There are many key and semi-key dates in the Buffalo Nickel series. There are also numerous better dates, or those that are tougher than common coins but that may not necessarily rank as through-and-through semi-key coins.
The 1930-S Buffalo Nickel is certainly one of those coins. While it boasts a respectable mintage of 5,435,000, it’s a conditional scarcity in uncirculated grades.
The coin was born during the early years of the Great Depression, when the United States and much of the world plunged into a protracted period of deep economic malaise. The deleterious economic conditions sapped any need for massive amounts of new coins, especially those of higher denominations.
In fact, the period from 1929 through 1933, which marked some of the most devastating periods of the Great Depression, saw complete hiatuses of most denominations, including the nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar, and dollar. Mintages for the Buffalo Nickel were absolutely anemic in the early 1930s, with none of these coins struck at all in 1932 and 1933.
The production output of the 1930-S Buffalo Nickel was pretty much in line with mintage figures for most San Francisco emissions of the Buffalo Nickel during the 1920s. However, very few people saved examples of the coin in better condition, giving way to this coin being viewed as a solid challenge in higher grades.
So, while well-worn specimens are about as plentiful as examples of the S-Mint pieces from the 1920s, prices begin ticking north of the vintage-typical value trend lines for specimens in XF40 and above. In AU50, the coin is worth around $45, while an MS63 takes $200. Higher-level specimens reach higher still, with MS65 examples taking approximately $475 and the rare MS67 going for $12,500. The record price for the coin was hammered in 2017 for an example that graded PCGS MS67+ and hammered for a whopping $30,550.