when an eBay Bucks promotion is run. Nor is there any schedule for how much of a bonus will be offered on top of regular earnings. The promotions are offered at the sole discretion of eBay.
How do I sign up for eBay Bucks?
If you already have an eBay Account you can sign up for eBay Bucks by visiting the eBay Bucks signup page. If you do not already have an eBay account, you must first create an eBay account then signup separately for eBay Bucks.
How can I find bullion items that are eligible for eBay Bucks?
Sometimes sellers will change an item’s category after the listing has posted. Be sure to look for the eBay Bucks earning amount on the listing to be sure an item is eligible.
Can I spend my eBay Bucks on bullion?
Yes. eBay Bucks can be spent on any bullion listings on eBay.
How can I avoid counterfeit bullion on eBay?
Always buy bullion on eBay from trusted and reputable dealers. There are certain things to look for that are red flags that an item could be counterfeit. Don’t risk it and stick with known sellers with high feedback and recent activity.
Some users have suggested that we provide a quick one page summary of some of the top silver bullion items. Based on users’ feedback we built a one page quick glance compare silver prices chart.
Across the top of the chart we have the silver bullion items. The items displayed are based on the popularity of a wide variety of products here on the site. Those products are:
American Silver Eagle coins, both random year and 2018
Generic Silver 1 oz rounds
Random year Silver Canadian Maple Leaf coins
Random year Austria Philharmonic coins
$10 Face Value Junk circulated coinage
Generic 5 troy ounce silver bars
and generic 10 troy ounce silver bars
This page consolidates 8 of our top products into a single page that allows you to find the lowest price for any of these items at a quick glance. The lowest price across 12 reputable and trusted dealers is highlighted in green making it easy to find.
The dealers in the list carry most of the top products with a couple small exceptions, and when items are out of stock a price will not be displayed.
Junk Silver Coins is a common term that refers to circulated coinage that was minted with silver. In the United States, coinage containing silver was in common circulation prior to 1965.
Silver bullion was used in the minting of all dimes, quarters, half-dollars and dollar coins before 1965. The silver in these coins is 90% pure silver. Nickel coins that were minted from 1942 to 1945 contained 35% silver content because the other metals were needed for the military efforts in World War II. The Kennedy Half-dollar coins minted between 1965 and 1969 were minted with 40% silver.
Together, these coins minted with 90%, 40% and 35% silver content are commonly referred to as junk silver because of their intrinsic value.
Why buy junk silver?
Junk is real, genuine bullion. Each $1 face value of 90% junk silver contains .715 troy ounces of silver. Junk silver is commonly recognized as real silver. It is something that has been commonly accepted based on its intrinsic worth.
Unlike other forms of bullion, Junk Silver is not commonly subjected to counterfeiting like other forms of silver. Junk silver does not have any numismatic value to collectors. It is collected as a store of value purely for the silver content. It is easy to buy junk silver.
Junk silver is fractional silver and is easily dividable. It doesn’t carry the same premiums as other fractional silver bullion. Junk silver can easily be split up and sold or traded if it becomes necessary. It can make bartering and trading for goods and services much easier than other forms of silver and gold bullion because of its fractional nature.
Junk silver has never been subject to government confiscation. In 1933 President Roosevelt ordered all gold coins held by citizens to be seized by the government. Those who failed to do so were subject to criminal penalties, fines and prison. When copper-clad coinage was introduced in 1965 many people hoarded the 90% silver coins.
Junk silver is easy and convenient to store and doesn’t require any special holders, containers or method of storage. It can be stored like any coinage and many investors keep them in standard paper bank rolls.
Junk silver carries a lower premium over spot price than other silver or gold bullion products. The price of junk silver is based purely on the silver content. With each $1 face value containing .715 troy ounces of silver.
Most coin dealers, pawn shops or other places that trade in silver bullion will often have bags of junk silver available for sale. Bags containing $100 face value or $1000 face value are common. For making smaller buys as a way to store wealth, smaller increments can easily be found. Many dealers sell $5 face value rolls of silver dimes, or rolls of quarters containing $10 face value. It is easy to buy junk silver any time you have extra money.
Junk silver with a lower silver content, such as war nickels (35% silver content) and Kennedy half-dollars from 1965 to 1969 (40% silver content) can often be bought for less than spot price. Some investors consider the lower silver content less desirable than other forms of bullion, which can lead to significantly lower premiums.
Junk silver is easy to liquidate and sell. Just as junk silver is readily available and easily bought, it can also be sold just as easily. Any local coin shop, pawn shop will readily buy junk silver in the event you need to sell it.
Junk Silver is a commonly used name for coinage containing 90% silver that was in circulation in the United States prior to 1965. Buying Junk Silver is one of the best and most affordable ways to grow your investment in precious metals.
The term “Junk Silver” is a broad term that includes any government-issued coinage that was in circulation and contains silver that has no numismatic value to coin collectors. It is collected only for its silver content.
Even though junk silver coins were circulated and might show signs of wear and tear, they still contain a significant amount of silver, which has intrinsic value. Junk silver is a tangible asset, and as the spot price fluctuates, its value changes accordingly. Many investors appreciate having an investment they can physically hold instead of intangible assets or paper investments.
Being smaller denominations, junk silver can also be used as “fractional silver,” allowing for more flexibility if you ever need to sell or trade in small amounts.
Due to its recognized silver content and divisible nature, it might be one of the most effective bartering tools for an extreme economic crises. It can also be an affordable entry point for those looking to start investing in silver without a significant upfront cost. Junk silver often carries a lower premium over the spot price of silver than newly minted silver bullion coins.
In the United States, coinage containing 90% silver was in circulation prior to 1965. The US Mint minted coins containing 90% Silver, including dimes, quarters, half-dollars, and one-dollar coins. During World War 2, some nickels were also minted with 35% silver alloy.
Buying at or Below Spot Price
Silver investors flock to junk silver because it is often available at or close to the silver spot price. Deals are easy to find with little to no premium.
These silver coins were minted over 50 years ago, and many have been melted down, leaving a limited supply of junk silver available today. Below are described the most common types of junk silver available on the market today. The values are calculated with today’s silver spot price of $32.06 per ounce.
Some junk silver coins have numismatic value to collectors and will carry a higher premium over the spot price. These are typically early-minted coins such as Liberty Head and Mercury Dimes, Liberty Head and Standing Liberty Quarters, and Walking Liberty Half-Dollars. Morgan dollars and Peace dollars will also carry a fairly high premium over the spot price.
The junk silver coins that will be available at or close to spot price will be those with high circulations and were minted during the later years of coinage when it was minted with 90% silver. Those include Roosevelt Dimes, Washington Quarters, and Franklin and Kennedy Half-Dollars.
When the minting of these coins was changed to copper-clad in 1965, many collectors hoarded and saved the coins containing 90% silver to hold and store the precious metals content.
US quarters that were minted before 1965 contain silver. The silver quarters were struck with an alloy that contains 90% silver. The melt value for each silver quarter is over $4.00 today.
Silver quarters, like all 90% silver US coinage are sometimes referred to as “junk silver”. This is a common term adopted from the coin collecting industry for coins that have no numismatic value. Their value lies strictly in the intrinsic silver content.
Junk silver quarters are a great way to get started with investing in silver. They are fractional and you can buy them close to spot price. In some cases, you can buy silver quarters at spot price.
Silver Quarters in Circulation
There are still some silver quarters circulating alongside modern quarters. The Washington Quarter was introduced in 1932. More than 3 billion silver Washington quarters were minted up until the debasement began in 1965. While many have been melted down over the years, there are still plenty available in the wild.
The easiest way to tell if you have a silver quarter is to look at the date. All quarters that were minted prior to 1965 contain 90% silver content. If your quarter is from 1964 or earlier, then it is a silver quarter.
Silver Quarter Worth
At the very minimum, a silver quarter is worth its weight in silver. A 90% silver quarter has an overall gross weight over around 6.25 grams. Therefore, it has roughly 5.625 grams of silver. Based on the spot price, the intrinsic value of the silver is worth significantly more than the face value. Which is the primary reason that the government stopped to use of silver and made the switch to clad coins.
An easy way to estimate how much your silver quarters are worth is that each $1.00 Face Value, or four silver quarters, contains .715 troy ounces of silver. This is a commonly accepted weight that takes into consideration that there may be some wear and tear from circulation.
For more information about which silver quarters may be key dates and have some numismatic value you can check out the page on coinflation.com.
You can easily compare online dealer prices for 90% silver quarters:
