A grade is an opinion with a paper trail
A grade is a trained opinion about a coin's condition: how much wear it has, how much original surface and lustre survive, and how many marks or scratches it carries. Most grading in the United States follows the 70-point Sheldon scale, where 1 is a barely identifiable coin and 70 is a flawless one. Other markets use word grades such as Fine, Very Fine, Extremely Fine and Uncirculated, and some collectors use both.
Because it is an opinion, two reputable graders can disagree by a point or two on the same coin. That is normal, and it is the reason serious buyers compare sold prices for the exact same grade from the exact same grader rather than assuming all grade labels are equal.
Circulated grades in plain language
Good and Very Good coins are heavily worn, with the main design outlines visible but little fine detail. Fine and Very Fine show a clear design with flat high points. Extremely Fine and About Uncirculated keep most detail, with the wear limited to the highest points of the design.
For many older coins, price climbs slowly through the circulated grades and then steeply near the top. The step between About Uncirculated and the first Mint State grades can be larger than the gap between several lower grades combined.
Mint State and the numbers that follow
Mint State starts at MS60 and means the coin was never in circulation. The higher numbers describe how good the strike, lustre and surfaces are. An MS63 and an MS65 may look similar in a casual photograph, yet the price difference for a scarce date can be many multiples.
Suffixes and designations such as Proof, Deep Cameo, Full Bell Lines or Full Steps are separate claims about specific features. They can add a premium, so treat a designation as part of the grade when comparing prices.
Slabs, certificates and verification
Third-party grading services seal a coin in a tamper-evident holder with a label that carries the grade and a certification number. The label is not proof on its own: holders can be counterfeited or swapped. Look the number up on the grading company's own website and check that the description and, where offered, the image match the coin in front of you.
Record the certification number whenever you add a holding on Kollektra, so you can find the certificate again when you insure or sell the coin.
Raw coins and unknown grades
An ungraded or raw coin is simply one nobody independent has assessed. Sellers sometimes describe a raw coin with a generous grade. If you are buying raw, assume you are grading the coin yourself and price it a step or two below the seller's claim until you are confident.
Many historical sales have no recorded grade. Kollektra keeps those sales visible but never guesses a grade for them, and leaves them out of any grade breakdown. Unknown does not mean low.
Using sold prices to check a grade
Open an item in the catalogue and read the price-by-grade table. If a grade has fewer than three recorded sales we show the range but not a median, because a middle value from one or two sales is not reliable.
The fair price tool goes a step further: it only looks at sales with your exact grade within the window you choose, and it reports unavailable when there are fewer than five comparable sales. That is deliberate. A confident-looking number built from thin evidence is worse than no number.