UK Stamp Values: What British Stamps Are Worth, from Victoria to Machin

What are British stamps worth by reign?

Victorian stamps (1840–1901) hold the most value, especially the early line-engraved issues and high values. Edward VII and George V high values can be valuable, while most George VI and Elizabeth II stamps are common.

Which British stamps are worth money?

UK stamps worth checking include Penny Blacks, Twopence Blues, Penny Reds from scarce plates, Victorian high values, George V Seahorses, the 1929 £1 PUC, and errors on Elizabeth II stamps.

• The [Penny Black](/guides/penny-black-value) (1840). Used copies are affordable, but good ones are still worth tens to hundreds.
• The Twopence Blue (1840), which is scarcer than the Penny Black.
• Penny Red plate 77, the famous Penny Red rarity, with only a handful of copies known.
• Victorian high values, such as the £1 and £5 stamps.
• Seahorses (from 1913) and the 1929 £1 PUC.
• Elizabeth II errors, such as commemoratives with a missing color.

Penny Reds show how detail drives value. From 1864 the plate number is engraved into the side of the design, and while most plates are common, a few are scarce. The same stamp can be worth pennies or a great deal, depending on its plate.

What are Queen Elizabeth stamps worth?

Most Queen Elizabeth II stamps are worth pennies, because billions were printed. The value is in errors, scarce Machin varieties, some early high values, and certain booklets and coils that specialists seek.

Machin definitives, the plain profile design used from 1967, are among the most printed stamps in history. Specialists study their many printings, papers, phosphor bands and gums, and a few of those varieties are scarce, which is why Machins are a collecting field of their own.

Queen Elizabeth stamps from Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand are a separate matter. Their values depend on the country and printing, and some pre-decimal Commonwealth issues are worth more than their British counterparts.

How do I identify a British stamp?

British stamps are the only ones that don't show a country name. Instead they carry the reigning monarch's head: a full portrait on definitives and a small silhouette on commemoratives.

The monarch gives you the approximate date, and so does the currency. Pre-decimal stamps show values in pence (d) and shillings (s), while decimal “p” values date from 1971 onwards. Stanley Gibbons is the standard British catalogue, and dealers describe UK stamps by SG number. See how to identify stamps.

How do I check a UK stamp's value?

Identify the reign and issue, then the variety (plate, watermark or perforation on Victorian stamps), and grade the condition before comparing it with catalogue prices and recent sales.

On Victorian line-engraved stamps, the margins and the cancellation matter almost as much as the stamp itself. See stamp condition grades and how to tell if a stamp is rare.

What are British commemorative stamps worth?

Most British commemoratives from the 1960s onward are worth pennies. Earlier ones, such as the 1924–25 British Empire Exhibition, the 1929 Postal Union Congress and the 1935 Silver Jubilee, are more collectable, and the 1929 £1 PUC is valuable.

Britain was slow to adopt commemorative stamps, issuing its first in 1924 for the British Empire Exhibition, so early examples are relatively few. From the 1960s the Post Office issued several sets a year, and they were bought and saved in huge numbers.

There's a specialist twist. Some 1960s commemoratives were issued both with and without phosphor bands, which automatic letter-sorting machines used, and certain phosphor versions are scarcer than the ordinary ones. Tilt the stamp under a light to see the bands.