In the good old Bell System days, payphone prices were set by state utility commissions, which is why they’d vary across the country.
I believe Wolfman Jack in American Grafitti answered the phone with “You get the dime, I got the time,” - or it could have been my roommate from college.
Pay phone prices, like most telecom prices, were regulated by states. So as noted, the increases took place at different times in different states.
In general, the rise from nickel to dime took place in the early 1950’s, to a quarter in the early 1970’s, and to 35 cents in the early 1990’s. But some states trailed far behind these averages–many states had gone to a quarter before Louisiana went to a dime. Four states were still at a dime in 1996.
The Telecom Act of 1996 removed pay phone prices from state regulation, and since that time competing providers have charged whatever the (ever-diminishing) market will bear.
One thing to keep in mind about “It’s your nickel”–in the early days of telecom, before everybody could afford a private line, there were more “semi-public” phones, that charged by the call, in boarding houses, dorms, two-flats, and so forth. So people were much more conscious of the pay-per-call price.
Most of my life – I was a kid in the 50’s and 60’s – phone calls were a dime. However at the Ft. Leonard Wood, MO Airport in 1970 they were a nickel. That was the only time I ever saw a nickel pay phone. They went to 25 cents about 1983 or so most places that I knew about.
I wouldn’t even know where to find a pay phone today. I am sure it would be close to a dollar if not more.
Zombie post, I know, but there was a Travis Tritt song called, “Here’s a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares).”
Also, in the early 80s, when I moved to Tucson, pay phone calls cost 20¢, which was a weird amount. You could use four nickels, two dimes, or two nickels and a dime, but if you used a quarter, you didn’t get back change.
I had a friend in high school we all called Nickle Bag.
I knocked on his door to pick him up and his mom answered. I wanted to ask if he was home, but for the life of me, I couldn’t remember his “real” name. His mom eventually asked if I was looking for Jeffrey.
She then went on to ask me why the kids all called him that silly nickname. I was speechless, she was clueless. We shoulda paired up to fight crime.
Wow, you didn’t even get a Nickelback? 
I’ve only rarely heard the exact phrase “it’s your nickel”. I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard the exact phrase “it’s your dime.” I do occasionally hear the phrase “not on my dime” or “on his dime” or variants thereof, but not “it’s your dime.” And I don’t hear “not on my nickel” oddly enough.
The lyrics that I remember are from Jim Croce’s “Operator”. To keep this in GQ, I’ll point out that the song is from 1972.
Huh. I’ve never heard either phrase “it’s your nickel” or “it’s your dime.” The things you learn here. I am familiar with “drop a dime,” though, as well as “who put a nickel in you?”
I answered the phone once with “start talkin’, it’s your nickle.” The other person hung up.
Beaten! (I use Option-$.)
And in 1972, Jim Croce sang, ‘You can keep the dime’ in Operator.
I have no recollection of pay phones costing only a nickel. I’m not sure I remember them ever costing only a dime. I do remember when I was a small child, postage going from 5¢ to 6¢. I was too young to write letters, so I don’t know why that stuck.
If you ever feel lonesome
And you’re down in San Antone
Beg, steal, or borrow
Two nickels or a dime to call me on the phone
Peter Rowen “Midnight Moonlight”
When I was a kid in the '50s, postage had been 3¢ for decades. It was a really big deal when it became 4¢. A lot of people were up in arms that they had to pay 4¢ to mail a letter.
Slight hijack.
There is a payphone directory out there on the internet. I am not sure how accurate it is however.
Once again, ignorance fought through no fault of my own.
I’m just barely old enough to remember the change to 4 cents. I didn’t understand why people were upset about it, but I really liked that new stamp with Lincoln’s picture on it.
It’s kind of strange, for years people got upset every time the postal rate went up. Nowadays, most people probably couldn’t even tell you what the rate is.
47¢
The old payphones had a chime in them that sounded when you inserted a coin. The nickel went ding, the dime went ding*ding and the quarter went DONG.
Not strange at all. Going from 4¢ to 5¢ is a 25% jump! Recent changes have not been as drastic.
(BTW, the most recent change went down one cent!)
I recently had to mail something at work. I guessed it had climbed to around thirty cents. We had “forever” stamps at work, which was cool. I was shocked when I learned it was fortyseven cents!