There are a total of thirteen Barber Dimes with a circulation mintage of less than one million. The 1895-O is the lowest mintage among this group, with just 440,000 pieces struck. These figures are with the exception of the 1894-S, which was struck in proof and is not included in most collections due to its excessive rarity.
Considered the classic key date to the series, the 1895-O Barber Dime has an even lower survival rate than the mintage might suggest. At the time of issue, the small mintage circulated heavily with very few pieces saved. Later mass meltings may have also eliminated some examples, as this issue was not widely recognized for its rarity outside of collectors of the series.
There are likely fewer than 100 examples which have survived in uncirculated grades, with the finest known being two pieces graded MS66. An 1895-O dime graded PCGS MS66 realized a price of $52,900 at an auction held in August 2006.
Even problem-free circulated grades tend to be rare. Original VF and EF pieces are very much in demand and bring strong interest from collectors of the series. Current price levels do not seem to reflect the scarcity of this issue, likely a result of the smaller collector base for the series.