In 1949 a numerical system used to grade large U.S. pennies known as the Sheldon scale that went from 1 to 70 was first proposed in a book called Early American Cents by Dr. William H. Sheldon. Prior to the 1970s coins were usually given descriptive grades like about good, good, very good, fine, very fine, etc. Then in the 1970s numerical grading became much more prevalent and various organizations began grading coins for a fee, particularly following the 1977 publication by the American Numismatic Association of a book that set standards for all coin grades by linking the Sheldon numbers to a descriptive term.

However, coin grading during this period was very inconsistent, and one dealer’s MS63 1881-S Morgan dollar was very different from a coin offered at the same grade by another seller. And some dealers would add plus signs if they thought the coin was choice. 

In 1986 a group of seven coin dealers including David Hall founded PCGS – the Professional Coin Grading Service with the intention of making coin grading more consistent by having expert graders grade the coins and then encapsulating them in a clear plastic holder known as a slab.

Today PCGS is one of the two leading coin grading, authentication and attribution services along with NGC, the Numismatic Guarantee Corporation founded in 1987. While there are other coin grading companies including ANACS and others, coins graded by PCGS and NGC command the highest prices and have the greatest liquidity in the marketplace.

When it comes to the rarest and most values coins sold at auctions like a 1913 Liberty Head nickel worth millions of dollars, those coins are always graded by one of these two firms. In a 2015 survey of coin dealers, only NGC and PCGS received a superior rating out of 11 different grading services that were evaluated.

PCGS and NGC grading

PCGS has graded over 43 million coins, while NGC has graded over 47 million. And both companies have offices overseas in Europe and Asia to receive submissions in addition to their U.S. headquarters in Florida (NGC) and California (PCGS).

Some people believe coins from one service or the other are worth more because they think that company is more conservative in its grading. But in fact, coin grading standards in the industry have evolved over time. For example, grading standards at both companies in the 1980s were probably more conservative than they are today, which is why coins in holders from that period such as the Old Green Holders from PCGS often sell for a premium.

Both NGC and PCGS guarantee that coins in their holders have been determined to be authentic and accurately graded. But because grading is still more of a science than an art, coin collectors and dealers often submit and resubmit coins graded by one service to the other one to see if the coin receives a higher grade.

Over the years, both companies have continued to improve and expand the services they provide such as by grading ancient coins in addition to all U.S. and world coins as well as by adding plus grades at PCGS and stars at NGC for coins that are high-end for their grade and by continuing to improve the appearance and security of their sonically-sealed and tamper evident holders (such as with holograms on the labels) that are used to encapsulate coins.

NGC has pioneered the use of special labels on its graded coins such as those for coins sold at coin shows, signed by coin designers and others or labels with particular themes or images. And both countries have long had registry sets that allow collectors to compete for awards for the top graded sets of coins and to post images and other information about their coins.

Price guides, census reports and sales data

Both companies also offer a wide variety of information about the coins they have graded such as price guides, census (NGC) and population (PCGS) reports that list the number of coins at each grade and a cert verification tool (PCGS) or cert lookup (NGC) that allows one to input the number on a coin’s label and compare it to a photo of the coin in the company’s database.

As the coin market has continued to grow and the values of rarer coins have mostly continued to trend upwards for decades, competition between PCGS and NGC has grown as has demand for PCGS and NGC-graded coins.

Prices for scarcer coins, especially classic U.S. issues from the 18^th and 19^th centuries, can increase dramatically from one grade to the next, making it especially important that the coin has been graded accurately. The price guides are useful to obtain a quick estimate of what a coin of a particular grade is worth, but actually sales records from auctions (which are also provided by NGC and PCGS for more valuable coins) are the most useful data on prices.

For example, an 1879-CC Morgan Silver dollar in AU-55 is given the same value at both companies of about $3500. Values remain about the same at both services through MS65 worth about $25,000. But in MS66 the PCGS value is $120,000, while the NGC value is much less at $85,000. And MS66+ at PCGS is valued at $285,000. NGC has not graded examples higher than MS66, while PCGS has given two coins MS66+.

Auction data from the firms sheds some additional light since coins of this scarcity can trade for widely varying amounts even within the same grade. The same MS65 1879-CC Morgan has sold for between roughly $18,000 and $34,000 in a PCGS holder, while in NGC holders it has brought between $18,000 and $20,000.

We carry an extensive range of classic and modern U.S. coins as well as modern world and ancient coins graded by PCGS and NGC.