1964 to today
The Kennedy half dollar
The only half dollar most people have handled, and the one that changed composition twice in seven years. Whether a Kennedy half contains silver depends entirely on its date.
Composition
| Years | Alloy | Weight | Silver | At spot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 90% silver | 12.50 g | 0.3617 ozt | $24.86 |
| 1965-1970 Silver-clad. The only denomination to keep any silver after 1964. | 40% silver | 11.50 g | 0.1479 ozt | $10.16 |
| 1971-2026 Circulating coinage. San Francisco silver proofs are a separate case. | no silver content | 11.34 g | none | - |
The design
Designed by Gilroy Roberts (obverse) and Frank Gasparro (reverse). The obverse shows john f. kennedy facing left; the reverse shows the presidential seal, or independence hall on the bicentennial issue. The coin measures 30.6mm across.
Finding the mint mark
Reverse in 1964, none from 1965 to 1967, then obverse below the neck from 1968 onward.
Mint marks matter more than most people expect: the same date from a different mint can be a common coin or a scarce one. What each letter means.
Every date in the series
- 1964
- 1965
- 1966
- 1967
- 1968
- 1969
- 1970
- 1971
- 1972
- 1973
- 1974
- 1975
- 1976
- 1977
- 1978
- 1979
- 1980
- 1981
- 1982
- 1983
- 1984
- 1985
- 1986
- 1987
- 1988
- 1989
- 1990
- 1991
- 1992
- 1993
- 1994
- 1995
- 1996
- 1997
- 1998
- 1999
- 2000
- 2001
- 2002
- 2003
- 2004
- 2005
- 2006
- 2007
- 2008
- 2009
- 2010
- 2011
- 2012
- 2013
- 2014
- 2015
- 2016
- 2017
- 2018
- 2019
- 2020
- 2021
- 2022
- 2023
- 2024
- 2025
- 2026
Dashed dates are years when no half dollar was struck.
Weights, finenesses and diameters are Mint specifications set by the Coinage Acts. Silver weight is calculated from them. No mintage figures or catalogue values appear on this site; here is why.