Most coin collectors don’t think of terms like “rare” or “valuable” when US Proof and Mint Sets are mentioned, and this wouldn’t be uneducated line-of-thought when you consider that most proof and mint sets dates trade anywhere from less than $10 to under $50 each. However, the most educated collectors know a little better on the subject, and know that valuable and rare coins can be found in mint sets.

The first US Proof Set was issued in 1936 and it’s value has soured to over $6,500 with the 1937 set not far behind in premium. All proof sets from 1955 and back trade for $200 and up, but this is not just exclusive to proof sets, because early mint sets like the 1947 double set can sale for premiums in excess of $1,100. And any US Mint Sets from 1958 and earlier trade for $130 and up, depending on their year.

Of course, these mint sets are rare and often difficult to find, there’s other, more modern, proof sets that bring a premium for other reasons. For example, the 1970-S, Level 7, Small Date Cent can trade for $100 and up and the 1979-S with a Clear S mint mark can trade for similar values, but this is only a sample of the valuable mint and proof sets that can still be “discovered” in common collections.

Not only that, but deep cameo high grade examples often bring premiums in the thousands of dollars, and many collectors search out unopened sets just for this reason. Many valuable Proof, Deep Cameo, Franklin Halve Dollars have been discovered in early proof sets not to mention other denominations.

Also, there’s many proof sets that might contain errors, varieties, or other rarities, and no one on knows just how many might still be undiscovered, in collections all over the US. Who knows, there might be a yet undiscovered rarity in a proof set just waiting for a someone to discover it. But for now, below is list that can help you find the rarities that have been found.

Note: Silver proof sets are in red boxes and clad proof sets and mint sets are found in blue boxes from 1999 to the present, but from 1992-1998 the silver proof sets are housed in black boxes.

US Proof Sets
1936 $6,500
1937 $3,700
1938 $1,800
1939 $1,700
1940 $1,400
1941 $1,400
1942 $1,200
1950 $ 650
1951 $ 600
1952 $ 325
1953 $ 300
1954 $ 175
1955 $ 175
1970-S Level 7, small date cent $100
1979-S Clear S $115
1981-S Clear S $300
1983-S Prestige Set $110
1990-S No S Cent $6,500
1992-S Prestige Set $120
1995-S Prestige Set $250
1995-S Silver $100
1995-S Silver Premium $100
1996-S Prestige Set $500
1997-S Prestige Set $225
1997-S Silver $100
1997-S Silver Premium $100
1999-S Silver $275
2001-S $125
2001-S Silver $140

Mint Sets
1947 Double Set $1,100
1948 Double Set $575
1949 Double Set $750
1951 Double Set $750
1952 Double Set $700
1953 Double Set $450
1954 Double Set $225
1955 Double Set $140
1956 Double Set $130
1957 Double Set $225
1958 Double Set $130
2004 $60+

The US Mint reports that 140,000,000 collect the State Quarter series in America, and many of these collectors often wonder if they are worth anything or how much they will be worth in the future. It’s a legitimate line of thought considering the millions upon millions of State Quarters the mint churns out every year. However, there are some ways to consider that could help State Quarter collectors get a return on their investment.

Below I highlight 3 different ways to collect the highly sought after quarters, so the chance for a return on your investment should be greater than just putting a few back out of your pocket change.

1. Buy rolls for face value from your local bank, put them away, and don’t ever touch them again until you ready to sale them. You will get these rolls for face value, and they will be unsearched, and unsearched rolls sale for more of a premium than searched rolls. Just check ebay for unsearched State Quarters rolls to see what I mean.
It’s a win-win situation for the collector because you can always get your money back without a loss, when needed, or wait a few years and make a little return for your “savings”. I just think of this as a savings that I can always tap into at a moment’s notice, or continue to add to it, and make more interest than banks allow me to earn if I just made regular deposits from my pay check.

2. Buy State Quarter Silver Proof Sets (red box) from the mint because these coins are silver, and have a substantially lower mintage than the business strikes quarters mentioned above. It’s usually a good idea to collect silver coins and/or the lowest mintage strikes of any series as they almost always allow for a break- even mark, and a good chance of a future return.

If a collector would have bought as many 1999 Silver Proof Sets they could afford, from the mint in 1999, look at the return they would be realizing today considering these proof sets now sale for $350 and up!

3. Read and learn as much about grading State Quarters, and modern coin grading in general, then buy rolls and bags of State Quarters from the mint and/or at your local bank, search these rolls for coins with the least amount of contact marks, and carefully handle them as you put them away in a safe place.
When you are confident that you grading skills have improved enough, then send a few of the coins off to a top tier grading company like PCGS or NGC and see how well you did.

You might first discover your skills lacking, but after a few submissions you will get the hang of the little coin grading nuances, and begin to amass a collection of high grade State Quarters that are valuable and much easier to sale for a premium.

It might prove to be a bit daunting and costly method at first, but before you ride this off as a “too tedious and expensive of a task”, consider this fact: PCGS reports values, for some State Quarters graded MS and Proof in the top two grades of 69 and 70, anywhere from hundreds of dollars and up into the thousands of dollars. It all depends on the population of each grade.

Many State Quarters dates and states have never been graded the perfect grade of 70, and the value of finding one would net the finder many thousands of dollars on a huge auction platform like Heritage Auctions.
*This method is the most difficult to master and can get expensive if you don’t learn grading, but many experienced collectors do make money using this method.

In conclusion, although no method of collecting can guarantee a return for your investment, these methods outlined above where written considering a few history lessons, and the study of coins values and why certain rolls and graded coins are most valuable.

Disclaimer: The author does not guarantee that any collector will earn any money from the methods in this article, and is not responsible for any monetary losses if you try them.

Check out our coin guides on ebay Ebay Guides