1918-S Standing Liberty Quarter

Common date

A common San Francisco date in its own right, and the parent issue of the most famous overdate in the series.

Mintage

Business strikes: 11,072,000
Mint: San Francisco (S)
Mintage rank: 29 of 37

Rank 1 is the lowest business-strike mintage in the series. Mintage is what the Mint produced, not what survives. These circulated through the 1920s and 1930s and were melted for their silver later, none of it recorded by date. On the 1916-1924 issues the date itself wore away, so a large share of what survives cannot be attributed to a year at all.

About this figure

The 1918/7-S overdate is included in this total. It was never reported separately, so it is documented here as a variety rather than given a mintage of its own.

Scarcity tier

Common date

Assigned from reported mintage alone: under 750,000 is a key date, under 2,500,000 is a semi-key.

This is a reproducible label derived from the mintage column, not a market valuation and not a Coin Curator price opinion. The same thresholds apply to every series on this site. Several dates are far harder or far easier to obtain than their mintage implies; where that is true, it is stated above.

Documented varieties

1918/7-S Overdate

A 1918 die punched over a 1917 one, with the 7 visible beneath the 8. One of the most valuable coins of the series and heavily counterfeited.

Widely recognised varieties only. The VAM reference catalogs thousands of die marriages across these series; the absence of a variety here does not mean none is documented elsewhere.

The date wears off the early issues

On the 1916-1924 quarters the date sits raised on a pedestal at the base of the obverse, exposed to every hand that touched the coin. It wears away before any other detail, which is why dateless Standing Liberty quarters turn up in quantity and why circulated coins from those years are so often unattributable. The Mint recessed the date in 1925 and the problem disappears from then on. Two consequences for buyers: a readable date on a heavily worn early coin is worth confirming rather than assuming, and acid-restored dates, which leave a dull pitted patch around the digits, are widespread. Grading services will not certify an acid-treated coin, so on the scarce early dates the certification record is doing real work.

What to check before buying

1Verify the certification number on the grading service's own lookup page, not on the listing. A photograph of a label is not verification.
2Match the coin in the listing photographs to the coin described on the certification record, including the grade and any variety attribution.
3Look for cleaning: unnatural brightness, fine parallel hairlines in the fields, and a flat, lifeless surface under angled light.
4Check the mintmark shape and position against published photographs of the genuine issue. Added and altered mintmarks are the most common silver dollar alteration.
5Read the seller's return policy before bidding or buying, and confirm it covers authenticity and grade disputes.
6The overdate is faked and is also confused with die deterioration around the date. Insist on the attribution appearing on the certification label rather than in the listing text.
7Confirm the date is genuinely struck and legible rather than restored with acid, which leaves a dull pitted patch around the digits. The grading services will not certify an acid-treated coin.

Coin Curator does not grade, authenticate, or appraise coins, and publishes no price or population data. These are verification steps, not a valuation. Read the grading guide.

Verify a certification number

If a 1918-Sis offered as certified, look the number up on the grading service’s own site and confirm the date, mintmark, grade, and any variety attribution match the listing. A photograph of a label proves nothing on its own.

PCGS cert lookup NGC cert lookup ANACS cert lookup

Each service publishes its own guarantee with conditions and exclusions. Compare PCGS, NGC and ANACS.

Find a 1918-S for sale

Opens an eBay search for this exact date and mint. Coin Curator does not list inventory, hold stock, or quote prices; verify each listing, seller, and return policy directly.

Affiliate link: Coin Curator may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Disclosure.

Search eBay for 1918-S

Common questions

How many 1918-S Standing Liberty quarters were minted?

The San Francisco Mint struck 11,072,000 1918-S Standing Liberty quarters for circulation. That is the 29th lowest business-strike mintage of the 37 date and mintmark combinations in the series.

Is the 1918-S Standing Liberty quarter a key date?

Coin Curator labels it a common date, assigned from reported mintage alone: under 750,000 struck is a key date and under 2,500,000 is a semi-key. The same thresholds are used for every series on this site, so the tiers are comparable between them. That label describes production, not market value or how hard the coin is to find today. A common San Francisco date in its own right, and the parent issue of the most famous overdate in the series.

What varieties exist for the 1918-S Standing Liberty quarter?

Widely recognised varieties for this issue include 1918/7-S Overdate. A 1918 die punched over a 1917 one, with the 7 visible beneath the 8. One of the most valuable coins of the series and heavily counterfeited. Variety attributions should appear on the certification label rather than only in a seller's description.

What should I check before buying a 1918-S Standing Liberty quarter?

Verify the certification number on the grading service's own lookup page, match the listing photographs to the certification record, check for cleaning, and compare the mintmark shape and position against published photographs of the genuine issue. The overdate is faked and is also confused with die deterioration around the date. Insist on the attribution appearing on the certification label rather than in the listing text.

Why do sources give different mintage figures for the 1918-S?