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Wilshire Coin is a precious metals and coin dealer located at 1312 Lincoln Blvd in Santa Monica, California.
The shop buys and sells gold and silver coins, fine jewelry, diamonds, platinum, palladium, rhodium, and foreign currency, and it also offers refining and wholesale drop ship services.
This review looks at what the store offers, how its pricing compares to current market rates, and what customers have said about doing business there.
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Key Takeaways:
- Wilshire Coin operates from a single Santa Monica storefront and has built a review base of several hundred ratings across Yelp and Birdeye.
- The company's pricing on gold and silver items is tied to daily spot prices, which have moved sharply higher in 2026.
- Services extend beyond coins to jewelry, diamonds, foreign exchange, and refining, which sets it apart from bullion-only dealers.
What Wilshire Coin Offers
Wilshire Coin lists eight core service categories on its website: gold and silver coins, cash for gold, fine jewelry, diamonds and precious stones, platinum/palladium/rhodium, foreign exchange, refining, and wholesale drop ship services.
The company buys items like rings, bracelets, necklaces, watches, money clips, flatware, sterling silverware, and even dental gold.
It also runs an eBay storefront under the name Wilshire Coin, where it lists coins and jewelry for sale to buyers outside the Los Angeles area.
This mix makes the shop more of a general precious metals counter than a coin specialist. A customer can sell a coin collection, get a quote on scrap gold jewelry, exchange foreign currency before a trip, and sell diamonds pulled from old settings in one visit.
Store Details
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Address | 1312 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401 |
| Phone | (310) 393-0661 |
| Hours | Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Saturday hours | 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. |
| Online presence | Company website and an eBay store |
The store sits at the corner of Lincoln Blvd and Arizona Ave in downtown Santa Monica, a few blocks from the Santa Monica Pier and the Third Street Promenade.
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How Long the Business Has Operated
Wilshire Coin's own marketing carries two different tenure claims. The homepage states the company has operated in Santa Monica for "over 75 years," while the About Us page quotes owner Glenn Sorgenstein referencing "60+ years" of experience with coins and coin owners. Separately, Yelp's business listing dates the shop to 1947.
Better Business Bureau records show the incorporated entity, Wilshire Coin Exchange, Inc., was registered on November 30, 1999, giving it 26 years as that specific corporate entity.
The gap between these figures likely reflects a family business that operated informally or under prior ownership before its current incorporation.
Prospective customers who want a precise founding date should ask the store directly rather than relying on the marketing copy alone.
Customer Reviews and Reputation
Wilshire Coin has accumulated a sizable review footprint across multiple platforms. Birdeye aggregates 266 reviews with a 4.2 star average. Yelp's listing for the store shows 615 reviews.
The Better Business Bureau lists the business as "Not Rated," meaning the BBB does not have enough information on file to issue a formal grade, though the company is not flagged with any unresolved complaints in the profile.
Recurring themes in customer feedback include specific staff members (Tom, Glenn, Dan, John, and Chris show up repeatedly), a clean and secure retail space, and competitive offers on gold and silver items compared to other Los Angeles-area buyers.
One reviewer compared offers at three shops before selling a coin collection and said Wilshire Coin beat a competitor's offer by 30 percent. Another said the shop beat two other Westside gold buyers by more than $45 on a jewelry sale.
These are individual transactions, not guarantees of future pricing, but they suggest the shop negotiates rather than posting one fixed rate.
Current Precious Metals Market Context
Pricing at any coin and bullion dealer is driven by the spot price of gold and silver, which both dealers and customers watch daily.
As of early August 2026, spot gold traded near $4,090 to $4,100 per troy ounce, up more than 21 percent from a year earlier.
Spot silver traded in the range of $58 to $60 per troy ounce during the same week, a figure that has more than doubled since mid-2025 after touching an all-time intraday high near $121 in late January 2026.
| Metal | Spot Price (early Aug. 2026) | Change vs. one year earlier |
|---|---|---|
| Gold | Approximately $4,090–$4,100/oz | Up roughly 21% |
| Silver | Approximately $58–$60/oz | Up roughly 48–55% |
These moves matter for anyone selling to Wilshire Coin or a similar dealer. When spot prices climb this fast, the gap between an offer and an item's melt value can widen if a customer skips checking the daily spot price before walking in.
A seller who last checked gold prices a year ago, when it sat closer to $3,350 an ounce, is working from an outdated number.
How Dealer Pricing Typically Works
Coin and bullion shops, including Wilshire Coin, generally price bullion items at spot price minus a set deduction, sometimes called a buyback spread.
On forum posts tied to the store, a representative described pricing bulk silver bars at spot minus $1.50 per ounce for resaleable bars, a figure that can shift with market conditions and order size.
Jewelry and scrap gold pricing works differently, since it accounts for purity (karat), weight, and any resale value beyond melt.
Numismatic and rare coins are priced based on grade, rarity, and demand rather than metal content alone.
Customers selling should ask the shop to explain which pricing method applies to their specific item before accepting an offer.
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Who Wilshire Coin Fits Best
- Someone local to the Westside of Los Angeles who wants an in-person appraisal instead of mailing items to an online buyer.
- A seller with a mixed lot, jewelry, foreign coins, and bullion together, who wants one stop instead of three separate specialists.
- A traveler who needs foreign currency exchanged before or after a trip.
- A buyer who prefers browsing an eBay storefront over visiting in person.
Things to Check Before Visiting
- Confirm the day's spot gold and silver prices before getting a quote, since these change daily and sometimes by the hour.
- Ask whether an offer is based on melt value, numismatic value, or both, especially for older or rare coins.
- Bring government-issued identification, which most licensed coin and bullion dealers require by law for buyback transactions.
- Get quotes from more than one dealer if selling a large collection, since past reviewers reported meaningful price differences between shops.
Conclusion
Wilshire Coin is a long-running, multi-service precious metals shop in Santa Monica with a strong review base and pricing tied to daily spot rates that have risen sharply through 2026.
Customers get the most value by checking current gold and silver prices before their visit and comparing offers, the same approach that satisfied reviewers described using themselves.
