May 2026

The Penny

After more than 200 years, it’s coming to an end.

The penny. The one cent coin. The change at the bottom of your purse or in between your couch cushions. The money that lies hopelessly on the street because no one wants to make the effort to pick it up or even flip it over for good luck.

The penny has lost respect over the years. You can’t buy a gumball for a penny anymore and kids scoff at the thought of collecting measly pennies in their piggy banks. It’s been many decades since the Tooth Fairy even dared to leave pennies on a child’s pillow.

So, it’s kind of sad that eventually we may never ask again for “a penny for your thoughts?” or wisely tell our children, “a penny saved is a penny earned.” We won’t ask anyone for their “two cents worth” or say something “costs a pretty penny.”

The penny was one of the first coins produced by the U.S. Mint when it was created in 1792, but on November 12, 2025, the Mint produced its last penny. Pennies are still in circulation, but save for a few collector’s versions, no new ones will be produced.

Land of Lincoln

Of all 50 states, dropping the penny hurts most in Illinois, where we treasure our connection to President Abraham Lincoln. His face adorns the front of the penny, and his memorial is featured on the back of pennies minted through 2008.

Twenty-five years ago, on the fictional White House drama The West Wing, Deputy Sam Seaborn listed all the reasons the penny should be abolished.

His boss, Toby Ziegler, stopped him and told him a bill to abolish the penny would never be called for a vote, because… “Where’s the Speaker of the House from?” “He’s from Illinois, which, by the way, is the only state where you can put pennies in a toll machine,” Seaborn said, as he began to realize why the bill would never be called for a vote, “It’s ’cause Lincoln’s from Illinois! And… so is the Speaker.”

Illinois’ clout may have been a reason that bills to abolish the penny — going back decades — never went anywhere. But Illinois’ Dennis Hastert went from Speaker of the House of Representatives to prison.

And the current occupant of the White House, President Donald Trump, did not wait for congressional approval to end the penny. He just directed his Secretary of the Treasury to stop minting pennies.

History

The first pennies were larger than the ones we know today and have since been dubbed the “Large Cents.” They were nearly the size of the current half-dollar and made completely of copper. Early pennies portrayed a woman with her hair flowing to symbolize liberty (pictured below.) Lady Liberty was on the penny for more than 60 years — although in different designs, including one where her hair is braided. These were produced from 1793 to 1857.

According to Bullion Exchanges in New York City, “Depending on their condition and variety, Large Cent coins can be worth on average between $20 and $5,000. However, several Large Cents have been valued at over $50,000, though they are in credibly rare.” In 1856, the penny got smaller and was made up of 88% copper and 12% nickel. This penny got a redesign, featuring a flying eagle, but production issues led to it only being made for two years (pictured below).

It was replaced in 1859 with the Indian Head Cent. This coin featured the image of Liberty wearing a Native American headdress (pictured below.) The Professional Coin Grading Service says “from 1859–1864, the cents were made of a mixture of copper-nickel. In 1864, partly in response to the privately issued Civil War tokens, the weight of the Indian cent was reduced, and the metal composition reverted to bronze, a nearly pure copper alloy.” The Indian Head Penny is one of the most popular finds for collectors.

It wasn’t until 1909 that Abraham Lincoln was depicted on the coin, in honor of his 100th birthday — making him the first U.S. President to be repre sented on a coin. Lincoln cents made from 1909 to 1958 are known as Wheat Pennies, since the reverse side featured two wheat stalks to symbolize prosperity and agriculture (pictured below.) It was made mostly from copper, except for 1943. During World War II, pennies were made of zinc-coated steel since copper was needed for ammunition and military equipment.

In 1982, the Mint shifted to a zinc core with a thin copper coating to help cut costs. From 1959 to 2008, the reverse side was an image of the Lincoln Memorial to commemorate Lincoln’s 150th birthday. In 2009, the Mint issued four different pennies in celebration of Lincoln’s 200th birthday and the 100th anniversary of the Lincoln cent. The reverse side highlighted his birth and early childhood in Kentucky, his formative years in Indiana, his professional life in Illinois and his Presidency in Washington D.C. The current penny features Abraham Lincoln on one side and the union shield on the other side which according to the U.S. Mint, represents Lincoln’s “preservation of the U.S. as a single country.” This design was first issued in 2010.

Lincoln’s 200th Birthday celebratory pennies, printed in 2009

Discontinuation

Why stop producing the penny? It comes down to simple math. That one cent coin costs the government nearly four cents to make. Think about it — it costs nearly four times its actual value! This is because of the rising price of raw materials, minting, and shipping. This has caused production costs to grow from 1.42 cents to 3.69 cents per penny over the last decade. Based on the most recent estimates, the Mint expects to save approximately $56 million annually by discontinuing production of the penny.

Another factor is consumer behavior. The penny isn’t worth a whole lot these days and most people are making purchases with a credit or debit card. A Capital One Shopping report found that only 11 percent of in-store transactions are made with cash.

Interestingly, talk of nixing the penny has been around for decades. U.S. Representative Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) introduced the Price Rounding Act of 1989 which would have done away with the penny and required rounding to the nearest five cents. In 2017, U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) proposed the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings (COINS) Act, suspending production of the penny for 10 years with a study to follow.

This isn’t the first time the government has stopped producing coins. The half-cent piece was discontin ued in 1857, and the two-cent piece was only around until 1873. Other coins that stopped production in the late 1800’s include the three-cent nickel and the 20-cent piece.

There have been a few arguments for keeping the penny. Some say that low-income households are more likely to pay with cash so rounding up to accommodate the change will affect them more, and others point to successful charity drives. In 2009 the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society announced that school children had collected over 15 billion pennies in support of its charitable work, raising $150 million dollars for blood cancer research and treatment.

Ramifications

It is important to note that while production has ceased, the penny remains legal tender. The Ameri can Bankers Association says there are an estimated 250 billion pennies still in circulation and retailers can continue to price goods and services in one cent increments.

You may have seen some stores with signs indica ting they are having a penny shortage. With billions sense. It’s more that people just aren’t using pennies as much. Old National Bank Director of Financial Empowerment Ben Joergens says retailers will eventually have to round to the nearest nickel to address that or even offer incentives for customers to bring in their pennies.

“I think large retailers are better equipped to adapt… but small businesses may face some operational challenges with shortages of coins. Over time I think prices will probably be rounded to that five-cent increment.”

Some stores are asking cash-paying customers to have exact change, having already stopped using pennies altogether

A November survey by the Retail Industry Lead ers Association (RILA) found that many of the nation’s largest retailers reported widespread penny shortages.

“Of the 25 companies surveyed, nearly one-quarter indicated that more than 1,000 of their store locations are currently without pennies,” said the RILA in a blog post.

The U.S. Treasury Department has issued some advice to businesses and the public, encouraging people to keep using pennies they may have to give retailers time to adapt. As pennies eventually fall out of circulation, the Treasury says merchants will need to either round up or down to the nearest nickel. Debit and credit card transactions can still be processed to the nearest cent.

“Businesses should apply rounding practices in a fair, consistent, and transparent manner.” — U.S. Treasury

Treasury officials also say “most states require sales tax to be calculated on the final sale price rounded to the nearest penny. How states and localities will ultimately amend their sales tax laws is the right and responsibility of those jurisdictions.”

Treasury officials also say “most states require sales tax to be calculated on the final sale price rounded to the nearest penny. How states and localities will ultimately amend their sales tax laws is the right and responsibility of those jurisdictions.”

There is a problem though. In a September 30, 2025, letter to Congressional leaders, groups like the National Grocers Association and National Retail Federation asked for legislation creating a national law allowing businesses to round transactions to the nearest nickel, saying “at least 10 states and localities have cash laws that would prohibit this practice.”

Legislation dubbed the “Common Cents Act” was introduced in both the U.S. House and Senate in April 2025, ending penny production (which President Trump later ordered on his own), and proposing rounding cash transactions to the nearest five cents, but has yet to reach a floor vote.

Will all of this rounding end up costing consumers? The Treasury says no, “For cash transactions, final transaction prices will be rounded down just as often as they will be rounded up, so there should be no overall effect on consumer prices.”

Joergens agrees, “I think in the end the effect will be net neutral.”

Maybe not for retailers, though. The American Restaurant Association estimates that universally rounding down could cost their members $13 to $14 million a month. The RILA expressed the same sentiment in its November survey: “Two-thirds of respondents said they are rounding transactions to the benefit of consumers when pennies are unavailable — a practice that, while fair to shoppers, is costing businesses millions of dollars as small amounts add up across thousands of daily cash transactions.”

Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) President Rob Karr penned an editorial echoing the same concerns, saying:

“The crux of the problem is rounding. As pennies exit circulation, it is becoming increasingly difficult for retailers to make exact change for cash transactions. With out pennies, cash transactions will have to either be rounded up to the nearest 5 cents or down to the nearest 5 cents. Because federal and state officials have not provided guidance on the issue, businesses are left to set their own rounding policies. Meanwhile, as more consumers choose to pay electronically rather than with cash to avoid the hassle of rounding, they’ll also be on the hook for more payment process ing fees. That’s because each time a card is swiped or tapped, retailers are charged fees by card processing companies. In 2023 alone, these companies collected more than $172 billion in payment processing fees, most of which is passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.”

Some businesses may stop accepting pennies altogether, and the Federal Reserve Board says there is no statute mandating that businesses must accept coins or cash. They are free to develop their own policies unless there is a state law that says otherwise.

What about in Illinois?

With no federal or state guidance yet, various bodies have started addressing the issue.

• Previous General Assemblies have seen bills requiring businesses in Illinois to accept cash payments for purchases of less than $2000 and banning businesses from being cashless. None have passed.
• This past October, the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) issued a memorandum in response to inquiries about how to issue cash winnings if pennies are involved. The Board said all IGB licensees who operate cash businesses — including all casinos, video gaming licensees and retail sports books — are required by law to pay out all moneys owed to patrons.”
• The IGB said this could be done in a number of ways if the business is short on one cent coins including rounding up to the nearest nickel or dime, using an alternate payment method in accordance with Illinois law, or offering gaming activity that doesn’t use one cent increments.
• The Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) has posted signs at its locations where cash is accepted regarding its rounding policies (pictured above, right.)
• Some local governments like Wood River, IL have stopped accepting pennies for city payments and are now rounding to the nearest nickel for payments like utility bills.
• In the Facebook group “What’s Happening in Rockford, IL” a member posted a sign that a local McDonald’s had put up to explain the store’s rounding policy (pictured above. left).

Canada

Canada is way ahead of us when it comes to the penny. Minting stopped in 2012 and the penny was officially withdrawn from circulation in 2013. This was done for the same reasons as here in the U.S. — production cost and a purchasing power that amounts to zilch. It was estimated that eliminating the penny would save about $11 million in taxpayer money per year. To help with the transition, the Canadian government issued rounding rules:

In the fall of 2012, the Royal Canadian Mint asked businesses to return pennies through their financial institutions for melting and recycling of the metal content. In a research paper published in 2018, a student at the University of British Columbia looked at how elimination of the penny affected grocery shopping. She found that ultimately, rounding wasn’t costing consumers much extra, but that grocery retailers were benefiting to the tune of about $157 per year.

Other countries that have done away with their one cent coin include Australia (1992), the Netherlands (2004) and Switzerland (2006). New Zealand removed its one-cent and two-cent coins from circulation in 1989 and ditched its five-cent coin in 2006.

Is the nickel next?

The nickel could very well be next on the chopping block. It costs nearly 14 cents to produce each five-cent piece. According to Money Digest, the nickel is made up of 75% copper and 25% nickel, both of which have grown in cost. There has been talk about changing the mix of metals, but even a slight alteration in weight could throw off things like vending machines that accept nickels.

Now the dime, that’s another story. The 10-cent coin is a downright bargain, costing five to six 10 cents to make and quarters are around 15 cents per coin.

Other changes ahead?

In August, the U.S. Department of Treasury announced that the federal government would stop issuing paper checks for most federal payments. This includes Social Security checks. Recipients now must either sign up for direct deposit or receive their benefits through a debit-type card. This hasn’t been a huge change for most, as the SSA says less than one percent of recipients had been getting paper checks.

What about the State of Illinois? The Illinois Office of Comptroller (IOC) sends out about 15 million payments, or “warrants” each year to state employees, retirees, providers and vendors. 80% of those payments are through electronic fund transfer (EFT).

State retirees and employees are the highest users of EFT, while vendors are the least likely to opt for direct deposit. The IOC makes continued efforts to encourage the use of EFT such as inserts in mailed paper checks, social media posts, and flyers included with annual W-2 mailings.

Having paychecks and payments directly deposited saves time and is more secure. There is no fear of checks getting delayed or lost in the mail by U.S.P.S.

The IOC knows that not everyone has a bank account, so the office has the Bank On program which provides unbanked Illinoisans access to affordable and safe accounts with banks and credit unions around the state.

Moving forward

The discontinuation of penny production really is an end of an era. For many of us, pennies were the first coins we were introduced to as kids, filling our piggy banks or starting a coin collection.

Pennies will always be a part of our history — and our vernacular. “Dollar pinchers” just doesn’t have the same ring to it, and there isn’t likely a market for a song called “debit cards from heaven.”

Expert and amateur coin collectors (known formally as numismatists) will continue to look for rare gems like the 1943-D Copper Lincoln Penny (pictured below) and the 1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent.

How businesses and the public will adjust as pennies drop in circulation remains to be seen, and Joergens says there will likely need to be an education component to the shift. Other currencies like the nickel will be evaluated. Countries like Sweden are leading the way towards a cashless society. There, most stores and restaurants don’t accept cash and even street vendors take digital payment.

For now, in Illinois and the U.S., the penny is still in play. So pick up that penny on the street for good luck… just don’t expect it to buy you much.