McCoy made cookie jars by the thousands for decades, so most examples you meet are affordable and easy to find. Value in this line is concentrated in a short list of scarce molds and a few oddities that never sold well when new. Knowing which jars sit at the top, and why, keeps a collector from overpaying for a common piece or walking past a sleeper.
The jars that reach the top of the market
A small group of McCoy molds surfaces again and again in price discussions. The prices below reflect strong examples with an original matching lid; ordinary condition trims them quickly.
| Jar | Why it is scarce | Reported range |
|---|---|---|
| Multicolor Fox Squirrel | Rare decorated variant, few surviving | up to $4,600 |
| Freddy the Gleep | Odd 1970s figure, short production | $2,000–$2,500 |
| Mammy | Withdrawn subject, high demand | $400–$1,500 |
| Astronaut | Space-era mold, hard to find clean | $400–$600 |
| Stagecoach | Complex mold, easily chipped | $500–$800 |
| Coalby Cat | Dark glaze, scarce figural | $200–$400 |
Treat these figures as signposts, not fixed values. A single auction result can outrun the typical selling range, and a soft market can undercut it. Jack O'Lantern jars and other seasonal figures also draw premiums when they turn up complete.
What actually sets the price
Four factors move a McCoy jar up or down the scale. They work together, and a weakness in one can cancel strength in another.
- Rarity of the moldShort runs, withdrawn subjects, and decorated variants sit far above the everyday jars that McCoy sold in volume.
- Condition and completenessChips to the rim or spout, a hairline crack, or a replaced lid can strip 50 to 80 percent from a figural jar.
- Cold paint and decorationHand-applied cold paint rubs off with handling. A jar that keeps crisp, original color reads as scarce and sells for more.
- Current demandCollector taste shifts. A subject that was hot a decade ago may cool, so recent sales matter more than old guides.
Watch for fantasy jars and reissues
Because the top McCoy names carry money, they also attract copies. Fantasy jars wear a McCoy mark that the company never used on that mold, and later reissues can pass for old to an unpracticed eye. A recast is often smaller and lighter than an original, with softer relief detail from being cast off a copy. Before you pay a premium, weigh the mark, the crispness of the modeling, and the glaze against a trusted reference. Our guide on how to identify McCoy cookie jars and spot a fake walks through the marks in detail, and the notes on telling Brush and McCoy apart help when a jar sits between the two makers.
How to price a jar you own
Start from the mold, not the myth. Identify the exact jar, grade it honestly, then pull recent completed sales of the same mold in comparable condition. Ignore asking prices and unsold listings; they show hope, not value. If your example is short a lid, decorated with worn cold paint, or repaired, place it below the clean comparables rather than at the headline number. A realistic figure built from sold examples serves a buyer or seller far better than the record price a single rare jar once reached.