Quick answer
A Royal Mint Remembrance Day £5 coin in its original pack sells for about £9 to £28, based on sold prices tracked by MyCoinage, late 2026. The UK poppy £5 series ran from 2017 to 2021, after Alderney £5 issues from 2012 to 2016. The Royal Mint lists no Remembrance Day £5 for 2026.
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| UK series | Remembrance Day £5, one design a year, 2017 to 2021 |
| Earlier series | Alderney £5 poppy coins struck by the Royal Mint, 2012 to 2016 |
| Designers (UK coins) | Stephen Taylor, Laura Clancy, Harry Brockway, Natasha Preece, Gary Breeze |
| Obverse | Queen Elizabeth II, fifth portrait by Jody Clark |
| Metal and size | Cupro-nickel, 28.28 g, 38.61 mm (silver and gold proofs also made) |
| Mintage (BU £5) | 15,941 to 28,561 depending on year, per MyCoinage coin pages |
| In circulation | No, sold in packs for collectors only |
| Typical sold price | About £9 to £28 for the cupro-nickel coin |
| 2026 coin | None listed by the Royal Mint as of 8 October 2026 |
This guide covers UK and Crown Dependency issues only. Searches for poppy coins also bring up Australian and Canadian coins, which are a different market and are not covered here.
Royal Mint Remembrance Day coins: the UK £5 series, 2017 to 2021
The Royal Mint describes the 2017 coin as "the first official UK Remembrance Day £5 coin", noting that the coin was traditionally struck as an Alderney issue. Five UK coins followed, one each year, all with a colour-printed poppy design on a crown-sized cupro-nickel blank.
The Royal Mint's £5 design list gives the reverse designer for each year. Mintages and sold prices below are from the MyCoinage coin pages.
| Year | Reverse designer | Design | Mintage (BU) | Sold price range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Stephen Taylor | Five red poppies | 18,242 | £12.53 to £25.00 (9 sales) |
| 2018 | Laura Clancy | Single poppy, shown in close section | 15,941 | £10.53 to £23.58 (4 sales) |
| 2019 | Harry Brockway | Solitary poppy between the dates 1919 and 2019 | 28,561 | £12.94 to £28.00 (3 sales) |
| 2020 | Natasha Preece | First World War soldier's silhouette formed from poppies | 17,398 | £11.86 to £18.95 (13 sales) |
| 2021 | Gary Breeze | Four poppies | 17,904 | £9.19 to £21.99 (14 sales) |
The best documented coins are the 2020 Remembrance Day £5 and the 2021 Remembrance Day £5, with 13 and 14 verified sales each. The 2017 coin has the highest average of the five, at about £19.
Two points stand out. First, the 2018 coin has the lowest mintage, yet it does not sell for more than the others. Second, the 2019 coin has the highest mintage and the widest range. With so few recorded sales, condition and packaging explain more of the price than the mintage does.
Is there a UK Remembrance Day coin for 2026?
No Royal Mint Remembrance Day coin is listed for 2026. The Royal Mint's published list of £5 designs runs through its 2026 issues and includes no Remembrance Day coin for 2026. The same list shows none for 2022, 2023, 2024 or 2025 either, so the UK series appears to have ended with the 2021 coin.
That does not mean no poppy coin 2026 exists. Other issuers have released poppy designs dated 2026 (see below), and those are the coins most sellers mean by "remembrance coin 2026". They are not Royal Mint UK coins, and they should not be described as such in a listing.
If the Royal Mint does announce a Remembrance product late in the year, it will appear on royalmint.com first. For other planned UK issues, see the 2026 Royal Mint releases guide.
Poppy coin value: what the £5 coins actually sell for
Across all five UK years, cupro-nickel Remembrance Day £5 coins have sold for between £9.19 and £28.00, based on sold prices tracked by MyCoinage, late 2026. The volume-weighted averages sit between about £12 and £19 per coin.
The Royal Mint's issue price for the earlier Alderney brilliant uncirculated coins was £13 in 2014 and 2015 and £17 in 2016, according to trade press reports at the time. So the usual result for a poppy £5 is that it holds roughly its issue price rather than multiplying it.
Three things move the price:
- Packaging. These coins were sold in fold-out packs. A coin still sealed in its pack is what buyers expect. A loose coin is worth less.
- Colour condition. The red printing is the whole appeal. Scratches or wear on the colour hurt the price more than marks elsewhere.
- Metal. Silver proof and piedfort versions are separate coins with their own prices. MyCoinage shows a figure of £48 for the 2021 silver proof. A proof coin should never be compared with the base-metal pack.
For a wider view of crown-sized commemoratives, the £5 coin values guide covers the whole denomination.
Earlier Alderney poppy coins, 2012 to 2016
Before 2017 the Royal Mint struck its Remembrance Day coin for Alderney, one of the Channel Islands. These carry the Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of the Queen and the name Alderney on the obverse.
| Year | Reverse designer | Design |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 to 2013 | Emma Noble | Coloured poppy with a reference to the eleventh hour |
| 2014 | Laura Clancy | Falling poppies, inscribed "REMEMBER THE FALLEN" |
| 2015 | Glyn Davies | Red and black poppies against Flanders fields |
| 2016 | Thomas T. Docherty | Poppy wreath, inscribed "THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE" |
The cupro-nickel versions had unlimited mintages. The silver proofs were limited: 2,014 for 2014, 3,000 for 2015 and 2,016 for 2016, with silver piedforts limited to 1,500 in 2015 and 1,000 in 2016.
MyCoinage has no verified sale logged yet for the Alderney base-metal coins, so no price is quoted here. They share the size, metal and pack format of the UK coins, but check sold listings for the exact year before paying a premium. The Channel Islands coins guide explains how Alderney, Jersey and Guernsey issues fit alongside UK coinage.
Which UK coins feature poppies? Other issuers to know
Many poppy coins sold in the UK are not Royal Mint products. They are issued in the name of Jersey, Alderney or the Isle of Man and struck by private mints, often in partnership with the Royal British Legion.
- Jersey. A 50p marking the Legion's centenary is dated 2021 and carries the dates 1921 and 2021. A Jersey £1 Royal British Legion poppy coin is dated 2026, struck by Tower Mint, with three servicemen above a row of poppies.
- Alderney. Remembrance Day £5 coins dated 2024 and 2025 exist in silver-plated and gold-plated copper. The 2025 coloured silver-plated version is listed with a mintage of 500.
- Isle of Man. Remembrance poppy coins denominated in sovereigns are listed for 2024, 2025 and 2026.
None of these has a verified sale on MyCoinage yet. Plated coins are sold at prices well above their metal content, so a low mintage alone is not evidence of resale value. Compare any asking price with completed sales, using the method in the coin value checker guide.
For the Royal Mint's wartime anniversary coins that did circulate, see the First World War £2 series and the Second World War commemoratives.
How to check what your poppy coin is
Work through four checks before valuing a red poppy coin:
- Read the obverse legend. A UK coin shows only the monarch's name and titles. An Alderney, Jersey or Isle of Man coin names the territory.
- Read the date and denomination. UK Remembrance Day £5 coins are dated 2017 to 2021.
- Check the metal. The standard coin is cupro-nickel at 28.28 g. A silver proof comes in a box with a certificate.
- Look up sold prices for that exact coin. Use the coin page for the year, not a general "poppy coin" search.
If you own one, add it to your collection with the MyCoinage coin tracker to follow its value as new sales are recorded.
FAQ
Is there a UK Remembrance Day coin for 2026?
No. As of 8 October 2026 the Royal Mint's list of £5 designs includes no Remembrance Day coin for 2026, and none since the 2021 issue. Poppy coins dated 2026 do exist from Jersey and the Isle of Man, but they are not Royal Mint UK coins.
How much is a poppy coin worth?
A Royal Mint Remembrance Day £5 from 2017 to 2021 sells for about £9 to £28 in its pack, based on sold prices tracked by MyCoinage, late 2026. Averages run from roughly £12 to £19. Silver proof versions are priced separately and sell for more.
Are Remembrance Day £5 coins legal tender?
Yes, UK £5 crowns are legal tender. The Royal Mint lists the £5 crown as legal tender for any amount, but it also says commemorative coins do not enter general circulation and that banks and shops are not required to accept them. Treat them as collectables, not spending money.
Which UK coins feature poppies?
The Royal Mint's five UK Remembrance Day £5 coins (2017 to 2021) all show poppies, as do its Alderney £5 coins from 2012 to 2016. Jersey, Alderney and the Isle of Man have also issued poppy designs, including a Jersey 50p dated 2021 and a Jersey £1 dated 2026.
What is the rarest Remembrance Day £5?
By mintage, the 2018 coin is the lowest of the UK five at 15,941, according to the MyCoinage coin page. It has not sold for more than the other years in recorded sales, so a low mintage has not produced a premium for this series so far.
Are red poppy coins a good investment?
Recorded sales suggest not, on the base-metal coins. UK Remembrance Day £5 coins have changed hands close to their original issue price years later. Buy them because the design matters to you. Any gain should be treated as a bonus.