Budgeting

What Happens Now That the Penny Is Gone?

Published on April 14, 2026

Written by Sarah Rochford
Updated April 14, 2026

No more wishing wells, no more crank machines, no more stuffing them into rolls and turning them in for cash. Because after 223 years, the penny is dead!

But while it might be sad to think about times changing, when you realize why pennies are going away, you’ll wish this had happened a long time ago.

Why America Stopped Making Pennies

The biggest reason pennies are going away can be summed up with one word, waste. And we promise you, you aren’t ready for these numbers.

For starters, it costs 3.7 just to make one penny.¹ This is known as negative seigniorage when the cost of making currency is higher than the face value. But this is where it gets crazy. The United States makes 3.2 billion pennies every year, which if you laid them end to end could nearly wrap around the entire planet.²

So in total, the US spends about $120 million to make $32 million worth of pennies. But it gets worse. Studies show that nearly $68 million worth of coins are thrown away in the trash each year.³ So many of us are guilty of this; they get lost in the couch or under the car seats. And for most of us, a dirty little crusty penny is not worth the effort to bend down and pick it up or clean it off.

On top of that, there’s already $14 billion worth of loose change that’s stuck in jars, cup holders, and car seats instead of actually being used. To make things worse for the penny, inflation has even made the penny spending power nearly zilch. It’s arguably worth less than 1 cent in real terms these days.

Should We Keep The Penny?

So, we don’t really need new pennies to begin with if we’re already throwing them out. However, there are some arguments that could be made for keeping the penny.

The Rounding Tax

One reason comes from what’s called the rounding tax. If the penny is eliminated, cash transactions could be rounded to the nearest nickel. So instead of $1.99, your item becomes $2 or $1.91 might become $1.95. It’s not a big amount for one transaction, but it could add up over time. This “rounding tax” is feared to disproportionately affect low income consumers who are more likely to pay with cash and make smaller purchases. Removing pennies could also have a big effect on charities that use penny drives as part of their fundraising effort.

Our Reliance on Nickels Will Increase

But perhaps the biggest argument for keeping the penny is if we get rid of it, our reliance on nickels will increase, and nickels might be even more problematic than pennies. Nickels are actually the most expensive, costing around 14 cents to produce each one. So, they’ll likely be the next to go, most countries that got rid of their pennies ended up axing the next smallest coin, too.

Why should we keep losing money by making money? That doesn’t make sense. Cents (Okay. Sorry, we’ll stop).

But it’s not just a financial cost. There’s also a pretty big environmental one, too.

Environmental Effects

Cranking out billions of pennies eats up over 21,000 tons of zinc and 500 plus tons of copper every year.⁴ Mining and processing all of that metal isn’t exactly eco-friendly. It produces thousands of tons of carbon emissions and other pollutants.

Can I Still Use Pennies?

Even though the penny will stop getting made, they are still legal tender. So, you can still pay for things using pennies if you were one of the few who still use them. However, if you have a collection buried away somewhere in your house, you might want to check because your pennies could be worth a lot of money in the future.

Are Your Pennies Worth Anything?

Since we’re finally stopping penny production, experts believe most of them will be out of circulation by 2050. So, pennies could become kind of rare and the right one could be worth millions.

Now, the vast majority of pennies are only worth their face value of 1 cent. So, you could have a thousand pennies and big whoop-de-doo, you’ve got 10 bucks. But before you dump that jar of coins, there are certain collector pennies that fetch a fortune.

For example, a 1958 Lincoln scent with a printing error, a double die design, sold at auction for over $1.1 million.⁵ You heard that right. One penny went for $1 million. Another famous rarity, a 1943 penny mistakenly made of bronze, also sold for around $1 million.⁶ There are tons of special coins that could be worth something in the future. These gems are literally the lottery tickets of loose change. Of course, the odds of finding one of those in your pocket are microscopic, but hey, it never hurts to check!

What’s Next for Money?

The penny may be on its way out, but what does that mean for the future of cash? Cash in general is starting to feel a bit well, old school. In 2024, only around 16% of all transactions in the US were made with cash.⁷ And it’s been a decline for years.

Most transactions are happening with credit cards, debit cards, or digital payments like tap-to-pay. Think about it. When was the last time you needed exact change for anything? Even vending machines take cards or phones now.

Many businesses, especially post pandemic, prefer tap-and-go payments, and some don’t even accept cash at all. This trend means fewer people are bothered by losing the penny because fewer people are using any coins or paper money day-to-day.

CreditNinja’s Final Thoughts on The Penny

If pennies go bye-bye and we start rounding prices to the nearest 5 cents, the poor nickel will take all the pressure.

On the flip side (wink), dimes and quarters are safe for now.

It costs about six cents to make a dime and 15 cents to make a quarter. So, those actually turn a profit for the mint. As long as coins pay for themselves, Uncle Sam is happy to keep minting them.

Now, the real question is, could we ever become a cashless society? If this did happen, governments could save on printing and minting costs, and it would be harder to evade taxes or engage in illicit trade when every transaction leaves a digital footprint.

Businesses often prefer digital payments, too. But cash does have some positives. It’s always reliable in case there’s a power outage, and you don’t have to leave a paper trail with every transaction you make. However, the chances of becoming completely cashless likely won’t happen in our lifetime.

But who knows? That’s just our two cents. Okay, that was the last pun!

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