2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel
The 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel is a Canadian nickel struck for circulation with 20 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2017
- Circulation mintage
- 20,000,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Composition
- Plated steel
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel worth?
With 20 million made, the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel is common and worth face value in circulated condition. Only uncirculated coins with full luster, recognized varieties and genuine errors interest collectors.
What would make yours worth more:
- Full uncirculated luster
- A recognized variety or genuine error
- Coins from a specimen or proof set
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel rare?
- No. 20 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian nickels were made?
- 20,000,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel made of?
- Plated steel. It weighs 3.95 g and measures 21.2 mm.
- Is the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian 5-cent coins are legal tender.
The 2017 nickel in context
For Canada's 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017, the Royal Canadian Mint issued special designs on every circulating coin. The designs came from a national contest in which Canadians submitted ideas and then voted for their favorites. The five cents carries the double date 1867 2017 along with the winning reverse, titled Living Traditions. Each denomination received its own anniversary design for the year.
The mint struck 20,000,000 of the Canada 150 nickels, far fewer than the 126,680,000 regular beavers dated 2017. That makes the commemorative the scarcer of the two, though it is still very common in change. The coin follows in the footsteps of the 1967 centennial rabbit, which marked the hundredth anniversary fifty years earlier. Collectors who enjoy anniversary coins often keep both side by side. The 2017 set as a whole was popular and many people kept a full run of the five special coins from their change, so the nickel often turns up together with its companions. Twenty million is still a lot of coins, so patience in checking change usually pays off.
How to recognize it
Gerald Gloade's Living Traditions design shows a beaver reimagined through the eyes of the Mi'kmaw artist's own First Nations culture. It is a bold, stylized image, very different from the Kruger Gray beaver used on regular coins. CANADA, 5 CENTS and the dates 1867 and 2017 surround it. The obverse shows Susanna Blunt's portrait of Elizabeth II. Struck in multi-ply plated steel on a round flan, it clings to a magnet. On a sharp coin the bold lines of the beaver are crisp and even. Its flowing lines read clearly even on a worn coin. The rim and lettering follow the usual layout.
2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel ranks 93rd lowest of 161 Canadian nickel dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1945 Steel Canadian Nickel (18.9 million); the next more common is the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel (24.8 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Nickel with 278.5 million, about 14 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Nickel with 200,000, 100 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 2017 output was 7 times fewer than 2016 and 4.4 times fewer than 2018. Other 2017 five cent coins: 2017 Canadian Nickel (126.7 million).
Over the 2010s the Mint produced 1.26 billion five cent coins across 11 dates and varieties; the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel accounts for 1.6% of that.
What to check on your 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel
- Try a magnet. Plated steel is magnetic, so a genuine 2017 coin sticks; a silver one would not.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Look for full luster and no scratches. Modern five cent coins only interest collectors in uncirculated condition or with a recognized variety.
The Canada 150 nickel is common and usually holds face value in circulated grades. It is worth keeping one as a souvenir of the anniversary, especially in uncirculated condition. Look for coins with no scratches across the beaver and clean, unworn plating. The full set of Canada 150 coins makes an easy and attractive collection. Check that the date reads 1867 2017, since the regular beaver of 2017 is a different coin. Coins pulled straight from rolls are often the best preserved. Keep the best one.
Plated steel nickels (2000 to 2024)
To cut costs the Royal Canadian Mint moved the nickel to multi-ply plated steel, a steel core with thin layers of copper and nickel plated over it. Apart from a small number of 1999 test coins, coins dated 2000 were the first made this way. They carry a small P under the portrait, which stands for plated. They also stick to a magnet. Coins without the P were still struck alongside them in several years. From 2006 the Royal Canadian Mint's maple leaf logo began to replace the P as the mark on these coins.
Susanna Blunt's uncrowned portrait of Elizabeth II replaced Dora de Pédery-Hunt's in 2003. Several commemoratives broke up the beaver run: the 2002 Golden Jubilee double date, the 2005 return of the wartime Victory torch and the 2017 design for Canada's 150th. When the cent stopped being distributed in 2013, cash totals began to be rounded to the nearest five cents and the nickel became the smallest coin in everyday use. Coins dated 2023 brought the first portrait of Charles III, by Steven Rosati.
Almost every date here is face value. The ones to set aside are the 2000 P, the first steel issue at 2.3 million, the commemorative 2005 Victory and 2017 Canada 150 coins and any 2023 with the new king. For the early years check whether your coin has a P and test it with a magnet, because the plain and P coins are different metals. Charles III faces left, the opposite way from his mother.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 5 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 2017 |
| Circulation mintage | 20,000,000 |
| Composition | Plated steel |
| Weight | 3.95 g |
| Diameter | 21.2 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Plain |
Other 2017 Canadian nickels
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 Canadian Nickel | 126,680,000 | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
What is on the 2017 Canada 150 nickel?
A stylized beaver called Living Traditions, designed by the Mi'kmaw artist Gerald Gloade of Millbrook First Nation in Nova Scotia. The coin carries the dates 1867 and 2017 to mark 150 years since Confederation.
How many Canada 150 nickels were made?
The mint struck 20,000,000, compared with 126,680,000 regular beaver nickels dated 2017. That makes the commemorative the scarcer of the two, though it is still a common coin today. Many were saved.
Mintage figures: Nickel (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.