Are Coin Shows Good Places To Buy Coins?

Go on the first day for the best selection, but go on the last day for the best deals.

Coin shows can be a good place to buy coins, but it is a definite advantage if you have a very broad knowledge of numismatics generally - just as all of the most successful dealers have.

My buying technique has always been to scan all of the show, across the whole of numismatics, then go back to those dealers who have items that represent best value for money and negotiate a price for those items.

Bargains are much easier to find that way.
I have been actively collecting like this since I was kid. I am an old man now, but my mentality is just the same as an enthusiastic beginner. Long experience of decades helps.
Some may call this way of buying cherry picking, others may call it as just trying to buy well.

You have to keep a very open mind and be happy to be surprised with whatever bargain you may find.
Definitely not a buying technique for a numismatic specialist

I love going to coin shows. I've gotten some really good deals along the way.

I will say that some dealers are a bit stand-offish and snooty. But, most of them are nice and helpful! I tend toward the friendly dealers because they make me feel "wanted" at their booths and I don't feel judged by them. Oftentimes, they also have the best prices and very nice coins.

Otherwise, by all means, go to the show. They are quite the eye-openers! Have fun!

I agree 100%. You can inspect what you're getting in hand before buying. You can shop between dealers for best price. No shipping headaches. Shows are my preferred way to acquire things. My interests have taken unexpected turns after seeing something at a show. Add to it the opportunity to spend time with like minded people. I've made a friend or two at coin shows.

Edited for smellimg

This is wisdom. Most of the dealers at a larger show will have travelled from another city, or maybe even another country, to be there. They have high margin costs due to the transport (coins are heavy and shipping a lot of them is expensive), on top of whatever costs they may be charged to actually set up a booth. These dealers will arrive with only a finite inventory, which will (if it's a successful show) get smaller as the show progresses. Their "good stuff" will sell within an hour of the show opening.

These same dealers will want to bring back as little as possible of their inventory by turning as much of it as possible into cash, so by the end of the show, they will probably rather sell cheap than have to pay to transport their items back. So show's end sees a lot of deal-making, haggling and bargain-scoring. I've even seen dealers give away the bulky or heavy stuff, like books and supplies.


I'm not psychologically capable of attending a coin show and not buying stuff. It would have to be a coin show where literally nobody was selling world or ancient coins, for me to go away empty-handed. It's always my philosophy to try to support every dealer who brings world coins, by buying at least something from them.

I had already prepared myself to leave that show without a purchase since I am focused on filling four specific holes. As expected, the most affordable one was nowhere to be found and the other three were outside my budget (thanks to a hefty purchase the previous month).

I could have skipped this show like I did the previous five, but I wanted (needed) to finally break myself out of the lock-down rut.

I compromise and go on the middle day of our three day show (Saturday). A long time ago I would go at lunch on Friday and then again Sunday morning. After a few years it seemed fewer and fewer dealers would stick around that long, so I made the shift to a one time visit on Saturdays.