The 10 Best Silver Coins to Buy for Investment

While many investors are seeking to buy gold for diversification purposes, others are looking for silver as an alternative, or an addition to their precious metals holdings.

One of the ways to invest in this precious metal is to buy silver coins. In this article, we focus on government-issued investment coins for two reasons.

One is that these coins sell only at a small premium over the spot price.

The second is that government-issued bullion coins carry a guarantee as to their purity (given, of course, that you acquire them via a reliable distributor who has guarantees as to their authenticity).

Below is a list of 10 silver coins worth considering for investing purposes.

1. Silver American Eagles

These are one of the most beautiful silver coins issued by the American government. The coins of .999 pure silver and are among the most popular in the world.

2. Silver Buffalos

These coins are also issued by the United States. Their purity is the same as that of the American Eagles. One side of the coin pictures an American Indian, the other a buffalo (thus its name).

3. Silver Canadian Maple Leafs

The Maple Leafs are issued by Canada and are a perfectly viable alternative to the American coins. They also have .999 purity.

4. Vienna Philharmonic Silver Coins

This is a European alternative to both American and Canadian coins. As with Maple Leafs, these coins are a fine substitute for the Eagles. If you’re based in Europe, these coins may even have a lower premium than the North American counterparts.

5. British Silver Britannia Coin

This is the British answer to America, Canada, and Austria. The coins are also .999 pure silver and contain a portrait of Queen Elisabeth.

6. Australian Silver Coins

Australia has issued several kinds of silver coins- with themes containing kangaroos, koalas and kookaburras. All have the same purity of .999 and thus are considered to be an equivalent of similar government-issued silver investment coins. If you’re based in North America or Europe, you’ll likely to pay a bigger premium over spot when buying these silver coins.

7. Chinese Silver Pandas

China is on the way to becoming the largest economy in the world. The Silver Pandas are the Chinese answer to the investors, and are also investment grade with .999 purity, but you need to shop around in order not to over pay.

8. Mexican Silver Libertads

These coins are as pure as the others above, and they also come is small sizes such as 1/20 oz. That’s a viable option for very small investors.

9. Morgan Silver Dollars

These are American coins, some of which are quite old. These actually are .7734 troy oz. of silver, and are still considered to be investment coins.

10. Peace Silver Dollars

These American silver coins are considered to be rather rare as most were issued in 1920s and 1930s. The coins contain .77344 troy oz. of silver.