1.25 oz Silver Coins

A Canadian Specialty Weight

The 1.25 oz silver coin is a non-standard denomination, and effectively a Canadian one. At 38.88 grams, the weight is exactly 25% above a standard troy ounce, and it owes its place in the bullion market almost entirely to the Royal Canadian Mint, which uses it for specialty bullion coins struck in .9999 silver. The best known is the RCM Bison series, an annual bullion release that has made this odd weight a recognised product rather than a curiosity.

The appeal is straightforward: slightly more metal than a standard ounce at a competitive per-ounce premium. The RCM introduced non-standard weights like 1.25 oz to differentiate its products from other mints, and in silver the experiment worked. The non-standard weight has not been a barrier to market acceptance, helped by annual production and the RCM hallmark.

Buyers here are typically silver stackers who treat the Bison as an alternative to a standard 1 oz silver coin purchase, picking up extra metal per coin without moving into the heavier 2 oz and 5 oz collector formats. Canada is the primary market, driven by the RCM's domestic output, but the coins are also available through major US dealers such as Silver Gold Bull, APMEX, and JM Bullion. In the UK and Europe the weight has minimal presence and no equivalent local products.

One caveat on the wider weight class: 1.25 oz is primarily a silver denomination in current production. Gold coins at this weight are extremely rare, typically one-time commemorative issues, so the comparison shopping at this page is essentially a silver story.

Premium Behaviour at a Non-Standard Weight

As a non-standard weight, 1.25 oz coins generally carry higher premiums than 1 oz coins, a consequence of lower production volumes. The fixed costs of striking and distributing a coin are spread across less frequent production runs, and the smaller secondary market gives dealers less pricing competition to work against.

The RCM Bison is the exception that defines the category. It trades close to bullion pricing rather than at collector premiums, and offers a competitive per-ounce premium given its .9999 purity and annual release schedule. That makes it the benchmark for the weight: other 1.25 oz issues, particularly commemorative or special-edition coins, tend to price above melt value with collector premiums attached.

For buyers comparing down the scale, the standard 1 oz sovereign coins remain the high-volume reference point with the deepest dealer competition. The 1.25 oz format wins when the per-ounce price on a Bison undercuts the 1 oz coin you would otherwise buy, which is exactly the comparison the price table on this page exists to make. There is no established benchmark premium for the weight class as a whole, so checking live per-ounce pricing matters more here than for standard denominations.

The Bison and Its Companions

The dominant product at this weight is the Royal Canadian Mint 1.25 oz Silver Bison, struck in .9999 silver as an annual bullion release. It is the most visible 1.25 oz coin on the market and the reason the denomination exists in dealer inventories at all. The 1.25 oz Bison silver coin ships in RCM tubes of 20, the standard packaging for the weight.

The Bison carries the same .9999 fineness the RCM applies to its flagship 1 oz Silver Maple Leaf, the highest purity standard among the major government bullion coins. At 38.88 grams, each coin holds exactly 25 percent more metal than a standard troy ounce, which is the denomination's whole pitch: slightly more silver per coin at a competitive per-ounce premium.

The RCM has also used the denomination for other issues, including the 1.25 oz Silver Devil's Brigade, and has produced various non-standard weights for specialty bullion coins over the years. Some exclusive or broker-commissioned Canadian coins have used 1.25 oz and 1.5 oz weights as limited editions, though these typically sell at significant premiums rather than bullion pricing.

Dealer listings at this weight also include generic and secondary-market 1.25 oz silver coins sold without a year or design guarantee, which is often the cheapest way into the format. The comparison table above shows what is currently available; the Bison's annual production means it is usually the most consistently stocked named product.

Liquid for Its Niche, With Caveats

Liquidity at 1.25 oz is limited compared to 1 oz coins. The silver versions are the liquid end of the weight class, thanks to annual production and a low absolute cost per coin, but the non-standard weight still creates friction. Local coin shops are unlikely to stock the denomination as a matter of course, and recognition outside Canada and the US dealer network is patchy.

The RCM hallmark helps considerably. A Bison is a government-minted .9999 silver coin from one of the world's major mints, and dealers who handle Canadian product will buy it without hesitation. Resale is easiest through the same channels that sell them: Canadian dealers and the larger online US dealers that carry the series.

Storage and handling are unremarkable. The coins are physically similar to a 1 oz coin, and the silver versions ship in RCM tubes of 20, which is the sensible way to hold them; tubes protect against tarnish and keep the coins in the packaging the resale market expects. For buyers weighing this format against the mainstream, the practical trade is a small premium edge and extra metal per coin against the deeper, faster resale market of standard 1 oz silver coins from the same mints.