The end of the penny: What you need to know
In November, the U.S. Treasury minted the last penny. While pennies remain legal tender, you will see fewer pennies in circulation.
The cost of a penny.
Producing a penny costs more than one cent—thanks to rising metal prices and manufacturing costs. In fact, each penny costs more than triple (3.7¢) its value to make.
The increased cost, paired with the rise of digital payments and cashless purchases, has led the U.S. Government to stop penny production.
What this means for you.
- Pennies are not being removed from circulation. There are no plans to discontinue the use of existing pennies, and you will still be able to use pennies for cash transactions.
- We’ll continue to accept pennies at all branches for payments and deposits.
- We continually manage our coin supply to balance distribution among branches.
- Branch and Commercial Cash Vault client orders may change based on inventory; if supplies run out, we will be unable to fulfill orders.
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
You can continue to deposit, withdraw (depending on penny availability), and use pennies as usual.
Electronic payments, direct or mobile app deposits, or card-based payments are not affected by this change.
Our client coin orders may need to be adjusted as needed to reflect changing inventory levels. If our inventory is depleted, we will be unable to fulfill orders.
If your business primarily handles cash transactions, you may want to consider what other businesses are doing if you are impacted by the penny shortage.
- Some retailers and restaurants will round cash transactions to the nearest nickel when pennies aren’t available
- Quick-service restaurants, grocery stores, and convenience stores are posting signage and training staff to explain rounding practices
- Retailers are updating receipts to show rounding adjustments for transparency
The proposed Common Cents Act would introduce rounding for cash transactions:
- Rounding down totals ending in 1, 2, 6 or 7 cents
- Rounding up totals ending in 3, 4, 8 or 9 cents
Payments made by check, gift card, credit card, money order, and electronic payments remain exact to the amount.
Other countries have successfully adopted similar systems. Canada stopped using pennies in 2012 and Australia in 1992.
Learn more about the Common Cents Act.
Celebrating the penny
The penny has been part of American life since 1793, when the first coin featured Lady Liberty.
- In 1909, the Lincoln cent debuted to honor Abraham Lincoln’s 100th birthday—the first U.S. coin to feature a historical figure
- Over time, designs changed: wheat ears on the back gave way to the Lincoln Memorial celebrating Lincoln’s 150th birthday in 1959
- Originally made of pure copper, today’s pennies are copper-plated zinc due to rising metal costs
Popular penny sayings:
- A penny saved is a penny earned
- Find a penny, pick it up
- A penny for your thoughts
These sayings reflect the penny’s cultural significance—even as it fades from everyday transactions.
