Numistify guide

Which Costa Rican Coins Are Silver? Silver Content by Year

Costa Rica’s silver coins are full of traps: coins of the same weight in different finenesses, one year struck in two metals, and counterstamps on three different hosts. Here is every silver coin by date, with its fineness and silver content.

Updated October 2026 · tables generated from Numistify’s coin templates

The short answer

The early reales and peso fractions (1842–1862) are .903, except the real of 1849–1850, debased to .750. The decimal centavos of 1864–1893 are only .750, not .900. The céntimos of 1902–1914 are .900; those of 1917–1918 dropped to .500. The 25 céntimos of 1924, at .650, is the last circulating silver coin of Costa Rica; everything after it is base metal. Silver returned only in commemoratives, from the 1970 proof set onward.

Costa Rican silver coins by year

Not every coin is listed. This table is for reference: it covers the silver coins in Numistify’s catalogue and may not include every coin, date, variety or special issue. If your coin is not here, look it up in a world coin catalogue such as Numista or the Standard Catalog of World Coins, or ask your local coin shop.

Reading the table

Fineness is the share of silver in the coin: .900 means 90% silver. Silver (troy oz) is the pure silver it contains, the figure that sets its metal value — multiply it by the day’s silver price. KM is the coin’s number in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, the quickest way to look it up. Our guide to silver and gold melt value shows the calculation.

Telling them apart

Same weight, different silver. The real of 1849 was debased from .903 to .750 at the same weight, and the .500 50 céntimos of 1917–1918 weighs the same as the .900 coin before it. Only the date separates them.

1917 in two metals. A brass 10 céntimos also carries the date 1917, alongside the .500 silver coin.

The 1923 counterstamps. The 1 colón counterstamp of 1923 was applied to three different host coins, of .750, .900 and .500 silver; the host coin decides the silver content.

Two finenesses, one year. The 1974 wildlife 50 and 100 colones were struck in both .500 and .925 silver, so check the weight. A nickel 100 colones of 1987 contains no silver at all.

What they are worth

Silver content sets a floor, not the value. A scarce date, a rare mint or a coin in fine condition can be worth far more than its metal, so check before selling any coin for its silver: look it up in a world coin catalogue such as the Standard Catalog of World Coins or the NGC World Coin Price Guide, compare auction records and eBay sold listings for the same coin in the same condition, and ask your local coin shop. Our guide to what your coin is worth walks through each step, and are old foreign coins worth anything? covers sorting a mixed lot.

Questions people ask

Are old Costa Rican coins silver?

Many coins up to 1924 are. The early reales are .903, the decimal centavos of 1864–1893 are .750, the céntimos of 1902–1914 are .900 and those of 1917–1918 are .500. The 1924 25 céntimos (.650) is the last circulating silver coin; everything after is base metal, apart from commemoratives.

What is the last Costa Rican silver coin for circulation?

The 25 céntimos of 1924, at .650 silver. Everything after 1924 is base metal; the 1 colón, for example, was cupronickel from 1935.

Are the 1974 Costa Rican wildlife coins silver?

Yes, but the 50 and 100 colones of 1974 exist in both .500 and .925 silver, in the same design and year, at different weights.

Are 1917 Costa Rican 10 céntimos silver?

Some are. The 1917 10 céntimos was struck in .500 silver and also in brass, with the same date.

Related guides

Silver and gold melt value — turning silver weight into a metal value.

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