What Is a 1989 Canadian Silver Dollar Worth?
If you are holding one and wondering, the answer is almost always its silver, not its rarity. A 1989 Silver Maple Leaf contains one full troy ounce of .999 silver, so its floor is one ounce at the current silver price — many times the $5 CAD face value stamped on it. Condition adds to that: a coin still in its original mint packaging, unhandled, is worth more than one that has been carried in a pocket.
With 3,332,200 struck, this is not a scarce coin. What it is, is a genuine second-year issue from a series that has run continuously since 1988, in a year when production tripled.
Why 1989 Matters in the Series
The Silver Maple Leaf launched in 1988 with a mintage of 1,115,000. In its second year the Royal Canadian Mint pushed output to 3,332,200 — nearly three times as many — as demand for the first .9999-era Canadian bullion coin took hold.
1989 was also the last year Arnold Machin’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the coin. From 1990 the obverse changed to Dora de Pedery-Hunt’s design, which makes 1989 the closing year of the original effigy on this series.
Specifications
- Weight – 1 troy oz.
- Purity – .999 fine silver.
- Face value – $5 CAD.
- Mintage – 3,332,200.
- Diameter – 38 mm, thickness 3.29 mm.
- Obverse – Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin.
- Reverse – sugar maple leaf by Walter Ott.
- Condition – Brilliant Uncirculated, in original RCM packaging.
Condition and Packaging
These arrive in the clear plastic pouches the Royal Canadian Mint originally used, which is how a coin from 1989 stays Brilliant Uncirculated for nearly four decades. Silver tones over time when exposed to air, and once a coin has toned it does not go back. Leave it sealed.
Selling One You Already Own
Plenty of people find these in an inherited collection rather than buying them. If that is you, the coin is worth its silver content and we will quote on it — we buy Canadian Maple Leafs for cash regardless of year.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is a 1989 Canadian dollar coin worth?
If it is a Silver Maple Leaf, it holds one troy ounce of .999 silver and is worth roughly the silver price, well above its $5 face value. Ordinary 1989 circulation dollars are a different coin and worth far less.
Is a 1989 Silver Maple Leaf rare?
No. 3,332,200 were struck. It is valued for its silver and as a second-year issue, not for scarcity.
What makes 1989 different?
It was the final year of Arnold Machin’s portrait of the Queen on this coin, and the year mintage tripled over the 1988 debut.
Should I open the pouch?
No. Original packaging is what has kept the surface intact since 1989, and toning cannot be reversed.
