Royal Mint’s most rare and valuable 50p coins in circulation revealed including King Charles III worth up to £700
IT'S worth having a dig around your loose change for any rare and valuable 50p coins.
The Royal Mint, the official maker of British coins, regularly puts limited edition pieces into general circulation.
And because there's only a limited amount they can sell for multiple times their face value.
In some cases, extremely rare 50p pieces have sold for a whopping £950.
So it's definitely worth a root around in your purse or wallet to see if you got anything worth potentially hundreds of pounds.
Bear in mind though, you might not always get such a hefty amount for a rare coin.
RARE COINS AND VALUABLE NOTES
The design of the coin, its condition and whether or not the coin is in circulation also affects how much it could be worth.
You can easily figure out how rare a coin is, by checking its mintage figures.
This relates to how many coins were produced by The Royal Mint.
If a coin has a low mintage, it means there's less in circulation and is therefore rarer and it could potentially be worth more than its face value.
Either way, you'll want to keep an eye out for some in particular which can sell for big numbers.
Salmon - worth up to £120
- Mintage: 200,000
Minted in 2023, the Salmon 50p depicts a salmon fish jumping out of the Atlantic ocean and has King Charles III on the other side.
This makes The Atlantic Salmon coin the first to represent the Kings' face.
There are only 200,000 of the coins in circulation, making this coin quite a rare find.
The highest recent sale we've found on eBay recently was £120 on October 14 with 10 bids.
It also sold for £113 on this day with 11 bids.
Kew Gardens - worth up to £700
- Mintage: 210,000
Kew Gardens is famous for its stunning gardens and scenery.
But despite the design, it's not so easy to get a hold of this coin, of which there are just 210,000 in circulation.
We've seen the coin which was minted in 2009 sell for as much as £707 before on eBay.
However more recently it sold for £320 with 40 bids on October 13.
Peter Rabbit - worth up to £30
- Mintage: 1,400,000
The Peter Rabbit design originates from the famous children's books by Beatrice Potter.
The coin was released in 2018 according to Change Checker.
We've seen it sell for as much as £26 online so is worth digging around for.
In recent months, one was also sold on eBay for £25 on October 13.
Flopsy Bunny - worth up to £17
- Mintage: 1,400,000
The coin was issued in 2018 to celebrate one of Beatrix Potter's most loved children's tales, "The Tale of Flopsy Bunny".
There are 1,400,000 Flopsy Bunny 50ps in circulation according to Change Checker.
One sold for £16.50 on eBay with three bids on October 14.
That is 33 times its worth at a cashier if you weren't to catch the design.
Mrs Tittlemouse - worth up to £16
- Mintage: 1,700,000
The coin was issued in 2018 to celebrate one of Beatrix Potter's most loved children's tales, "The tale of Mrs Tittlemouse".
There are 1,700,000 Mrs Tittlemouse 50ps in circulation according to Change Checker.
One recently sold for £15.99 on October 13.
While another sold for £5.20 in June.
Royal Shield - worth up to £8
- Mintage: 1,800,000
The Royal Coat of Arms details a shield divided into four quarters representing England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Matthew Dent redesigned the coin in 2017.
There are 1,800,000 Royal Shield 50ps in circulation according to Change Checker.
And one recently sold on eBay for £7.95 on September 29.
Sir Isaac Newton - worth up to £20
- Mintage: 1,801,500
The Sir Isaac Newton 50p was first issued in 2017 to mark the 375th anniversary of the famous scientist's birth.
There are currently 1,801,500 in circulation in the UK according to Change Checker.
Back in May, one sold for £8.99, while another went for £13.99 a month earlier.
And one recently sold on eBay for £19.50 on October 1.
Jemima Puddle-duck - worth up to £8
- Mintage: 2,100,000
Jemima Puddle-duck is yet another classic Beatrice Potter character to appear on 50p coins.
The coin was issued in 2016 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the story The tale of Jemima Puddle-duck.
There are currently 2,100,000 in circulation in the UK according to Change Checker.
And one recently sold on eBay for £7.85 with 5 bids on October 14.
Suffragettes - worth up to £5
- Mintage: 3,124,030
The coin was issued in 2003 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU).
This group, founded by Emmeline Pankhurst and other famous suffragettes, who fought for women’s voting rights through civil disobedience and other acts of protests.
There are currently 3,124,030 in circulation in the UK according to Change Checker.
One recently sold for £4.50 on October 1.
WWF - worth up to £2
- Mintage: 3,400,ooo
This special coin was released in 2011, and features the famous WWF panda logo in the middle.
There are currently 3,400,000 in circulation in the UK according to Change Checker.
And one recently sold on eBay for £2 - which is still quadruple its worth.
How much are other 50p coins worth?
Many coins can be worth much more when sold on eBay as part of a collection.
However, sometimes you'll get better individual prices if another enthusiast needs your coin to complete their collection.
The rare Blue Peter Olympic 50p has been flogged on eBay for £205 in the past.
The coin shows an athlete doing the high jump and was drawn by nine-year-old Florence Jackson after winning a competition on the kid's TV show.
Plus, one seller managed to pocket a whopping £63,000 flogging his Battle of Hasting's 50p too.
So-called 'error coins' tend to be worth a lot too, because there's rarely more than a few thousand of them in circulation.
One 50p that was mistakenly struck twice sold for as much as £510 on eBay because it was rare.
It's not only 50ps either - a rare error 10p coin sold for over 1,000 times more than its face value on eBay in the past.
Likewise, there are several rare £2 coins in circulation which could be worth just under £50.
Newer versions could be worth a mint too
You might think that old coins go for the most - but new ones can go for some big sums too.
In 2019, the Royal Mint re-released sets of five of the rarest and most popular 50ps to celebrate half a decade of the coin.
The new coins are made with old designs including Kew Gardens, Girl Guides and Scouts, but are stamped with the 2019 date which could make them super valuable among collectors.
The £90 collectors' proof sets sold out in February 2019, but you can still get uncirculated sets for £45 directly from the Royal Mint.
This year has seen an influx of special edition Harry Potter coins, as well as those with the heads of former monarchs on them too.
Meanwhile, the first commemorative £2 coins featuring King Charles III were released earlier this year.
How do I find out what my coin is worth?
If you're lucky enough to pick up a rare coin in your spare change, it could go for hundreds of pounds depending on how rare it is.
You should check how much the coin is selling for on eBay.
Search the full name of the coin, select the "sold" listing and then toggle the search to "highest value".
It will give you an idea of the amount of money that the coin is going for.
But remember, a buyer could always pull out so the coin may not have gone for the price it says it has.
And watch out for fakes too.
You can also use an online tool that gives you an estimate of how much it could be worth on eBay, as well as any other rare coins you have.
Coin Hunter gives you an estimated valuation of your coin based on the average of the most recent sales, as well as a range of how much you can expect it to fetch.
Plus Change Checker's Scarcity Index will give you a good idea of how rare a coin is.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
You can also join our new Sun Money to share stories and tips and engage with the consumer team and other group members.