Could the 5p coin in your change be worth over £60?

The Kew Gardens 50p, Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland £2 and ANY of the A-Z 10ps are likely to be on your collecting wish-list, but have you ever considered that some of the 5p coins in your change might be worth holding on to?

5p coins.
Credit: eBay

The smallest of our UK coinage – weighing in at just 3.25g, with a diameter of only 18mm – is often overlooked when it comes to collecting. But what if I told you some of them have been known to sell for over £60 on the secondary market?!

What are the rarest 5p coins?

1977 5p

Unlike the Kew Gardens 50p (which has a mintage of just 210,000), 5p coins are often minted in the tens of millions, or even billions! However, the 1977 5p is the rarest with a mintage figure of 24,308,000. Compare this to the 1990 5p which had a circulating mintage of 1,634,976,005 and you’ll see why it’s pretty rare!

1977 5p coin
Credit: The Royal Mint

2008 First 5p with the shield design

In 2008, 40 years after the first decimal coins appeared in circulation, our UK definitive coins had a face lift, with brand new designs being released.

A competition was held, with people submitting their designs for the six key coin denominations, leaving out the £2 coin. Over 4,000 designs were submitted, but graphic designer Matthew Dent won the competition with his heraldic design of six coins, with the 1p-50p coins aligning to form the Royal Shield – shown as a complete design on the £1 coin.

As the first year definitive coins were issued with the shield design, 2008 dated 5ps are somewhat coveted by collectors. Although you’re unlikely to see the 2008 or 1977 5p coins fetch above face value, they are certainly interesting ones to collect.

But the real interest comes if you’re lucky enough to find the error 5p coins

Spot These 5p Error Coins

Inverted effigy 2008 5p

Another reason to keep an eye out for a 2008 dated 5p coins is that an unknown number were released into circulation featuring the Queen’s head on the obverse upside down. These error coins are extremely rare and some have been listed on the secondary market for more than £60!

2008 5p with Queen’s head upside down.
Credit: eBay

‘Struck twice’ 1979 5p ‘Error’

On this larger specification ‘New Five Pence’ which is no longer in circulation, but a suspected error was found, where it appeared to have been struck twice on the same side in error. This would mean both the Queen’s head from the obverse and the design on the obverse would be merged together on the same side of the coin.

This ‘error’ hasn’t been confirmed as genuine by The Royal Mint and with closer inspection, it looks as though the reverse design is from a 2p coin – suggesting it might have been tampered with after it was struck.

However one collector sold theirs for £73 on eBay, meaning it always worth looking out for any unusual coins you might have lying around! Just remember, you should always get your error coins confirmed by the mint to prove they are genuine.

1979 Error 5p.
Credit: eBay

The 5p Coins Not Intended for Circulation

From time to time, coins that were never intended for circulation find their way into our change.

They might have been issued in collector sets, broken open and accidentally spent before finding their way into your pocket!

There are two dates to look out for when it comes to 5p coin that shouldn’t be in your change – 1993 and 2018.

Prior to 1990, the 5p coins were issued in the larger specification and so these ones should also no longer be found in your change.


Have you come across any rare or error 5p coins in your change? Let us know in the comments below!

Complete the shield with the Royal Arms Shield Collector Card!

Designed to fit neatly into your Change Checker Album, this Collector’s card allows you to assemble the Royal Arms Shield by simply using your loose change.

Click here to secure yours and start your shield collection today >>

NEW 50p ENTRANTS and HUGE shake-ups! Your latest Scarcity Index Update…

It’s time for your latest Scarcity Index update, where we reveal the UK’s most sought-after circulation coins of the last three months!

Our 50p Index sees TWO new entrants with the issue of Platinum Jubilee and Pride 50ps into circulation, with our £2 and 10p Indexes both seeing HUGE shake-ups.

You can use the updated A-Z 10p, 50p and £2 indexes below to discover how sought-after the coins in your collection really are.

This information has been compiled using data from the Change Checker Swap Centre and presented in the easy to use indexes below, with arrows to signify how many places up or down a coin has moved since the last Scarcity Index.

50p Index

As we received updated mintage figures for the Pride and Platinum Jubilee 50p coins, they also made their debut in our 50p Index!

Ahead of the Platinum Jubilee weekend, the Royal Mint issued a further 1 million Platinum Jubilee 50p coins into circulation, meaning there are now 2.3 million out there for Change Checkers to find!

To celebrate 50 years since the first UK Pride Event, a brand new Pride 50p was issued into circulation, with a circulating mintage of 5 million!

As more Change Checkers find these coins in their change, it’ll be great to see how their position on our 50p Index shapes up.

Other key movers include the Triathlon 50p, which has climbed 5 places, now sitting in second place on our Scarcity Index.

The Paddington at the Palace 50p has also climbed an impressive 14 places. It seems Paddington’s appearance at Her Majesty’s Party at the Palace has driven up the collectability of this coin!

A-Z 10p Index

This quarter, the Robin 10p takes the top spot again after climbing 3 places! Just 284,000 of these 10p coins were issued between 2018 and 2019, making it one of the rarest 10p coins out there!

Looking elsewhere on the index, the Fish and Chips 10p has climbed 8 spots. With all the recent lovely sunshine we’ve been treated to, it seems that collectors are on the hunt for their favourite seaside treat!

Other key movers include the Postbox and Union Jack 10p coins, which have moved 8 and 9 places respectively.

Regardless of where they feature in the above index, if you have any of the A-Z 10ps in your collection you should consider yourself very lucky. A maximum of only 304,000 of each design entered circulation!

£2 Scarcity Index

There’s been a huge shake-up to our £2 Scarcity Index this quarter with the Commonwealth Games Wales £2 bumping back up into the top five.

The Wireless Transmission £2 coin has also made a climb up the board (by 14 places). As 4,558,000 have entered circulation since 1997, it can be quite a task to find one in your change. Have you got this coin in your collection?

Other coins to watch include the DNA £2, which has climbed by 5 places, and the Britannia £2, which climbed by 4.

How your Scarcity Index works

Generally collectors have had to rely upon mintage figures to identify the scarcest coins.  But they only tell part of the story.  Trying to find a good quality coin from 15 – 20 years ago, even for a higher mintage issue, is much more challenging than a more recent issue, as coins become damaged over time and are ultimately removed from circulation.

Additionally, some designs are more hoarded than others by people who might not normally collect coins – the poignant First World War £2 Coin series being an example. Finally, it can be up to a couple of years before the Royal Mint eventually confirms the actual mintage for an issue.

That’s why we have combined the mintage information with two other key pieces of information.

  • How many of each design are listed as “collected” by Change Checkers, indicating the relative ease of finding a particular coin.
  • The number of times a design has been requested as a swap over the previous 3 months, showing the current level of collector demand.

Importantly, as new coins are released and popularity rises and falls across different designs the Scarcity Index will be updated quarterly allowing Change Checkers to track the relative performance of the UK’s circulation coins.

How much are my coins worth?

The Scarcity Index does not necessarily equate to value but it is certainly an effective indicator.  For example, the Kew Gardens 50p coin commands a premium of up to 200 times face value on eBay.

You can use the 6 point guide to help you determine a more realistic value for your coins.

What about £1 Coins?

The £1 Scarcity Index has already been published for the Round £1 coins and, because they are no longer being issued, this is now set in stone.

Receive new UK coins without the hassle of placing orders on the day of release!

Join the Change Checker UK CERTIFIED BU Subscription Service and receive new UK coins sent to your door without the hassle of placing orders on the day of release!

Don’t miss your chance to get ahead of the crowd and be one of the very first collectors to receive the latest UK new issue coins as soon as possible after their release.

The biggest movers EVER! Your Scarcity Index Update…

It’s time for your latest Scarcity Index update, where we reveal the UK’s most sought-after circulation coins of the last three months! As we continue to go out and spend more cash, we’ve seen some BIG movers and shakers on our Scarcity Index.

One 50p now holds the title as the biggest EVER mover since our Scarcity Index started! And, there’s some HUGE movers on our A-Z 10p Index too…

You can use the updated A-Z 10p, 50p and £2 indexes below to discover how sought-after the coins in your collection really are.

This information has been compiled using data from the Change Checker Swap Centre and presented in the easy to use indexes below, with arrows to signify how many places up or down a coin has moved since the last Scarcity Index.

50p Scarcity Index

The latest 50p Scarcity Index. Dated 22nd February 2022.

Whilst the top of our 50p Index has remained relatively untouched, there have been some big shakeups to the rest of the coins!

The Olympic Shooting 50p has dropped by an astonishing 24 places, which is the biggest mover EVER on our Scarcity Index since it started.

We’ve also seen the Olympic Volleyball 50p and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 50p coins climb 10 and 12 places respectively making these the ones to watch.

With lots of big movers on our 50p Index, and the recent release of the Platinum Jubilee 50p into circulation, it’s a reminder to keep checking your change as you never know what treasure you’ll discover.

When we have a confirmed total mintage figure for the Platinum Jubilee 50p, we’re excited to see this brand new coin make its Scarcity Index debut.

A-Z 10p Scarcity Index

The latest A-Z 10p Index. Dated 22nd February 2022.

There are some HUGE movers on the A-Z 10p Scarcity Index this quarter!

In the biggest shake up we’ve ever seen on our 10p Index the Postbox 10p has climbed an incredible 19 places!

Other big movers also include the K for King Arthur 10p, having climbed 13 places, and the Fish and Chips 10p which has climbed 10 places too!

The Robin 10p has been bumped off the top spot by the Zebra Crossing design, which has a 2019 mintage of just 63,000, making it one of the rarest A-Z 10p coins!

Regardless of where they feature in the above index, if you have any of the A-Z 10ps in your collection you should consider yourself very lucky. A maximum of only 304,000 of each design entered circulation!

Other key movers include the Union Jack 10p which has been bumped down 15 places and the G, H, and I 10p coins have also climbed up 8 coins each.

£2 Scarcity Index

The latest £2 Scarcity Index. Dated 22nd February 2022

Despite a quite last quarter for the £2 coins, this Scarcity Index update sees lots of movers across the middle and top of the board. We’ve even seen all but one of the Commonwealth Games coins shuffle around!

The Commonwealth Games Wales £2 has moved up by 7 places and the Wireless Transmission £2 has also climbed by 6 places!

Another coin to watch is the Great Fire of London £2 which has jumped up 5 places!

How your Scarcity Index works

Generally collectors have had to rely upon mintage figures to identify the scarcest coins.  But they only tell part of the story.  Trying to find a good quality coin from 15 – 20 years ago, even for a higher mintage issue, is much more challenging than a more recent issue, as coins become damaged over time and are ultimately removed from circulation.

Additionally, some designs are more hoarded than others by people who might not normally collect coins – the poignant First World War £2 Coin series being an example. Finally, it can be up to a couple of years before the Royal Mint eventually confirms the actual mintage for an issue.

That’s why we have combined the mintage information with two other key pieces of information.

  • How many of each design are listed as “collected” by Change Checkers, indicating the relative ease of finding a particular coin.
  • The number of times a design has been requested as a swap over the previous 3 months, showing the current level of collector demand.

Importantly, as new coins are released and popularity rises and falls across different designs the Scarcity Index will be updated quarterly allowing Change Checkers to track the relative performance of the UK’s circulation coins.

How much are my coins worth?

The Scarcity Index does not necessarily equate to value but it is certainly an effective indicator.  For example, the Kew Gardens 50p coin commands a premium of up to 200 times face value on eBay.

You can use the 6 point guide to help you determine a more realistic value for your coins.

What about £1 Coins?

The £1 Scarcity Index has already been published for the Round £1 coins and, because they are no longer being issued, this is now set in stone.

Receive new UK coins without the hassle of placing orders on the day of release!

Join the Change Checker UK CERTIFIED BU Subscription Service and receive new UK coins sent to your door without the hassle of placing orders on the day of release!

Don’t miss your chance to get ahead of the crowd and be one of the very first collectors to receive the latest UK new issue coins as soon as possible after their release.