Most silver bars and rounds are .999 fine silver, so their value is roughly the troy ounces stamped on them times today's silver price. Check the weight, purity and maker's mark, compare offers against that melt value, and expect buyers to pay somewhat less than spot.
Bars, rounds and coins: what’s the difference?
- Silver bars are rectangular pieces of silver. They range from small 1 oz bars to large 100 oz and kilo bars.
- Silver rounds look like coins but are made by private mints, not governments. They have no face value.
- Silver bullion coins are issued by government mints and carry a face value, such as the American Silver Eagle or the Canadian Silver Maple Leaf. See our coin list for those.
Bars and rounds are priced almost entirely on their silver content. Unlike some coins, they rarely have collector value, so the math is simpler.
Step 1: Read the stamp
Most bars and rounds are stamped with three things:
- Weight, such as “1 troy oz,” “10 oz” or “1 kilo.”
- Purity, usually “.999 fine silver” or “999.” That means 99.9% silver.
- Maker, the name or logo of the refiner or mint. Larger bars often have a serial number too.
Under US Federal Trade Commission guides, the word “silver” on its own should come with a purity number, and “sterling” means at least 92.5% silver. So a bar marked only “silver” with no number, or a piece marked “silver plated,” needs a closer look.
Some older or novelty bars are made of sterling (.925) instead of .999 silver. Adjust the purity if the stamp says so.
Step 2: Work out the silver value
Silver is priced by the troy ounce, which is about 31.1 grams, a little heavier than a regular kitchen ounce. See troy vs regular ounces.
| Stamped size | Weight in troy ounces |
|---|---|
| 1 oz | about 1 |
| 5 oz | about 5 |
| 10 oz | about 10 |
| 100 oz | about 100 |
| 1 kilo (1,000 g) | about 32.15 |
At .999 purity, almost all of that weight is silver. Multiply the troy ounces by today’s silver price to get the melt value. Our silver calculator does this for you, and the weight converter handles grams and kilos.
Step 3: Weigh and check the bars
Weighing confirms the stamp and catches fakes. A 1 oz bar should weigh about 31.1 grams. A kilo bar should weigh about 1,000 grams. Use a scale that reads to at least 0.1 gram for small bars. See how to weigh gold at home, which works the same way for silver.
Other simple checks:
- Magnet: silver is not magnetic. If a strong magnet sticks firmly, the bar is not solid silver. A bar that doesn’t stick could still be fake, so this only rules things out.
- Size: a fake made of a lighter metal has to be bigger to match the weight, or lighter to match the size.
- Edges and finish: worn spots showing a different color underneath suggest plating.
Fake silver bars and rounds do exist, especially ones copying well-known makers. See how to spot fake gold coins and bars; most of the same checks apply to silver. Buyers usually test bars themselves too. See how buyers test gold.
What affects your offer
Buyers usually pay a little under the spot price for silver bars and rounds, because they need room to cover costs and resell. How much under depends on:
- Maker: bars from well-known refiners and mints are easier to resell, so they usually get better offers than unbranded or homemade pours.
- Size: very small bars and very large bars can both get lower offers per ounce, depending on what the buyer can resell.
- Condition: scratches and tarnish don’t change the silver content, but damaged or bent bars may get a lower offer.
- Paperwork: bars sealed in their original assay card or packaging are simpler to verify.
Don’t clean or polish silver bars before selling. It doesn’t add value and can leave marks.
Some bars sell above melt: older bars from refiners that no longer exist, and art bars with designs, can interest collectors. If you have unusual old bars, ask a coin dealer before selling them for their silver.
Before you sell
- Count the bars and rounds and add up the troy ounces.
- Check today’s price on our silver calculator so you know the melt value.
- Get two or three offers, and ask each buyer for the price per ounce they’re paying. See how to tell if an offer is fair.
- Keep a record of what you sold and what you paid. Selling silver for more than you paid can be taxable. See do you pay taxes when you sell gold?
These values are estimates, not financial or tax advice. Buyers set their own prices.
Last reviewed November 4, 2026. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.