Silver buyers are not all in the same business. A bullion dealer, a refiner, a coin shop, a jeweler and a pawnshop can all name a figure for the same box of silver, and the figures can differ a great deal, because each one makes its money from silver in a different way. Knowing which kind of buyer suits your silver is most of the work of choosing one.
Where Can I Sell Silver is an independent referral service, not a buyer, pawnshop or dealer. When you call or send the form, your details go to an independent buyer in New York who makes any offer. This page names no firms and ranks none; it explains how each kind of buyer works.
The kinds of silver buyers at a glance
| Buyer | Suited to | What they pay for | Ask them |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bullion dealer | Bars, rounds, bullion coins | Weight and fineness against spot | Which spot price, and what share of it |
| Coin shop or coin dealer | Old US silver coins, bullion coins, some bars | Silver content, or collector value | Whether any coin is worth more than its silver |
| Refiner | Large lots of scrap and sterling | Tested silver content after melting | Minimum lot, how testing works, any fees |
| Jeweler | Signed and designer silver jewelry | Design and maker, or metal for plain pieces | Whether they buy to resell or to melt |
| Precious metal buyer | Mixed sterling, jewelry and scrap | Weight and fineness of each group | To weigh and price each group separately |
| Estate or antique dealer | Complete flatware sets, hollowware, antiques | Pattern, maker, condition | Whether they buy outright or sell for you |
| Pawnshop | Short-term loans; some also buy | A loan amount, or a purchase price | Whether the figure is a loan or a sale |
Bullion dealers
Bullion dealers buy and sell bars, rounds and bullion coins such as the American Silver Eagle, which federal law sets at 31.103 grams of .999 fine silver. Because bullion carries its weight and fineness on its face, a dealer can price it quickly and resell it as it is, without melting. That makes bullion the easiest silver to compare between buyers: ask each one the same question for the same items.
Ask a bullion dealer which spot price the offer is based on and how the offer relates to it. A dealer may pay differently for different products, so a well-known refiner’s bar or a government coin may be priced differently from a generic round of the same weight. The where to sell silver bars page covers bullion in depth.
Coin shops and coin dealers
A coin shop buys bullion and old coins. Its particular value to you is knowledge: US dimes, quarters and half dollars made before the 1965 change were 90% silver, and half dollars made under the 1965 Act were 40% silver, but a few coins are worth more to a collector than their silver. A coin dealer can tell the difference; a melter will not try. If you have a jar of old coins, sort out anything in unusually fine condition and ask about those separately.
Refiners
A refiner melts silver and recovers the pure metal. Refiners suit large quantities of scrap and sterling, where melting is the end use anyway. Because the silver is assayed after melting, the figure rests on tested content rather than on marks. Ask about any minimum quantity, how testing is done and whether fees are taken from the payment. A refiner pays nothing for craftsmanship, so do not send a refiner anything a collector might want.
Jewelers
A jeweler who buys secondhand pieces may value signed sterling jewelry by a known house as jewelry, which can be more than its metal. For plain chains, rings and bracelets, many jewelers price by weight, much as a precious metal buyer does. Ask whether the jeweler is buying to resell the piece or to send it for melting, since that tells you which value they are offering.
Precious metal buyers
A precious metal buyer takes the mixed box most people actually have: some sterling flatware, a few chains, a broken bracelet, odd earrings. Ask the buyer to sort it with you, say how anything unmarked will be tested, weigh each group and price it by fineness. Ask for each group’s weight and fineness to be written on the offer. For tableware, the sell sterling silver page explains steel blades, weighted bases and other things that reduce the silver weight; for broken pieces, see where to sell scrap silver.
Estate and antique dealers
Estate and antique dealers look at pattern, maker, age and condition. They are worth asking when you have a complete flatware service, decorative hollowware or pieces with a history. Some buy outright; others sell on your behalf for a share of the price. Find out which before you hand anything over, and get a written list of what they have taken.
Pawnshops
A pawnshop’s main business is lending money against goods. In New York City, lending against pledged goods needs a separate DCWP Pawnbroker license, distinct from the Secondhand Dealer license a buyer needs. If you want to sell, make sure the figure you are given is a purchase price and not a loan amount: a loan has to be repaid to get the silver back, while a sale ends with the silver gone and the payment yours.
Online and mail buyers
Some silver buyers work only online, and you ship to them. Under New York City rules, a business that buys exclusively online is exempt from the DCWP Secondhand Dealer license, so the city’s protections at the counter (posted license, the troy weight told to you on an approved scale) do not apply in the same way. If you consider a mail buyer anywhere, read how the silver is covered against loss in transit, how it is weighed and tested on arrival, what happens if you refuse the offer, and how long that takes.
Silver buyers near me: a nearby buyer versus the right one
Searches for silver buyers near me show the closest shops on a map, which is a fair place to start but not a reason to sell. Distance matters less than fit: a nearby jeweler may be the wrong buyer for a 100-ounce bar, and a bullion dealer the wrong one for a signed designer bracelet. A phone call first, describing what you have, tells you whether a trip is worth making.
What the best place to sell silver has in common
No page can honestly name the best place to sell silver for everyone, because the right buyer depends on what you have. The good ones share some habits you can check for yourself:
- They tell you the weight and fineness they are paying for, in a unit you understand.
- They weigh where you can see the reading. In New York City they must tell you the troy weight.
- They separate sterling from plate and explain why a piece is or is not counted.
- They point out pieces that may be worth more than melt rather than quietly buying them by weight.
- They put the offer in writing and let you take time to decide.
- In New York City, their DCWP license is posted where you can see it and its number is on the receipt.
Silver buyers in New York City
Manhattan’s Diamond District is on West 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in midtown, and the 47th Street Business Improvement District describes it as the largest concentration of diamond and jewelry related companies and retailers. Wherever a buyer is in the city, the same DCWP rules apply: official ID and your signature, a recorded sale, no buying from minors and a 15-day hold before resale. The sell silver NYC page covers the boroughs.
Before you approach any buyer, work out a rough melt value with the method in sell silver, so you know where an offer stands. On taxes, some larger sales of certain bullion coins and bars may be reported by the dealer to the IRS on Form 1099-B; ask a tax professional about your own sale.
Not sure which kind of buyer suits your silver? Call or send the form and an independent New York buyer can look at what you have.
Questions people ask
Where should I sell silver to get the most for it?
No one can promise a figure, but ask the kind of buyer your silver suits: bullion to a bullion dealer or coin shop, collectible coins to a coin dealer, signed pieces to someone who values design, and large lots of scrap to a refiner or precious metal buyer. Then compare written offers based on the same weight and fineness.
Is a pawnshop a good place to sell silver?
A pawnshop’s main business is lending. Some also buy, but make sure the figure is a purchase price and not a loan. In New York City, pawnbroking needs its own DCWP license.
Do silver buyers pay spot price?
Spot is the price of pure silver in the market. A buyer’s offer is usually below the melt value of your silver because the buyer pays to refine it and needs a margin. Ask any buyer which spot price their offer uses.
How do I check a silver buyer in New York City?
Ask to see the DCWP Secondhand Dealer license, which should be posted where customers can see it, and check that its number is printed on the receipt.
Should I take all my silver to one buyer?
Not always. Bullion, collectible coins and signed jewelry may each do better with a different kind of buyer. It is fine to sell different groups in different places.
Describe your silver