The Treasury Department said it plans to stop producing the penny — as the cost to create the coin is nearly four times its worth.
The U.S. Mint made its final order of penny blanks and said it plans to halt the production of pennies once those run out, which will likely be in early 2026, according to The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news.
In stopping the production of pennies, the Treasury expects an immediate annual savings of $56 million in reduced material costs, officials said Thursday. While the penny is only worth a cent, the coin costs nearly 4 cents to create.
New pennies will stop going into circulation by early next year. After production stops, Americans will still be able to use pennies in cash transactions, however, businesses will have to adjust prices.
With the change, businesses will either have to round prices up or down to the nearest 5 cents to allow cash transactions to take place. State and local governments are instructed to provide guidance to retailers so that sales taxes are correctly recorded, the Treasury said.
The announcement comes as the cost to make pennies has increased by over 20 percent in 2024, and as President Donald Trump announced he would cease production of the coin.
“For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump previously wrote on his Truth Social site. “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”
There are currently about 114 billion pennies currently in circulation, though they have become a less common coin to use — with many living under couch cushions or in long-forgotten piggy banks.
According to the Federal Reserve, some 60 percent of actively circulating coins — roughly worth $14 billion — sit in coin jars.
Americans also throw away some $68 million in coins each year, according to the Journal.
Congress, which dictates currency specifications such as the size and metal content of each coin, could make Trump’s order permanent through law, though previous efforts to put the penny to rest have failed.
While Trump is not the first politician to take up the cause, with many advocates citing the high cost to create the coin, there are many fans of the penny, namely collectors.
The penny, which features President Abraham Lincoln’s profile, is also the most popular coin made by the U.S. Mint, which reported making 3.2 billion of the coin last year.
Fans of the penny took to social media to air their grievances, other took the moment to crack jokes.
“’A bitcoin for your thoughts?’ future generations prolly,” one person wrote on X.
“So what happens to the take a penny leave a penny at gas stations?” another person questioned.
Another commentator joked: “Great how am I supposed to share my thoughts now?”
With reporting from the Associated Press.
