Top 100 Most Valuable Jefferson Nickels Worth Money List (1938-Present)

In 1938, German immigrant Felix Schlag won $1,000 in a nationwide competition to design America’s new five-cent coin, beating out 389 other artists. His prize money, worth about $22,000 today, went to pay medical bills after his wife’s death—a bittersweet origin story for a coin series that’s now been in production for over 85 years.

Some of Schlag’s Jefferson nickels are worth far more than his prize. A 1954-S has sold for $35,250, while 1938-D and 1969-D specimens have each brought $33,600. In nearly every case, the value comes down to one thing: Full Steps—five complete, uninterrupted steps visible at the base of Monticello on the reverse, a detail that most Jefferson nickels fail to show clearly.

Looking for rare Nickels from other years?

• Auto Coin Appraisal Tool: Best Coin Identifier App
• (1913 – 1938): Top 60+ Most Valuable Buffalo Nickels Worth Money
• Even Older?: Top 100 Rarest Nickels Worth Money (Most Expensive)
• Misprint Nickels: Rare Nickel Errors List with Pictures
  

Top 100 Jefferson Nickels Worth Money List

Check If Your Jefferson Nickel Is Valuable

 

Most Valuable Jefferson Nickels Worth Money

1. The Ultimate 1954-S Jefferson Nickel: A Collector’s 14-Year Quest

Record Price: $35,250 (PCGS MS67 FS, Legend Rare Coin Auctions)

One collector searched through bank rolls for over 14 years before finding a single 1954-S with Full Steps. That ratio captures the issue better than any statistic.

The 1954-S represents San Francisco’s final year producing Jefferson nickels before a decade-long hiatus. The mint struck 29.3 million pieces, but the striking process worked against the design: the deep hair details on Jefferson’s portrait opposite Monticello’s third pillar “steal” metal flow during striking, causing weak impressions on the steps. San Francisco’s 1954 equipment produced particularly soft strikes, making Full Steps examples almost nonexistent.

PCGS has certified only about 25 Full Steps examples from the entire mintage of 29 million—roughly one in 1.2 million. This MS67 Full Steps is the single finest known.

Check 1954 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

2. The First Denver Jefferson: 1938-D Nickel

Record Price: $33,600 (PCGS MS68+ FS, Heritage Auctions)

Denver began striking Jefferson nickels on October 3, 1938, producing 5,376,000 pieces by year’s end—the first year of a series that would run for over 85 years. Among the three mints that produced Jefferson nickels in 1938, Denver actually struck the highest quality pieces, but finding one with Full Steps remains difficult at any grade.

This MS68+ Full Steps specimen stands alone as the single finest certified at PCGS. It displays pristine surfaces with dusky amber-gold toning and perfectly struck steps on Monticello. No other coin matches its grade.

First-year coins carry inherent collector appeal, and when you pair that with the top-certified grade and Full Steps designation, the $33,600 price follows logically.

Check 1938 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

3. The Moon Landing Year Miracle: 1969-D Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $33,600 (PCGS MS65 FS, Stack’s Bowers)

Denver struck 202 million Jefferson nickels in 1969. Out of all of them, exactly one has been certified Full Steps by either PCGS or NGC. This is it.

The master hub used for Monticello’s design had been in service for nearly 30 years by 1969, growing progressively worn. The result: virtually no 1969-D nickels show complete steps. David Bowers dubbed this coin the “Golden Fleece” of Jefferson nickels; numismatic writer Scott Schechter said owning it would make someone “the King of Jefferson Nickel Collectors.”

The coin exhibits brilliant platinum-white surfaces with pearlescent luster and faint prooflike reflectivity. At MS65, the grade itself is modest—the value is entirely driven by the Full Steps designation and the fact that it’s the only one.

Check 1969 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

4. The Phantom Mint Set Mystery: 1964 SMS Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $32,900 (PCGS SP68 FS, Heritage Auctions)

These coins weren’t supposed to exist. In 1964, a national coin shortage led Mint Director Eva Adams to remove mint marks and halt proof production to discourage hoarding. But behind the scenes, the Mint produced a small number of experimental coins—the 1964 Special Mint Sets—that surfaced nearly 30 years later at a Stack’s auction in 1993, reportedly from Adams’ personal estate after her death in 1991.

Unlike regular 1964 nickels or proofs, SMS specimens display a distinctive satin-like finish with sculptural depth and die polishing lines. The strike quality surpasses even proof coins, showing not just five complete steps but sharp detail on the tiny portico steps flanking Monticello’s entrance.

Only an estimated 20 to 50 sets exist in total. This SP68 Full Steps example from the Steve Strom Collection is one of just six certified at this grade with none finer, displaying lilac and ice-blue coloration across its surfaces.

Whether these were prototypes for the 1965–67 Special Mint Sets, presentation pieces, or test strikes that were never meant to leave the Mint remains unknown.

Check 1964 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

5. The Post-War Puzzler: 1949-D/S Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $32,900 (PCGS MS67 FS, Heritage Auctions)

An Over Mint Mark variety. At the Philadelphia Mint, where all dies were prepared, a worker punched an “S” mintmark into a reverse die intended for San Francisco. Plans changed—possibly San Francisco had enough dies, or Denver needed more—and the die was repurposed by punching a “D” over the existing “S” before shipping it to Denver.

The overpunching wasn’t perfect. The top serif and upper left loop of the underlying “S” remained visible beneath the “D.” Among the 36.5 million nickels Denver struck in 1949, an unknown but small number bore this double mintmark.

This MS67 Full Steps example displays “potent luster and medium caramel-gold and steel-gray toning” with virtually no flaws under magnification. It’s the single finest PCGS-certified example of the variety.

Check 1949 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

6. The War Worker’s Mistake: 1942-D/D Over Horizontal D Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $32,200 (PCGS MS64 FS, Heritage Auctions)

A mint worker punching mintmarks by hand—as was standard in 1942—accidentally positioned the “D” punch horizontally, with the curved side facing down. They corrected it immediately by punching a properly oriented “D” over the misaligned one, but the evidence survived on the struck coins.

The Cherrypicker’s Guide calls this “the rarest of the original 10 major Jefferson varieties in mint state,” with possibly fewer than 100 uncirculated examples surviving. The overlapping mintmarks are easily visible without magnification.

This MS64 Full Steps example is one of only 10 pieces certified in all mint state grades by PCGS, and tied for the highest graded Full Steps specimen of the variety.

Check 1942 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

7. The Transitional Treasure: 1940 Reverse of 1938 Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $28,750 (PCGS PR68, Heritage Auctions)

When the Mint struck proof coins in 1940, someone used an old reverse die from 1938 rather than the updated 1940 version. The difference: wavy, poorly defined steps on Monticello versus the straighter, sharper ones on the standard 1940 reverse. Only a small fraction of the 14,158 proof nickels struck that year bore this obsolete reverse.

According to experts Ron Guth and Bill Gale, this variety is “approximately fifty times rarer” than the normal Reverse of 1940. Whether the Mint was using up old stock or a die setter grabbed the wrong hub is unknown.

This PR68 specimen displays “ice-blue, pink-grapefruit, magenta, and apricot colors” across flawless surfaces. It stands alone as the only PR68 Reverse of 1938 certified by PCGS, with none finer.

Check 1940 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

8. The Neutrality Nickel: 1939-D Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $26,400 (PCGS MS68 FS, Stack’s Bowers)

Denver struck just 3,514,000 Jefferson nickels in 1939—the second-lowest mintage for any regular-issue in the series. The scarcity traces partly to collector psychology: in 1938, the debut year, people eagerly saved the new design. By 1939, the novelty had faded, and fewer people set aside nickels, especially from Denver.

Walter Breen noted that the Reverse of 1938 variety (with wavy steps) comprises about 40% of 1939-D survivors, making Full Steps examples exponentially rarer. This MS68 Full Steps specimen displays “faint gold and peach tones” with “tinges of powder blue accenting the rims.”

It sits alone atop the PCGS Population Report as the single finest example, with none graded higher.

Check 1939 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

9. The Victory Kiss Nickel: 1945-D Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $25,000 (PCGS MS68 FS, eBay 2021)

Denver produced 37.1 million Jefferson nickels in 1945—the final year of the wartime silver-alloy composition before the Mint reverted to standard copper-nickel in 1946. Most survivors show heavy circulation wear, having passed through millions of transactions during the immediate postwar boom.

This MS68 Full Steps specimen displays rainbow toning that developed naturally over decades. The combination of perfect MS68 preservation with Full Steps makes it extraordinarily rare among the millions struck.

Check 1945 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

10. The Armistice Anomaly: 1953-S Jefferson Nickel

Record Price: $24,000 (PCGS MS65 FS, Heritage Auctions)

San Francisco struck 19,210,900 nickels in 1953 using dies that were exhausted and eroded, producing coins with “mushy” features and “orange peel” surfaces. The hardness of the copper-nickel alloy compounded the problem—the metal simply refused to flow properly into Monticello’s step details.

Expert Jaime Hernandez stated it directly: “For Jefferson Nickels from 1938 to 1960, the 1953-S Jefferson Nickel is the most difficult coin to find with Full Steps characteristics.” Bernard Nagengast called it one of the “real stoppers” in the series. Among 19 million struck, PCGS has certified only 24 coins with Full Steps—roughly one in 800,000.

This MS65 Full Steps specimen displays “warm, glowing toning over frosted surfaces” despite the heavy die erosion that plagued the issue.

Check 1953 Nickel History, Variety Price Chart & Errors List

 

Summary: Rare Jefferson Nickels Worth Money

The pattern across these ten coins is consistent: the Jefferson nickel design makes Full Steps details nearly impossible to achieve in normal production, and certain years—due to worn hubs, poor equipment, or low mintages—are exponentially harder than others. Wartime die-making errors and transitional varieties add another layer of scarcity. Values range up to $35,250, driven almost entirely by the Full Steps designation and the certified population at each grade level.