The Kennedy Half Dollar features a profile likeness of America's 35th president, John F. Kennedy. The word "Liberty" is inscribed around the top of the image and the words "In God We Trust" are inscribed below the profile. The back of the coin features the image of an eagle that is based on the presidential seal with 50 small stars around it representing the 50 states. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 and the first half dollars were struck in 1964 as a memorial to the late president.

There are several different types of Kennedy Half Dollars that vary in value depending on the amount of silver in them. The 1964 Kennedy Half Dollar is composed of 90% silver and was put into circulation as a result of the rising price of silver. After 1964, Kennedy Half Dollars were made with only 40% silver. Special mint sets of this half dollar were also made from 1965-1967.

Beginning in 1971, the Kennedy Half Dollars that were produced had no silver in them as they were composed of copper and nickel. However, in 1976 Bicentennial coinage was struck and although most of these coins contained no silver, there were some special Bicentennial Kennedy Half Dollars made which were composed of 40% silver. Also, in 1992 more coins were produced that were 90% silver and were only available for purchase in a "Silver Premier Proof Set." In 1998, more collector half dollars were issued and these are quite valuable coins since only 63,000 of them were minted.

Collectors of Kennedy Half Dollars may be interested in the errors and varieties present in some of these coins. Some of the 1964 coins, for example, made Kennedy's hair look more pronounced. In 1974, there was also a production error which made the letters look doubled. Also, the mint marks on the hubs of some of the coins produced in 1979 and 1981 look more like a blob instead of an "S".