The short answer
Silver is weakly diamagnetic, not ferromagnetic. A changing magnetic field can induce eddy currents that oppose motion, but copper and other conductors can do this too, so magnetic drag does not authenticate silver.
Nonmagnetic needs a qualification
Pure silver does not behave like iron when a magnet is brought near it. More precisely, silver is diamagnetic: it has a small magnetic response opposing an applied field. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s eddy-current testing manual lists silver, copper and gold as examples. A sufficiently sensitive arrangement can detect weak repulsion.
That is different from the strong attraction associated with ferromagnetic materials. Saying silver is nonmagnetic is convenient everyday shorthand, but saying it has no magnetic response at all goes too far. It also leaves out a second interaction that becomes important when the magnetic field changes.
Motion creates circulating currents
When a magnet moves near a conducting piece of silver, the changing magnetic flux can induce electric currents circulating within the metal. These are eddy currents. They generate their own magnetic fields, with a direction that opposes the change responsible for the currents. This is the behavior described by Lenz’s law.
The resulting force can resist relative motion between the magnet and conductor. Mechanical energy is transferred into electrical currents and ultimately dissipated as heat through resistance. This braking does not require silver to become a permanent magnet or to attract the magnet in the way a piece of steel would.
The effect is not exclusive to silver. The University of Colorado Boulder demonstrates eddy-current braking with copper. Research on eddy-current brakes also shows that the response depends on the conductor’s properties, its dimensions, the magnetic field and speed. The apparent slowdown belongs to the complete arrangement, not just the metal’s name.
A response is not an identification
This distinction matters when someone presents a magnet demonstration as a silver test. Other conductors can produce drag, so observing a slowdown cannot establish that an item is silver. Conversely, little visible slowing can reflect an unsuitable arrangement rather than prove that silver is absent.
A simple attraction check has similar limits. Lack of strong attraction does not identify silver, because many other materials also lack that response. A plated object or an assembly containing different components can make any conclusion from one observation especially uncertain.
The sensible conclusion is narrower: magnetic behavior can supply one clue about an object, but it is not a measurement of silver fineness or proof of authenticity. Important identification questions call for appropriate professional examination and complementary measurements. Preserve the object’s surface rather than sliding a hard magnet across a collectible to recreate a dramatic video.
About this edition
Original source and editorial notes
Adapted from original material by Rich Silver. Original source card: Silver fact: supplied original card (publication date not established).
Reviewed 2026-11-04. Corrected the absolute nonmagnetic and not-repelled wording: silver is weakly diamagnetic. Explained motion-induced eddy-current braking separately from static attraction and diamagnetism. Added limits on magnetic screening and omitted hands-on strong-magnet demonstrations. The source card has no verified publication date or public URL; none has been inferred from file metadata. No source-card graphics are reproduced.