Estimated ranges from catalog, dealer and auction data — each row says which kind of figure it is (dealer retail ≠ catalog value ≠ auction result ≠ what a dealer will pay you). Not a professional appraisal; confirm with a qualified expert before buying or selling.

The honest headline

  • A 1932 2¢ Washington Bicentennial — over 4.2 billion printed — retails at $0.40. Age alone does not make a stamp valuable.
  • An 1893 2¢ Columbian is over 130 years old and retails around $29.95, because nearly 1.5 billion were printed. Its $5 sibling from the same series, with only ~22,000–27,000 sold, retails in the thousands.
  • Value tracks survivor scarcity, not age: the 1930 Graf Zeppelin set is worth four figures because 93% of the printing was destroyed after poor Depression-era sales.

What US stamps are worth: 11 representative examples

These 11 stamps span the whole value spectrum — from the ones almost every inherited album contains to the rarities everyone hopes for. Ranges are condition-dependent; the note under each stamp explains what drives its price.

Representative United States stamp values — sources below, last checked July 4, 2026.
Stamp Typical range
5¢ Benjamin Franklin — America's first stamp (1847 · Scott 1) Range from recorded auction realizations (2014), condition-dependent; many examples have clipped margins. Mystic's dealer-retail price for a fine offered example is $4,750. About 3.6 million printed. $127 – $3,250 (recorded 2014 auction sales)
10¢ George Washington (1847 · Scott 2) The scarcer of America's first two stamps — 863,000 issued vs 3.6 million of the 5¢. An unused example made $4,750 at Siegel in June 2015; dealer retail for premium examples runs five figures. $299 – $1,300 used (recorded 2015 auction sales)
1¢ Franklin blue, Type IV (1851–52 · Scott 9) Dealer-retail figure for a fine example (Mystic, single source). Used copies sell for much less. The famous rarity in this design is Type I (Scott 5) — identifying the type is exactly the kind of job a specialist (or a scanner app) helps with. Up to ~$575 (dealer retail)
24¢ Declaration of Independence, inverted center (1869 · Scott 120b) America's first invert errors came from the 1869 Pictorials. Dated estimate for a blue-cancelled used example, 'one of only two recorded cancelled in blue.' All 1869 inverts are genuinely rare. ~$37,800 (Siegel auction estimate, 2013)
2¢ Landing of Columbus (1893 · Scott 231) America's first commemorative series — but 1,464,588,750 of this value were issued, so it is common. The honest lesson of this page in one stamp. Under $30 (dealer retail)
$5 Columbus — the Columbian high value (1893 · Scott 245) Roughly 22,000–27,000 sold (sources differ: Philatelic Foundation says 21,844 sold; Mystic says 27,350 issued). A condition rarity: only 10 never-hinged examples certified since 1993, and fewer than half of all expertized copies are fault-free. ~$3,750 (dealer retail, fine example)
$1 Western Cattle in Storm (1898 · Scott 292) Trans-Mississippi issue; 56,900 issued to post offices and on sale only ~6 months. Ranges per Wikipedia's valuation summary; pristine copies can reach tens of thousands. $265 – $500 used · $1,700 – $3,000 fine mint
Pan-American Exposition inverts (1901 · Scott 294a / 295a / 296a) Center-invert errors of the 1¢, 2¢ and 4¢. Dated results from an April 2009 auction; a 2¢ invert block of four made $800,000 there. The 4¢ exists partly as deliberately printed copies, which sell for less. $19,000 – $90,000 per single (2009 auction results)
24¢ Curtiss Jenny — the NORMAL, right-side-up one (1918 · Scott C3) Over 2.1 million normal Jennys exist. Only the 100 stamps from the single error sheet — the Inverted Jenny — are seven-figure rarities. If the plane on yours flies right-side up, it's a lovely, affordable classic. Up to ~$165 (dealer retail)
Graf Zeppelin airmail set (65¢, $1.30, $2.60) (1930 · Scott C13–C15) 1 million of each printed, but only 227,260 stamps sold (7%) — the Depression-priced $4.55 face value was a fortune in 1930. Unsold stock was destroyed in June 1930, creating the scarcity. ~$1,775 for the set of 3 (dealer retail)
2¢ Washington, Bicentennial issue (1932 · Scott 707) 4,222,198,300 printed. This — not the Inverted Jenny — is what most stamps in an inherited US album are like. Sheets of later commemoratives often trade below face value as discount postage. $0.40 (dealer retail)

Values last checked: July 4, 2026.

Deep dives on the famous ones

How US stamp values really work

  • Catalog value is not sale value: "Catalog value … is almost NEVER the appraisal valuation," and collections generally sell for less than catalog. (American Philatelic Society / AHPS estate-disposition guide)
  • Catalog prices assume perfect examples; dealers discount heavily from them, and most stamps aren't perfect. (Warwick & Warwick, How to appraise stamps)
  • Mint with full original gum beats hinged beats used — a hinge mark alone materially cuts value. (Warwick & Warwick, How to appraise stamps)
  • Modern commemorative sheets are "hardly ever worth anything significant unless they contain a rare stamp error." (Warwick & Warwick, How to appraise stamps)
  • Errors and condition rarities carry the market: even for the $5 Columbian, fewer than half of all expertized copies are fault-free, and faults dominate price. (The Philatelic Foundation)

Related famous stamps

Sources

Every figure on this page traces to a published reference, dealer listing or recorded sale, checked July 4, 2026: