Lookup
U.S. Definitive Stamp Identifier
Pick the stamp by denomination and subject. Each page gives the issue facts, the design checks, and the varieties to measure for. No prices here; the point is to know exactly which listing your stamp matches before you look anything up.
How to work through an unknown U.S. stamp
- Read the denomination and portrait; definitives of the same face value were reissued every decade or so, and the series pages here tell them apart.
- Check the date clues: "U.S. Postage" wording, the presence of a ZIP-era tagging glow, and the style of numerals all narrow the decade.
- Measure perforations and look for straight edges to separate sheet, coil and booklet printings.
- Compare against the look-alike listed on the page before assuming you have the scarce one.
Liberty Series (1954-1968)
- 1/2c Benjamin Franklin Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 1c George Washington Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 1 1/2c Mount Vernon Stamp (1956): How to Identify It
- 2c Thomas Jefferson Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 2 1/2c Bunker Hill Monument Stamp (1959): How to Identify It
- 3c Statue of Liberty Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 4c Abraham Lincoln Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 4 1/2c The Hermitage (Andrew Jackson's home) Stamp (1959): How to Identify It
- 5c James Monroe Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 6c Theodore Roosevelt Stamp (1955): How to Identify It
- 7c Woodrow Wilson Stamp (1956): How to Identify It
- 8c Statue of Liberty Stamp (1954): How to Identify It
- 25c Paul Revere Stamp (1958): How to Identify It
Prominent Americans Series (1965-1978)
- 1c Thomas Jefferson Stamp (1968): How to Identify It
- 2c Frank Lloyd Wright Stamp (1966): How to Identify It
- 3c Francis Parkman Stamp (1967): How to Identify It
- 4c Abraham Lincoln Stamp (1965): How to Identify It
- 5c George Washington Stamp (1966): How to Identify It
- 6c Franklin D. Roosevelt Stamp (1966): How to Identify It
- 8c Dwight D. Eisenhower Stamp (1971): How to Identify It
- 10c Jefferson Memorial Stamp (1973): How to Identify It
- 13c John F. Kennedy Stamp (1967): How to Identify It
- 15c Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Stamp (1968): How to Identify It
- 20c George Catlett Marshall Stamp (1967): How to Identify It
- 25c Frederick Douglass Stamp (1967): How to Identify It
- 50c Lucy Stone Stamp (1968): How to Identify It
- $1 Eugene O'Neill Stamp (1967): How to Identify It
Americana Series (1975-1981)
Great Americans Series (1980-1999)
Washington-Franklin Series (1908-1922)
Presidential Series "Prexie" (1938-1954)
Forever Stamp, first issue (2007-2010 printings)
FAQ
Why does my 1-cent Washington stamp look like several different stamps?
Because it is: Washington 1-cent definitives were issued in the Washington-Franklin series (1908–1922, with dozens of perforation and watermark varieties), the Presidential series of 1938 and the Liberty series of 1954. Each has its own page here.
What is a Forever stamp?
A stamp sold without a printed denomination that stays valid for one-ounce first-class postage no matter how rates change; the first was the Liberty Bell of 2007. See its page.
Can the app identify a stamp from a photo?
It reads the design and denomination from a flat, well-lit photo. Perforation gauge and tagging cannot be read from a photo, so use the checks on each page for the variety.