Cotton Gloves Or Nitrile Gloves?

Gloves make me clumsy, so I avoid using them with coins. The exception was when I was CRH. Fingers can get nasty quick.

We should also consider what might stick to the glove and potentially scratch the coin surface.

I use nitrile gloves when cleaning the bathroom. They seem to attract less "crud" than the latex gloves I previously used. That difference may come down to quality versus material though.

I am a proponent for a clean, soft surface in the event of an unfortunate drop.

To answer this question, one must first ask: why? What is the intended goal of the gloves?

If the answer is "to protect the coins from my icky fingerprints", then nitrile gloves are probably better - oils can eventually seep through cotton gloves.

If the answer is "to prevent the delicate surfaces of my pristine coins from getting scratched or scuffed", then cotton gloves are probably preferable.

If the answer is "to protect my delicate hands from getting covered in toxic heavy metals", then either will work.

So, what to "the professionals" normally use? I will, once again, draw attention to this old PCGS video:


You'll note that nobody at PCGS wears gloves while handling coins. Why not? Because gloves would make them clumsy and more prone to dropping the coins.

I would say that a key aspect to handling coins with gloves is familiarity with those gloves in a non-numismatic context, as the more familiar you are with them, the less clumsy you'll be. For example, I work in a chemistry laboratory, so I'm used to working with nitrile gloves for hours on end. So if I "feel the need" to handle coins with gloves on, I'll use nitrile, because I'm used to them. Plus, I already have a box of nitrile gloves in the house - because I'm used to them, I also use them for washing dishes and general household cleaning. On the rare times I've tried using cotton gloves, I am super-clumsy with them and struggle to even pick up a coin while wearing them.

Someone who works, say, in the food industry might have similar experience. If on the other hand you work in a ski resort (or live in one of those places where it's often cold), you might be used to wearing thick fluffy gloves all the time and handling coins wearing cotton gloves feels super-easy for you. If so, use those, and not nitrile.

If you're not used to wearing gloves of any kind, then frankly you're probably better off not using gloves at all.

One final note: nitrile gloves are vulcanized so they do contain sulfur. Don't store such gloves in a sealed box or safe with your coins as those gloves will outgas sulfur fumes over time.

I use latex finger cots for coins I want to use extra care with and for all coins I try to only touch the edges of the coin. The trick with cots is finding the right size to avoid cutting off your circulation. They're fairly inexpensive as well. I also have a few pairs of cotton gloves and do use extra care if I'm using them as they can be a little clumsy for me.