Survivalist Pro
Photo by Marcus Aurelius Pexels Logo Photo: Marcus Aurelius

Why are nickels being hoarded?

On Reddit, some Americans have discussed the value of hoarding nickels as a potential investment and a hedge against inflation. Nickel has value outside of coin production, it is used in car batteries, among other products.

Which console is best for gaming?
Which console is best for gaming?

Xbox Series X From a raw technical perspective, the Xbox Series X is the most powerful gaming console currently available, and it is enhanced by...

Read More »
Is 50 cal illegal?
Is 50 cal illegal?

50 BMG (fifty caliber) rifles are illegal in California. They are prohibited by Penal Code 30610 PC and Penal Code 30600 PC, California's law on...

Read More »

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Amid war in Ukraine and market chaos, nickels are now worth more in melted metal than their face value. But before you empty the piggy bank and fire up a smelter in the yard, there are a few things you should know. According to McKinsey & Company, Russia was the largest exporter of raw nickel in the world before the war, with 21.1% of the global supply of nickel mined in the country. The next highest was Canada, with 17.1% of raw nickel mining in the world. The war in Ukraine has injected instability into the global market causing the value of the metal to shoot up as much as 250% in a single day in March, according to the London Metal Exchange. On Reddit, some Americans have discussed the value of hoarding nickels as a potential investment and a hedge against inflation. Nickel has value outside of coin production, it is used in car batteries, among other products. If you were to melt down a single nickel today, the metal would be worth approximately $0.079, or nearly 60% more than the coin’s face value. At those values, a $2.00 roll of nickels, containing 40 coins, would be worth $3.18. There are also a few problems with the thinking behind nickel-hoarding, one of which concerns the legality of melting coins. Melting nickels, dimes, quarters and pennies for the purpose of simple destruction, creating art, or other non-economic purposes is still legal in the U.S. — but it’s illegal to melt nickels to sell the metal itself. It’s also worth noting that today’s nickels are only made with 25% of the metal they’re named for, according to the U.S. Mint. The rest of the coin is made with copper. (Ironically, pennies are mostly zinc instead of copper. The copper-plated coin has only contained 2.5% of the valuable metal since 1982.) So even if you stuff nickels under the mattress to hedge against inflation, only a small part of the coin’s value would rise with the cost of raw nickel. In reality, the 5 cent nickel has been expensive to produce for some time. The U.S. Mint reported the nickel’s unit cost rose by 14.8% in Fiscal Year 2021. For the 16th year in a row, nickels were more expensive to produce than they were worth as cash.

How many bags should a girl own?
How many bags should a girl own?

According to surveys, a reasonable number of handbags a classy woman must have is six or seven. There is a handbag particularly curated for every...

Read More »
What does Jesus say the purpose of life is?
What does Jesus say the purpose of life is?

“The purpose of my life is to know God and hear his voice so I can live a life of servanthood and obedience; then I will be a God-defined person...

Read More »

What is the rarest dollar ever?

1. The 1794 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar. The 1794 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar may sit atop the rankings of the most expensive coin ever sold, at least for now. Some experts believe that it was the first silver dollar struck by the U.S.

We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence. Our articles, interactive tools, and hypothetical examples contain information to help you conduct research but are not intended to serve as investment advice, and we cannot guarantee that this information is applicable or accurate to your personal circumstances. Any estimates based on past performance do not a guarantee future performance, and prior to making any investment you should discuss your specific investment needs or seek advice from a qualified professional.

How We Make Money

The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you.

Editorial disclosure

All reviews are prepared by our staff. Opinions expressed are solely those of the reviewer and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including any rates, terms and fees associated with financial products, presented in the review is accurate as of the date of publication.

What is the best selling game of all time?
What is the best selling game of all time?

Grand Theft Auto V – 170 million+ Grand Theft Auto 5 is the best-selling console/PC-only game of all time (the top two entries on this list have...

Read More »
What job has the lowest life expectancy?
What job has the lowest life expectancy?

A 2021 study on Occupation-Based Life Expectancy found that people working in non-skilled general, technical and transport domains lived on average...

Read More »
What are the rules of a juice cleanse?
What are the rules of a juice cleanse?

Here's how it works: You'll drink 3 juices + 3 shots throughout the day from around breakfast to lunch time and enjoy one plant-based meal at the...

Read More »
What are the disadvantages of the LifeStraw?
What are the disadvantages of the LifeStraw?

The major disadvantages of LifeStraw tend to circulate around the fact that it cannot be used in groups (as it's a personal filter straw), and it's...

Read More »