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What inflation does to the coins in your pocket
Inflation means each dollar buys less. Face-value coins stay at face value. Silver and gold coins do not. That is why 1964 dimes are not spent.
Inflation means a dollar buys less than it used to.
A loaf of bread costs more dollars. A 2026 quarter is still 25 cents of spending money. It just buys less bread.
Why old silver left circulation
Before 1965, US dimes and quarters were 90% silver. When the silver in a dime became worth more than ten cents, people stopped spending the dimes. They spent the new clad coins instead. Why 1965 changed pocket change. 90% silver.
The face value did not change. The metal value did. Face value. What money is. Seigniorage.
What this means at a shop
Clad change is face value. 90% silver is metal value, counted by face as a shortcut. Gold coins are metal value, almost never face value. A shop does not “cause” inflation when they pay you more dollars for an ounce than they did ten years ago. The ounce is the same. The dollar moved.
More on the coin and money library.