US Franklin Half Dollar 1948 to 1963

US half dollars contain 0.361 troy ounces of silver. No matter what, they are worth at least their weight in silver. Even if they are worn, cleaned, or damaged, their minimum value is 0.361 times the current price of silver. Look up the price on kitco.com. If, for instance, silver is trading at $20 US dollars per troy ounce, the silver in a half dollar is worth 0.361 x 20 = $7.22. This is called Base Value or Bullion Value (BV).

Pricing the large majority of Franklin halves is not complicated unless the coin is in excellent numismatic (coin collecting) condition. Most coins follow these rules:

worn: BV (base silver value, see above)
average circulated: BV + $3
well preserved: BV + $6
fully uncirculated: see discussion below

Here are lists of the current bids on common date Benjies before and after 1956. In the lists, MS65 means absolutley, fully uncirculated with nary a mark, spot, or scratch, MS60 means fully uncirculated, but a little beat up from being rattled around with other uncirculated coins, and AU means circulated but still in excellent shape.

Before 1956:
MS65: $100 US dollars
MS64: $50
MS63: $30
MS60: $25
AU50: BV + $10

1956 and after:
MS65: $60
MS64: $30
MS63: $20
MS60: $15
AU50: BV + $8

For coins that are fully uncirculated, these are a few better dates and mint marks:

BETTER DATE BENJIES
1949: $120 in MS65, $70 in MS63
1949D: $500 in MS65, $70 in MS63
1949S: $120 in MS65, $90 in MS63
1952S: $100 in MS65, $70 in MS63

If your coin has unusually good eye appeal, is pure white with plenty of luster, or has better than average strike, the value goes up. The values above are catalog value. Actual buy and sell values are lower. See our Terminology page.

There is a little something with these coins that is sure to get collector juices flowing. The first step is to have a coin that is completely uncirculated. Pick it up and look at the side with the big bell. Along the bottom of the bell, several lines go all the way around. If these lines are completely uninterrupted, without any tickmarks, scratches, tiny hairlines or anything of that sort, then the coin could carry a significant premium over prices quoted above. When these lines on the bell are uninterrupted, it is known as a coin with full bell lines. Do an Internet search on 'full bell lines' to see examples. If you believe that you have a fully uncirculated coin with full bell lines, it is a good idea to get the goin professionally graded by a numismatic corporation such as the PCGS or the NGS - they will put the coin into a protective slab where it cannot be tampered with, and certify that the coin is indeed uncirculated, and struck with full, uninterrupted bell lines.
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