Gold Sovereign Value by Year: What Is Your Sovereign Worth?
What a full or half sovereign is worth at today's gold price, which years and mints collectors pay more for, how to read the mint mark, and how to spot a fake.
How much is a gold sovereign worth?
- A full sovereign holds 7.3224 g of pure gold, worth … at today's price; a half holds 3.6612 g, worth ….
- Most dates sell for their gold value plus a small premium.
- Key dates are worth far more: a 1920 Sydney sovereign sold for €942,400 in 2021, and the Royal Mint sold an 1819 for £100,000.
- Check the date and the mint letter above it, keep proofs in their cases, and never clean a coin.
In this article
What is a gold sovereign worth today?
Every sovereign has a floor price: the gold inside it. A full sovereign weighs 7.98 grams and is struck in 22ct gold, 916.7 parts per thousand, so it holds 7.3224 grams of pure gold. At today's spot price that gold is worth ….
| Full sovereign | Half sovereign | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 7.98 g | 3.99 g |
| Pure gold | 7.3224 g (0.2354 troy oz) | 3.6612 g (0.117 troy oz) |
| Diameter | 22.05 mm | 19.30 mm |
| Thickness | 1.52 mm | |
| Gold | 22ct, 916.7 | 22ct, 916.7 |
| Gold value now | … | … |
Specifications: Royal Mint and Royal Mint half sovereign; thickness and fine weight from MJ Hughes. The gold values update with the live price.
Loading the live gold price…
Enter the weight of several coins together to value a bag of sovereigns. This is the value of the gold at the spot price, not an offer.
Most sovereigns sell for their gold plus a small premium, because they are easy to trade and recognised everywhere. A small number of dates, mints and finishes are worth far more, and those are the ones to check before you sell. See the gold price today and our gold price calculator.
Sovereign value by year: the dates worth more
Two centuries of St George
The modern sovereign was first struck in 1817, with Benedetto Pistrucci's St George on the reverse, and it is still made today.
Across two centuries a few dates were struck in tiny numbers, or melted almost entirely. Collectors pay many times the gold value for those: the key dates are in the table below.
| Date and mint | Why it is wanted | Recorded result |
|---|---|---|
| 1819, London | 3,574 struck; the Royal Mint believes about ten survive | Royal Mint ballot £100,000 (2019); finest known £186,000 at auction (2013) |
| 1828, London | George IV; listed among the most valuable sovereigns | £55,000, mint condition, private sale (2019) |
| 1841, London | 124,054 struck: the Royal Mint calls it a low-mintage key date | Rare in all grades |
| 1879, London | 20,013 struck, Victoria young head | Low mintage for the reign |
| 1916, Ottawa (C) | 6,111 struck but only about 50 known | The rarest Canadian sovereign |
| 1917, London | 1,014,999 struck, then held, exported and largely melted in the 1930s | Rarely seen at auction |
| 1920, Sydney (S) | About four in private hands | €942,400, Monaco, June 2021: a record for a sovereign |
| 1937, Edward VIII | Trial coins only: he abdicated before issue | £1 million, sold by the Royal Mint, January 2020 |
| 1953, Elizabeth II | Struck for a few proof sets given to national collections, never issued | Not on the market |
Sources: Royal Mint, 7 Significant Sovereigns, Royal Mint (1841), Royal Mint press release, January 2020, via CoinsWeekly, Drake Sterling (1819, 1828, 1920 Sydney), Ottawa Mint sovereign and the Heritage catalogue note on the 1917. Checked October 2026. Prices are past sales, not offers.
No sovereigns were struck with any date from 1933 to 1956 except the 1937 and 1953 coins above. A sovereign dated 1950 is not genuine. The one quirk: the Royal Mint struck coins dated 1925 again in 1949 to 1951, goldsovereigns.co.uk notes, and those are real.
Find out what your sovereign is worth
Which sovereign do you have?
Four kinds of sovereign, each valued a little differently. Every coin shown is from our own collection.
An everyday date
Most sovereigns you will find were struck in their millions: the Jubilee and Old Head Victoria coins, Edward VII, nearly all George V dates, the Elizabeth II coins of 1957 to 1968, and the annual coins from 1974. These trade at their gold value plus a modest premium, a little more in top condition.
A half sovereign
Struck in the same 22ct gold, a half sovereign holds exactly half the gold of a full one: 3.6612 grams, worth … today. It measures 19.30 mm across, against 22.05 mm for the full coin.
A proof in its case
Bullion sovereigns are struck for investors, and circulated coins have been through many hands. Proofs are struck slowly from polished dies and sold in cases with a certificate stating the mintage.
They are valued as collectors' pieces, so the case, the certificate and the mintage all count. A proof without its paperwork is harder to sell.
A Gibraltar issue
Look at the legend on the portrait side. Coins ending GIBRALTAR were issued for Gibraltar, many of them sold by the London Mint Office. They are struck in the same 22ct gold to the sovereign weight, but they are not Royal Mint sovereigns and are valued on their own merits.
On tax, the Royal Mint states that its gold bullion coins are exempt from VAT and Capital Gains Tax. Read do you pay tax when you sell gold in the UK for how that works, and how much gold you can sell without ID.
Mint mark and condition
How to find the mint mark
Sovereigns were struck in London and at branch mints across the Empire. London coins carry no mint mark; branch coins carry a small letter. Under a x10 loupe it takes seconds to find once you know where to look.
| Mark | Mint | Sovereigns struck |
|---|---|---|
| None | London (Royal Mint) | 1817 onwards |
| S | Sydney | 1871 to 1926 (its own Sydney Mint design from 1855 to 1870) |
| M | Melbourne | 1872 to 1931 |
| P | Perth | 1899 to 1931 |
| C | Ottawa | 1908 to 1919 |
| I | Bombay | 1918 only |
| SA | Pretoria | 1923 to 1932 |
Sources: goldsovereigns.co.uk, mints and mint marks and Royal Mint.
Where to look for the letter
- St George reverse, 1887 to 1932 (Jubilee and Old Head Victoria, Edward VII, George V): on the ground, above the centre of the date.
- Shield reverse (Victoria, Sydney and Melbourne): below the wreath, above the small rose.
- Young head with St George: on the portrait side, under the head.
No letter means London. The small initials to the right of the date are Pistrucci's, the designer's: they are on every St George sovereign and are not a mint mark.
A branch mint letter on its own does not make a coin rare: most Sydney, Melbourne and Perth dates are as common as London ones. It matters when it matches a key date, such as 1916 C or 1920 S.
Condition: how the grade changes the price
For a key date, condition can multiply the value; for an everyday date it adds a little. UK dealers describe wear with these grades:
| Grade | What you see |
|---|---|
| Fine (F) | Heavy wear: St George's muscles and the hair are flat, the legend is clear |
| Very Fine (VF) | Moderate wear on the high points; most detail visible |
| Extremely Fine (EF) | Light wear on the highest points only; much of the original lustre |
| Uncirculated (UNC or BU) | No wear at all; bag marks from storage are normal |
| Proof | A separate finish, not a grade: mirror fields and frosted design, struck for collectors |
Before you sell: never clean a coin
Never clean, polish or dip a sovereign. Cleaning leaves fine hairlines that any buyer sees, and it can turn a collectable coin back into gold value.
Graded coins sealed in plastic slabs by PCGS or NGC carry a number from the American 70-point scale, such as MS63. Keep slabbed coins sealed.
How to spot a fake sovereign
Sovereigns have been forged for as long as they have existed, and not only in base metal. After Britain stopped making them, clandestine mints in Syria, Italy and Switzerland struck copies for the Middle East, NGC records. When Britain sued, foreign courts asked what law was broken by copying a coin Britain no longer made. Part of the answer was to make sovereigns again: more than 45 million were struck from 1957 to 1968.
| Check | Genuine | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 7.98 g full, 3.99 g half, on a 0.01 g scale | Clearly under weight: wear takes off only a little |
| Size | 22.05 mm across, 1.52 mm thick | Thicker or wider to make up the weight in a lighter metal |
| Magnet | No pull: gold and copper are not magnetic | Any pull at all |
| Ring | A long, clear ring when balanced on a fingertip and tapped | A dull, short clunk |
| Date and mint | A date and letter the mint really struck | 1950, or an I on anything but 1918 |
| Detail | Crisp milling, sharp lettering, smooth fields | Soft detail, pitting or a seam on the edge |
A forgery struck in gold can pass the weight and magnet tests, so a coin worth a premium should be checked by someone who handles sovereigns every day. More on testing: how to tell if gold is real.
How to sell your sovereigns
Start by sorting them
Separate full and half sovereigns, and put aside any key date, any coin with a mint mark, and any proof in its case.
Leave every coin as it is: do not clean, polish or dip any of them. Then:
- Send photos
Both sides of each coin, with the date and the ground line in focus. Use the form below or our free valuation form.
- Get an offer
We check the date, mint and condition, and reply with a figure based on the live gold price and any collector premium. No obligation.
- Get paid
Bring them to Mayfair or Braintree by appointment, or send them fully insured. Payment by bank transfer once checked.
More on selling: sell gold sovereigns, sell Krugerrands, sell your gold and selling gold by post. Inherited coins: see selling inherited gold. For silver coins, see the silver coins value guide and selling pre-1947 silver coins.
Get an offer for your sovereigns
- A sovereign is worth at least its 7.3224 g of gold; a half sovereign at least its 3.6612 g.
- Key dates such as 1819, 1916 Ottawa, 1917 London and 1920 Sydney are worth many times their gold.
- The mint letter sits above the date on most coins; no letter means London.
- Weigh, measure and check the date before you trust a coin, and never clean one.
Questions we are asked
How much is a gold sovereign worth?
At least the value of its gold: a full sovereign holds 7.3224 grams of pure gold, so its gold value moves with the gold price, shown live on this page. Everyday dates sell for that plus a small premium. Rare dates such as 1819, 1917 London and 1920 Sydney are worth far more.
How much is a half sovereign worth?
A half sovereign holds 3.6612 grams of pure gold, exactly half a full sovereign, so its floor value is half the gold value of a full one. Proof half sovereigns in their cases are valued as collectors' pieces.
Which sovereign years are the most valuable?
The 1920 Sydney, of which about four are in private hands, sold for €942,400 in 2021. The 1819 London, the 1937 Edward VIII trial coin, the 1916 Ottawa, the 1917 London and the 1841 London are among the other key dates.
How do I know which mint my sovereign is from?
Look for a small letter: on the ground above the date on most St George coins, under the head on Victoria young head coins with St George, or below the wreath on Sydney and Melbourne shield-back coins. S is Sydney, M Melbourne, P Perth, C Ottawa, I Bombay and SA Pretoria. No letter means London.
How can I tell if my sovereign is real?
A full sovereign weighs 7.98 grams, measures 22.05 mm across and 1.52 mm thick, does not stick to a magnet and rings clearly when tapped. Its date must be one that was struck: nothing dated 1933 to 1956 exists except 1937 and 1953.
Do you pay tax when you sell gold sovereigns?
The Royal Mint states that its gold bullion coins are exempt from VAT and Capital Gains Tax. Our guide to tax on selling gold in the UK explains the rules.
Is a proof sovereign worth more than a bullion one?
Proofs are valued as collectors' pieces, so the mintage, the case and the certificate count. Keep them together: a proof without its paperwork is harder to sell.
Should I clean my sovereigns before selling?
No. Cleaning leaves hairline scratches and can cut the value of a collectable coin to its gold value. Sell them as they are.
Selling gold sovereigns?
Send photos of both sides of each coin. We buy full and half sovereigns, proofs and whole collections directly, and the valuation is free.
- We buy directly
- Free valuation from photos
- Appointments in Mayfair and Braintree
- Insured postage or collection
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