There’s an exception to every rule,” he said, noting that some pennies are indeed already valuable to collectors.

Key Takeaways The U.S. Treasury Department is no longer producing the penny, and it will start disappearing from circulation early next year.The one-cent coin, first minted in the late 1700s, has become virtually worthless because of inflation.

As penny production ends, we share some interesting facts — including an estimate of how many are currently in circulation.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent brought an end to more than two centuries of U.S. penny production on Wednesday, striking the

People trying to save money will “pinch pennies,” and the phrase “pennies from heaven” still describes an unexpected windfall. If someone sees a penny on the ground, they should pick it up to receive a day of good luck. The penny is also known as the going rate for thought, and the phrase “a pretty penny” is still commonly said.

The penny dropped. The U.S. Mint struck the final 1-cent coin that will be used as legal tender on Wednesday, six months after the Trump administration announced that it would stop producing pennies because the cost of making them is almost four times more than they’re worth.

“It was kind of obsolete a long time ago,” Todd Sandham, owner of Colonial Acres Coins in Kitchener, Ont., said. “Canada stopped [producing pennies] in 2012, so it makes sense that [the U.S.] finally decided to stop.”