Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Value Today

Name: Gold Maple Leaf Value Today
Creator: Gold Bullion Price Chart
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Reviewed by the Gold Bullion Price Chart Editorial Team · Updated September 23, 2026

$4,291.00 melt value per coin

1.0000 troy oz of gold at $4,291.00/oz

Gold spot $4,291.00/oz · updated September 23, 2026

Quick answer: A one-ounce Canadian Gold Maple Leaf contains one troy ounce of .9999 fine gold, worth $4,291.00 at today's spot price (September 23, 2026). It's one of the world's most widely traded gold coins, and since 2013 one of the most heavily secured against counterfeiting.

Issuer: Royal Canadian Mint
Years: 1979–present
Sizes: 1 oz plus fractions (½, ¼, ⅒, ⅟₂₀ oz) and 1 g "Maplegram" units
Composition: .9999 fine gold (.999 until 1982)
Legal tender: yes, in Canada

What it's worth today

Quantity	Gold content	Melt value today
1 Maple Leaf (1 oz)	1 ozt	$4,291.00
10 Maple Leafs	10 ozt	$42,910
20 Maple Leafs (two Mint tubes of 10)	20 ozt	$85,820
½ oz Maple Leaf	0.5 ozt	$2,145.50
¼ oz Maple Leaf	0.25 ozt	$1,072.75
⅒ oz Maple Leaf	0.1 ozt	$429.10

The coin that made pure gold the standard

The Royal Canadian Mint launched the Gold Maple Leaf in 1979, as the Krugerrand dominated bullion-coin sales and was increasingly hard to sell in many countries. The first Maples were .999 fine. In 1982 the Mint raised the purity to .9999, "four nines". At the time that was a striking claim, and it set a new benchmark for bullion. Many later coins, including the American Buffalo, followed it.

The design is simple. The obverse shows the reigning monarch: Queen Elizabeth II through 2023, and King Charles III on newer issues. The reverse shows a single sugar-maple leaf, Canada's national symbol, with "FINE GOLD 1 OZ OR PUR" and "9999". The face value is C$50, legal tender in Canada but, as with all bullion coins, unrelated to its worth.

The Mint has also issued occasional .99999 fine ("five nines") Maples as special products, which are priced as premium items rather than standard bullion.

Security features: what makes a modern Maple hard to fake

Since 2013, bullion Maple Leafs have carried security features that make them among the hardest gold coins to counterfeit:

Radial lines: precisely machined, light-diffusing lines across the background of both sides, which produce a distinctive shimmering pattern.
Micro-engraved privy mark: a tiny maple leaf engraved in the reverse field, with the last two digits of the year visible under magnification.
Bullion DNA: since 2015, the micro-engraved mark has been registered in the Mint's database, and dealers with the Mint's authentication equipment can verify a coin against it without damaging it.

For older Maples (pre-2013), use the usual checks:

Weight: 31.11 g. Diameter: 30 mm.
Size relative to weight: a Maple is smaller in diameter than an Eagle or Krugerrand of the same gold content (30 mm against about 32.7 mm). It's lighter too, 31.11 g against 33.93 g, because it carries no alloy. A counterfeit made to the right weight in a lighter metal comes out too big.
Magnet and ring tests as supporting evidence only.

Care. At .9999 fine, Maples are soft and scratch easily. Store them in their original tube or in capsules, and handle them by the edges. The Mint packs one-ounce gold Maples in tubes of 10.

The Big Maple Leaf

In 2007 the Royal Canadian Mint showed off its refining with a 100-kilogram .99999-fine Maple Leaf coin, about 50 cm across, with a face value of C$1 million. A handful were made for buyers. One, on loan to Berlin's Bode Museum, was stolen in 2017 by thieves who wheeled it out overnight. It was never recovered and is believed to have been cut up and sold as gold. At today's price, the gold in a 100 kg coin would be worth about $13,795,747.

It's an extreme illustration of the point that runs through this site: once a coin leaves its recognizable form, it's worth exactly its melt value and nothing more.

Melt value vs premium, and IRAs

Buying. One-ounce Maples typically carry a premium comparable to the Krugerrand and often a little below the American Eagle and Buffalo in the US market. That makes them one of the lower-cost ways to buy pure gold in coin form.

Selling. Maples are recognized by dealers worldwide and sell readily, usually close to spot for undamaged bullion coins. Coins with their security features intact are the easiest to verify.

Retirement accounts. Maples meet the .995 purity standard and are IRA-eligible when held through an approved custodian and depository. See how to buy gold bullion.

Maplegrams. The Mint also makes a "Maplegram" card of 25 one-gram Gold Maples that snap apart. It's convenient, but it carries a much higher premium per ounce.

Selling Gold Maple Leafs?

The figure above is melt value, which is the ceiling, not an offer, for bullion Maples. Undamaged one-ounce coins usually sell near it; five-nines editions and collector issues may be worth more. Get more than one bid.

Buying instead?

You'll pay above spot How buying gold bullion works →

American Gold Eagle value · Gold Buffalo value · Krugerrand value · $20 Double Eagle value · Gold coin melt value calculator · 24k gold price per gram

FAQ

How much is a Gold Maple Leaf worth?

$4,291.00 in gold content as of September 23, 2026, for the one-ounce coin.

Is the Maple Leaf pure gold?

Yes. It's .9999 fine (24 karat) and has been since 1982. Early 1979–1982 coins were .999.

How can I tell if a Maple Leaf is real?

On coins from 2013 onward, check for the radial lines and the micro-engraved maple leaf under magnification. On any coin, check the weight (31.11 g) and diameter (30 mm).

Why is the Maple smaller than a Gold Eagle?

It's pure gold, which is denser than the Eagle's 22k alloy, so the same ounce of gold takes up less space.

Is the Gold Maple Leaf IRA-eligible?

Yes. It meets the purity standard for US precious-metals IRAs.

Is the Gold Maple Leaf worth C$50?

Its face value is C$50, but its gold is worth $4,291.00 today, so no one spends one at face value. The denomination exists to make it legal tender, which is what the Royal Canadian Mint's guarantee of weight and purity rests on.