Coins that have been certified are encased in special sealed plastic cases which display their grade and any identifying information on them. All of these coins have been certified by various certification companies (such as Numismatic Guaranty Corporation [NGC] or Professional Coin Grading Service [PCGS]). They make excellent purchases for either beginners wishing to have a guarantee of the quality of their coin or veteran coin collectors looking to ensure they are getting their money's worth out of their investment.
Certified coins are generally certified according to the 70 pt coin grading scale, with 1 being the lowest quality coin and 70 being a perfect example of the coin. They will also be accompanied in most cases by an adjectival description such as MS [Mint State], VF [Very Fine] or PF [Proof]. A full list of grading terminology is appended below.
| Prefix |
|
Numerical Grade |
|
Adjectival Description |
| MS |
|
60–70 |
|
Mint State (Uncirculated) |
| AU |
|
50, 53, 55, 58 |
|
About Uncirculated |
| XF |
|
40, 45 |
|
Extremely Fine |
| VF |
|
20, 25, 30, 35 |
|
Very Fine |
| F |
|
12, 15 |
|
Fine |
| VG |
|
8, 10 |
|
Very Good |
| G |
|
4, 6 |
|
Good |
| AG |
|
3 |
|
About Good |
| FA |
|
2 |
|
Fair |
| PR |
|
1 |
|
Poor |
|
|
