It’s the end of an era for American currency. On Nov. 12, 2025, the final penny was pressed by the United States Mint in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, before being formally discontinued after more than 230 years in production.
“God bless America,” Treasurer Brandon Beach said before hitting the button to create the last penny, according to AP. “We’re going to save the taxpayers $56 million.” The last few pennies of the final batch are set to be auctioned off, though it’s unclear what the proceeds will be used for.
President Donald Trump announced his decision to end production of the 1-cent coin, claiming that the cost to make the pennies was greater than their value. “For far too long, the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents,” Trump wrote online in February 2025. “This is so wasteful!” Other outlets have claimed each penny costs as much as three cents to make.
.@TreasurerBeach, who oversees the U.S. Mint, pushes a button to create the last ever circulating penny.
The Mint says it’ll be auctioned off. pic.twitter.com/U7ZSrbJC1J
— Michael Stratford (@mstratford) November 12, 2025
Though new versions of the legal tender will no longer be created, there are still billions of them in circulation, and people can still use them to pay for things if they so choose. That said, the news brought about mixed reactions from Americans online.
Some were sad, with one nostalgic X user writing, “RIP to all the sidewalk wishes.” A second concerned poster wrote, “I saw a sign at the grocery store this morning they could only accept exact change due to a penny shortage.”
Meanwhile, some thought the move was overdue. “So insane it’s taken this long to stop making a useless coin,” said one, while another wrote, “This should have happened decades ago, the penny has absolutely zero value.”
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Others simply joked about the news, with one saying, “Great, now my dad will collect and keep every penny he finds because ‘it will be worth something someday,'” and another adding, “UPDATE: A nickel saved is a nickel earned.” A third teased, “I guess it’s too late to give my two cents on this.”
The penny has been in production in America since 1793. It’s the first U.S. coin since the half-cent to be discontinued – the latter of which had its final mint in 1857. They’re considered rare to find these days, and depending on the specific year and condition can be worth anywhere from $50 to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
