1908 Canadian Nickel
The 1908 Canadian Nickel is a Canadian nickel struck for circulation with 1.22 million made. Value band: metal value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1908
- Circulation mintage
- 1,220,524
- Value band
- Metal value
- Composition
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1908 Canadian Nickel worth?
The 1908 Canadian Nickel is a silver coin with 0.0345 troy ounces of pure silver, so its floor is its metal value: 0.0345 times the day's silver spot price. With 1.22 million made, worn examples trade for about their silver; collectors pay more for sharp, original coins and much more for uncirculated ones with full luster.
What would make yours worth more:
- Sharp detail with original luster
- A recognized variety for the date
- Professional grading for a key date
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1908 Canadian Nickel rare?
- Not by mintage. 1.22 million were made, but it is silver, so even worn examples are worth their metal value rather than face value.
- How many 1908 Canadian nickels were made?
- 1,220,524 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1908 Canadian Nickel made of?
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver). It weighs 1.16 g and measures 15.5 mm.
- Is the 1908 Canadian Nickel still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian 5-cent coins are legal tender, but a silver one is worth more for its metal than its face value.
The 1908 nickel in context
The 1908 is the first five cents struck in Canada. The Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint opened its doors in January 1908 and began producing the country's coins, ending half a century of reliance on London and Birmingham. The new mint struck 1,220,524 five cents that year, a low figure compared with the 5,200,000 of 1907. The opening was a source of national pride, since Canada had long wanted to strike its own money rather than ship orders across the Atlantic.
That big 1907 order probably left plenty of coins on hand and the new mint was also busy finding its feet. Whatever the reason, 1908 is the second lowest mintage of the Edward VII years, after only the 1903 London striking. Its status as the first Ottawa year makes it a natural centerpiece for collectors interested in the history of the mint as well as the coins. If a collector could keep only one Edwardian date, this would be a strong choice, since it marks the moment Canadian coinage came home.
How to recognize it
The design did not change for the new mint. The obverse is the crowned bust of Edward VII by George William de Saulles, with EDWARDUS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR. The reverse has 5 CENTS and the date inside a maple wreath under a crown and there is no mint mark, since Ottawa did not use one. The coin weighs about 1.16 g in sterling silver. Two sizes of 8 appear in the date, small and large, both included in the mintage. The master tools came from London, so Ottawa's first coins look almost exactly like the English ones that came before.
1908 Canadian Nickel by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 1908 Canadian Nickel ranks 18th lowest of 161 Canadian nickel dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1889 Canadian Nickel (1.2 million); the next more common is the 1897 Canadian Nickel (1.32 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Nickel with 278.5 million, about 228 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Nickel with 200,000, 6.1 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1908 output was 4.3 times fewer than 1907 and 1.6 times fewer than 1909.
Over the 1900s the Mint produced 28.3 million five cent coins across 12 dates and varieties; the 1908 Canadian Nickel accounts for 4.3% of that.
What to check on your 1908 Canadian Nickel
- Check the date first: silver Canadian nickels carry dates from 1858 to 1921; this one has 0.0345 troy oz. Silver coins are not magnetic and ring clearly when dropped on a hard surface.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches that collectors spot at once and that cut the value of silver dates sharply.
- Look at the high points of the portrait and the design. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older five cent coins.
Look at the final digit of the date and compare it with the first 9 or 1 to decide between the small and large 8. The 1908 carries a collector premium thanks to its lower mintage and its first year status. It is an easy coin to misread, so make sure the date is not a worn 1903 or 1906. Wear first shows on the crown and on the high points of the wreath. A coin with clear leaf veins and an unworn crown is the one to hold onto.
Edward VII silver five cents (1902 to 1910)
Victoria died in January 1901, but coins dated 1901 still carry her portrait. The new king's effigy reached the five cents in 1902. George William de Saulles modeled Edward VII crowned and robed, with the legend EDWARDUS VII DEI GRATIA REX IMPERATOR. The coin itself stayed the same tiny sterling silver piece of about 1.16 g, with 5 CENTS and the date inside a maple wreath under a crown. Demand was strong in a growing country and yearly mintages climbed from around two million toward five million by 1907.
The big change of the reign was where the coins came from. London and Heaton's Birmingham works both struck five cents dated 1902 and 1903, with the Heaton coins marked H. Then in January 1908 the Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint opened and Canada finally made its own coins. From 1908 every five cent piece was struck in Ottawa. In 1909 the maple leaves on the reverse were reworked, which is why collectors separate round leaf and pointed leaf coins for 1909 and 1910.
The lowest mintage of the reign is the 1903 London striking at 1,000,000, followed by 1908 at just over 1.2 million. The H coins of 1902 and 1903 are easy to tell apart from London strikes if the reverse is clear, so check the reverse carefully for the small H. Wear hits the king's crown and the leaf tips first. Many survivors are scratched, holed or cleaned, so an honest, evenly toned coin with clear leaves is worth more attention than a bright one.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 5 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1908 |
| Circulation mintage | 1,220,524 |
| Composition | Sterling silver (92.5% silver) |
| Weight | 1.16 g |
| Diameter | 15.5 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Reeded |
Frequently asked questions
How can you tell a 1908 was made in Ottawa?
Every five cents dated 1908 was struck in Ottawa, since London and Heaton no longer made Canadian coins. There is no mint mark on the coin, so the date alone tells you where it was struck.
Is the small 8 or large 8 more valuable?
Both versions are counted together in the 1,220,524 mintage, so the figure cannot settle that. Specialist variety guides track the difference and either version is a sound example of the first Ottawa year.
Mintage figures: Nickel (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.