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How to Determine the Price of Silver

Pure silver bullion is traded on the international commodities market. As such, its value per ounce changes hour by hour. Most silver in the home is .925 fine; that is, it has 925 parts silver per thousand, with 75 parts being copper or some other alloy. To work out a fair price for a piece of silver, you need to know its weight, its degree of fineness and the market value of bullion silver on that day.

Things You'll Need

Jeweler's loupe
Digital scales

Instructions

- 1
  Search the item of silver for a hallmark, using a jeweler's loupe. Look for the words "silver," "sterling" or the impressed numerals "925." British silver carries the lion passant, an emblem of a lion in profile. All of these marks will mean that the item is .925 fine.
- 2
  Weigh the item on a pair of digital scales. Specialist jeweler's scales are available from online antiques accessories stores, but domestic scales should serve just as well.
- 3
  Go online and type the terms "spot price silver" into your search engine. Search among the hits for a site with a regularly updated table of silver prices, usually expressed in US dollars per ounce. Alternatively, consult the business section of any broadsheet newspaper.
- 4
  Type "silver value calculator" into your search engine. This should bring up a list of sites that will perform the calculation for you. All you have to do is fill in the appropriate fields with the information gathered. Most sites will quote the current market value of silver, although you can enter your own value if you wish.

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