The pace of producing U.S. coins for circulation slowed for a third month straight month in September yet the amount struck hurdled the 1 billion level for an eighth month in a row, according to latest manufacturing figures published by the United States Mint.
Nearly 1.17 billion coins — spread across cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters — were minted last month, representing declines of 1.5% from August and 17.8% from September 2020.
Here’s how the month compares to others in the past year:
September 2020 to September 2021 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| September 2021 | 1,169.28 M | 8 |
| August 2021 | 1,187.32 M | 7 |
| July 2021 | 1,505.24 M | 1 |
| June 2021 | 1,348.60 M | 5 |
| May 2021 | 1,473.06 M | 2 |
| April 2021 | 1,320.28 M | 6 |
| March 2021 | 1,134.84 M | 11 |
| February 2021 | 1,163.40 M | 10 |
| January 2021 | 919.52 M | 12 |
| December 2020 | 903.50 M | 13 |
| November 2020 | 1,165.10 M | 9 |
| October 2020 | 1,404.69 M | 4 |
| September 2020 | 1,422.59 M | 3 |
The Federal Reserve orders more 1-cent coins from the U.S. Mint than any other denomination even as data shows it costs 1.76 cents to make and distribute each one. The Mint made 605.6 million Lincoln cents last month, representing 51.8% of the circulating-quality coins produced.
Month-Over-Month
In month-over month comparisons for coins used daily by Americans, production totals in September saw:
- 19.6% fewer Lincoln cents,
- 14% more Jefferson nickels,
- 31.8% more Roosevelt dimes, and
- 41.2% more quarters.
Native American $1 coins and Kennedy half-dollars are no longer ordered by Federal Reserve Banks, but they are still made in circulating quality for coin collectors. Often in January, the U.S. Mint strikes both coins to the expected amounts needed for the entire year.
That wasn’t the case for 2021 halves. Mint data shows none were produced until February, and then only 1.6 million from Denver. Philadelphia finally showed up in March at 1.9 million. Then in April, amounts for both facilities advanced by 5.2 million from Denver and 2.9 million from Philadelphia. In May, production increased by 900,000 from Denver and 300,000 from Philadelphia. Finally, the Philadelphia Mint in August produced another 300,000.
Together, the months add to a combined 13.1 million halves — the most for a year since 2001. Last year’s half-dollar ended with 3.4 million from Denver and 2.3 million from Philadelphia for a total of 5.7 million halves.
Published mintages of 2021 Native American dollars have remained unchanged since January with equal splits of 1.26 million from Denver and 1.26 million from Philadelphia for a combined 2.52 million coins. In contrast, the 2020 dollar saw 1.26 million for Denver and 1.4 million for Philadelphia for 2.66 million coins.
The U.S. Mint started selling rolls and bags of 2021 Native American dollars on Feb. 16. Rolls and bags of 2021 Kennedy half dollars debuted on May 11.
Here’s a summary of all circulating-quality coins produced last month:
US Mint Circulating Coin Production in September 2021
| Denomination | Denver | Philadelphia | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cents | 342,000,000 | 263,600,000 | 605,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickels | 79,200,000 | 55,680,000 | 134,880,000 |
| Roosevelt Dimes | 143,000,000 | 91,000,000 | 234,000,000 |
| Quarters | 97,200,000 | 97,600,000 | 194,800,000 |
| Kennedy Half Dollars | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Native American $1s | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 661,400,000 | 507,880,000 | 1,169,280,000 |
U.S. Mint plants in Denver and Philadelphia manufacture all of America’s coins for commerce. Last month, the Denver Mint made 661.4 million coins and the Philadelphia Mint made 507.88 million coins for the combined 1,169,280,000 coins.
YTD Totals
Year to date, the Denver Mint has struck 5,788,020,000 coins and the Philadelphia Mint has struck 5,433,520,000 coins for a combined 11,211,540,000 coins, which is 0.8% fewer than the 11,301,070,000 coins minted through the same period in 2020.
This next table lists coin production totals for 2021 by denomination and by U.S. Mint facility:
YTD 2021 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination
| 1 ¢ | 5 ¢ | 10 ¢ | 25 ¢ | 50 ¢ | N.A. $1 | Total: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 3012.8M | 668.16M | 1209.5M | 888.6M | 7.7M | 1.26M | 5788.02M |
| Philadelphia | 2927.2M | 642.46M | 1078M | 779.2M | 5.4M | 1.26M | 5433.52M |
| Total | 5940M | 1310.62M | 2287.5M | 1667.8M | 13.1M | 2.52M | 11211.54M |
If the current production pace stretched through to December, the annual mintage for 2021 would top 14.9 billion coins. The U.S. Mint made over 14.77 billion coins for circulation in 2020.
Mintages by Unique Design
In addition to the Native American dollar, the U.S. Mint released (on Feb. 8) another coin with a one-year-only design — the 2021 Tuskegee Airmen quarter for Alabama. Its mintage remained unchanged in August.
This last table offers a breakdown of this year’s mintages that have been reported by coin design:
2021 Circulating Coin Production by Design
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 3,012,800,000 | 2,927,200,000 | 5,940,000,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 668,160,000 | 642,460,000 | 1,310,620,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 1,209,500,000 | 1,078,000,000 | 2,287,500,000 |
| Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site Quarter (Alabama) | 304,000,000 | 160,400,000 | 464,400,000 |
| George Washington Crossing the Delaware Quarter | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 7,700,000 | 5,400,000 | 13,100,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 1,260,000 | 1,260,000 | 2,520,000 |
| Total | 5,203,420,000 | 4,814,720,000 | 10,018,140,000 |
There are 1,203,400,000 in quarters that the U.S. Mint has yet to officially assign to a design. These are 2021 George Washington Crossing the Delaware quarters. Hundreds of millions more of them will be made until the first American Women quarters are issued in 2022.
Hey SENZA, did you ever receive your ‘S’ Proof ASE? I am STILL waiting on my ASE Reverse Proof Set. Clicking on the tracking # in the Mint’s Sept. 29 email gives status of “In Transit, Arriving Late” and the delivery date of October 5. Since October 2 there’s also been the message, “Your package will arrive later than expected, but is still on its way. It is currently in transit to the next facility.“ When I inquired at my local post office, they told me to contact the Mint, and when I called the Mint the person said I… Read more »
Yes, I got mine several days ago and I’m still amazed that it arrived given the voodoo from the US Mint. The Mint is gaming the mailing system and the Post Office is only a shell of what it was 2 years ago but if you have tracking I would say your good to go. I have some experience in mail order and there is one thing you could do: that is put a trace on it as a lost package – if it’s later than tracking suggests they should not charge you for the trace and once you start… Read more »
Correction I have the 2 coin set Reverse Proof but do not have the (S) and I can’t check status because my order status does not work in my US Mint account. I could call them but honestly this US Mint situation is so bad I fear the OIG might have to shut them down to investigate major crime(s). The US Mint is selling products they don’t have – somebody is running that place from a rubber room and nobody is stepping up. The US Mint is now like the stock market and the Public traded companies – with the… Read more »
SENZA,
Keep the blind faith, lol. I finally got a tracking # for ASE T2 S yesterday. For those who didn’t have enrollments, should hear soon?
Yes
Mammoth,
My RP Set arrived this past Monday, one day ahead of the expected delivery date on the tracking page. I don’t understand the thinking at the Mint. They send my 2021 Proof AGE 4coin set, a $5000 set, by USPS but my Limited Edition Silver Proof Set is being delivered by UPS. Is there any IQ in government agencies today? Anyway, you just have to be patient and give the USPS time to deliver the package. Hopefully you’ll get It before Thanksgiving.
It’s so quiet here is kaiser on vacation?
Now that all the high-anxiety 2021 Mint products have been released, the only excitement left for the year is getting our S mint Proof ASEs and the Morgan/Peace Silver Dollars we ordered way back when.
Absolutely, this fiasco with the (S) is something else – I just attempted a purchase from QVC and after I checked out they said this item is on “advance order” and won’t be available until a later date – I was thinking Hmm where have I heard that before – Oh yeah every time I visit the US Mint. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1g_r_j_i_6U
SENZA, the terminal waiting for the (S) Proof ASEs is over. I got my Mint order shipped! email yesterday afternoon (10/17/21).
My peace dollars are on back order
Everyone’s holding their breath to see who gets Morgans or Peace Dollars first!
It’s definitely been an exciting year for coins and new Morgans and Peace dollars arriving in our mail boxes soon certainly would be a mission accomplished
Was wondering the same thing. Imo, KW is the glue that holds this forum together. Hope all is well
Hey Phil,
Good to here from you please give me a shout if you get that Morgan, Peace or (S) I’m still waiting on all 3 – in the meantime I’ll be sleeping off the intermission
Good luck, Kaiser Wilhelm. I hope you will be ok. Being an Atheist, I cannot say I am praying for you, but I bet you will get many of those from many others on this site. I will be thinking of you tomorrow. Get well soon!
Atheism is pretty retarded. Closes the door. Agnosticism is the smart play. Ymmv.
Not trying spark a war. Couldn’t resist. A closed mind is a turrible x to exist
Hi Phil, If you are sure Atheism is retarded, you are not Agnostic (you are supposed to be unsure). I was Agnostic for the majority of my life, but about 10 years ago, all the data I gathered over my life made me feel deep down inside we are alone. That is why I wish we could all start working together and value all lives, not just some. Weak people who come to that conclusion tend to freak out. I talked to one guy at a bar maybe 2 years ago who told me if he knew for sure there… Read more »
Kaiser,
Pos energy from here. No math.
Senza,
It’s kind of like a football game and we’re in halftime. Everyone heads to the fridge for food and drink and only returns when the 3rd quarter begins. For us, the 3rd quarter begins when the Mint starts to ship out our Morgans and Peace Dollars. I heard on one of the coin shows that the Mint will start shipping this week. We’ll see about that. Kaiser is probably enjoying a good nap.
Exactly, man if those coins don’t get here soon I’m going to have to eat some more – I don’t really like Spaghetti but it was there calling out to me
Kaiser,
I certainly hope all is well! Nothing is as important as our health!
It is Shoctober the month when our animal instincts take over fortunately it’s all temporary
Dear Sir Kaiser, I just said a prayer for you to get well as soon as possible. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
I wish I had that problem I’m a damn Vampire but I hope your sleeping pattern returns to normal I’m told mine won’t for 250 to 500 more years. Friends can help at a time likes too……….Wishing you better health soon
Larry T. – I also noticed the limited Edition Silver Proof Set is being delivered by UPS.
Hopefully UPS will be more expedient with this set, than the Post Orifice is being with the Reverse Proof Set.
—————-
The writing is on the wall: Mail Christmas gifts early! (But if you plan on mailing those 2021 Peace & Morgan Silver Dollars as presents, you’re S.O.L.)
Mammoth,
Got it today the packing was pathetic and the outer slip case was damaged but the US Mint showed it’s true colors on the obverse of my coin: see photo below:
Just got it and it’s pathetic they really need to shut that US Mint down
I had the opposite happen with my ASE uncirculated coin from West Point, Mammoth. I understood that it wouldn’t arrive until December, but it showed up this week. Has anyone else noticed the grammatical error in the description of the obverse design in the certificate of authenticity?
Thank you all who responded to my post about the MIA Reverse Proof Set.
A couple hrs. after writing that, I received an email update that said, “Your item arrived at our LA VERGNE, TN 37086 origin facility on October 16, 2021 at 2:20 pm. The item is currently in transit to the destination.”
Eighteen days after supposedly being shipped by the Mint on Sept. 29, and this coin set still haven’t even left the state they were shipped from?
LMAO! On the bright side – at least my Reverse Proof Set is Someplace.
After watching a YouTube vid on the subject, I’m curious about condition of the reverse set you will receive. Specifically, it mentioned the coins arriving loose in the packaging. Mine were per usual, tight & requiring careful ‘prying’ to set free.
Phil, mine were in tight but were both placed offset skewed at a 45 degree angle – indicating some hurried/sloppy handling during packaging… a rush job!
Mine arrived sliding-around-loose inside a box that looked opened and retaped.
Received my Limited Edition Silver Proof set yesterday and it’s missing the Crossing the Delaware quarter.
Anyone else have a problem with missing coin(s) in their set?
Carl, that’s a scary prospect, especially for those keeping the set unopened in it’s original mint shipping packaging for pedigree label designation of the two S & W silver dollars and the set.
Ditto about the unopened box concern. I was planning on keeping mine that way and probably wont send in to PCGS until sometime next year.
Carl,
Hmmm…I believe Senza was looking to procure one of those Crossing the Delaware quarters.
Say what…………………
It’ll be between you and me. Lol!
I get the feeling someone turns on the assembly line at the US Mint then everyone goes to the directors office to party all day and nobody is doing quality control.
My order for S & D mint Morgan’s is processing and card was charged this morning (10/18/21). Did manage to get all the other Morgan’s and Peace Dollar but those are still on back order. Wonder why they didn’t ship the CC & O first since those came out first.
Yes, it is odd that the S & D mint Morgans released/ordered on August 3 would process and ship before the CC & O privy Morgans released/ordered on May 24. Perhaps this explains why the CC/O privy Morgans were originally stated to ship in October with presale on May 24. However, during the ordering process on launch day, when added to cart a message stated “expected to ship in November.” Thereafter, the expected date for shipping of all 6 silver dollars became October-November. The mint must have needed a long time period between order presales and order fulfillment/shipping to be… Read more »
Omaha Joe,
I just checked my Order History page and saw that my S and D minted Morgans are now in the processing phase. I sure as hell hope the Mint gets people who can pack a fu*king box properly! Just had my Silver Proof Set delivered and apparently the Mint is countering Climate Change by omitting any packaging paper or plastic to prevent movement of the item during transit. God, has quality control fallen off a cliff at the Mint.
My orders still show back-ordered. 🙁
My order for the CC and the O is in the processing stage when I check my order status at 6 a.m. Central Time today.
My theory is that the S and D mints were able to produce their allotment first because the P mint has been busy producing other coins as well and can not keep up, having to produce the other 4 coins in the set.
Two coins went pending on cc on 10/18, I am assuming the S & D.
US Mint notified me today that my (S) Eagle has shipped
Ditto – same here. Lets see which gets here 1st – the UPS Ltd Edition set sitting in UPS limbo for daze … or the just-shipped (well, notified) USPS ASE-S type II?
Also noticed my S/D Morgans went from B/O to processing, Morgan-P and Peace still in B/O (so far). Fingers crossed (and toes, and eyes) to the point of arthuritis. 😉
(Oddly, the Morgans show up as a test chg in my CC, but the ASEs do not … yet. Altho they did already show up a week or so ago??)
They charged me for the CC Morgan on day one and today they put the cash back in my account and of course I can’t check order status because mine hasn’t worked since 2015 all of my transactions say “processing” all the way back to 2015 – good old US Mint
That would drive me batty!
WOO HOO….my CC and O Dollars just switched to PROCESSING!
Congrats
Just checked my CC info and saw that I am charged for the O privy marked Morgan Silver Dollars. I logged into the Mints Order History page and yes, they are now being processed! Of course, if they send them via USPS, I still won’t actually see them for another month!
It’s happening
Mine too! CC and O are “PROCESSING.” I will let the gang know when they arrive.
Good luck to all!
My Peace dollars are on Back Order Hmmm……
Has anybody heard any rumors or have insight on when these processing orders might ship? I’m kind of hoping that they will be delivered by the end of October, but I won’t hold my breath.
My Peace Dollar is on back order
My O CC D and S Morgans are in processing!
Received my mint set a few days ago and it contained a bonus.
An extra penny in the Sac$ compartment.
Don’t spend it all in one place.
lol. Can’t spend a single penny in more than one place. So I think I’ll hang on to it.
My D and S Morgans show shipped according to a US Mint email I received today.
Congrats – I’m still seeing “Backorder” on my Peace Dollar wonder if were in for another fiasco
My son’s O mint got shipped today.
Excellent I hope it arrives in better shape than my (S) Eagle
I just got notified my CC Privy’s shipped – check the image below – the seller has 100
My P Morgan and Peace are no in processing along with the O CC D and S. None have shipped yet.
O and CC are shipped.
I have UPS notices in my in-box + “Packages Arriving Tomorrow”