The 1920-D Buffalo nickel is a scarce issue in all grades, with even circulated examples above Fine to Very Fine proving difficult to locate. In uncirculated and especially Gem levels, the 1920-D Buffalo nickel is actually rarer than most other Denver-mint issues in the series. All told, 9,418,000 examples were struck and fewer than 5,000 remain, with less than 100 in MS65 or above. Fewer than a dozen examples are certified by PCGS and NGC as MS66, and only one is presently slabbed by NGC as an MS67. All of the MS66s take five-figure prices, many of them getting run up high in auction scenarios when two or more Buffalo nickel registry set collectors are bidding on the same piece.
| coinage-type | Buffalo nickel |
| desg | MS |
| designer | James Earle Fraser |
| diameter | 21.2 |
| edge | Plain |
| material | 75% copper; 25% nickel |
| mint-mark | D |
| mintage | 9,418,000 |
| ngc-id | 22RR |
| obverse-description | James Earle Fraser's famous and simple design depicts a Native American chief with the word LIBERTY from 1-2 o'clock. The date is placed on the lower left of the chieftain's bust. |
| pcgs-link | 3945 |
| pcgs-number | 3945 |
| reverse-description | A full portrait of the bison, Black Diamond, with the words UNITED STATES oF AMERICA at the top periphery with the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM just underneath. The denomination FIVE CENTS is spelled out at the bottom. For the Type 1, the denomination is embossed on a flat surface. |
| weight-grams | 5 |
| year-display | 1913-1938 |