The United States Mint increased their pace of striking coins for circulation in September after their production in August hit a 20-month low, but the number minted was still among the lowest over the past year.
A few million above 1 billion coins — spread across cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters — were struck last month, marking an increase of 5.9% from August but a decline of 14.2% from September 2021.
Here’s how the month compares against others in the past year:
September 2021 to September 2022 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| September 2022 | 1,003.72 M | 11 |
| August 2022 | 948.06 M | 13 |
| July 2022 | 1,100.62 M | 10 |
| June 2022 | 1,141.60 M | 8 |
| May 2022 | 1,255.32 M | 4 |
| April 2022 | 1,278.88 M | 2 |
| March 2022 | 1,452.58 M | 1 |
| February 2022 | 1,260.12 M | 3 |
| January 2022 | 1,249.84 M | 5 |
| December 2021 | 953.37 M | 12 |
| November 2021 | 1,104.7 M | 9 |
| October 2021 | 1,213.86 M | 6 |
| September 2021 | 1,169.28 M | 7 |
The U.S. Mint’s main mission is to manufacture coins based on the nation’s demand and then transport them to Reserve Banks and their coin terminals for distribution into circulation.
The Federal Reserve orders more 1-cent coins from the U.S. Mint than any other denomination even as data shows that it costs 2.1 cents to make and distribute each one. The Mint struck 425.6 million Lincoln cents in September, representing 42.4% of the circulating-quality coins produced last month. Historically, the percentage is from around the low to mid 50s. That has not been the case for several months now with August at 47%, July at 39.4% and June at 40.2%.
Month-Over-Month
In month-over month comparisons for coins used daily by Americans, production totals in September saw:
- 4.6% fewer Lincoln cents,
- 25.1% more Jefferson nickels,
- 13.1% more Roosevelt dimes, and
- 11.9% more quarters.
Native American $1 coins are no longer ordered by the Federal Reserve, but they are still made in circulating quality for coin collectors. The same is true, or was until last year, for Kennedy half-dollars. Traditionally in January, the U.S. Mint produces both denominations to the expected amounts needed for the entire year. That was the case for Native American dollars in 2021 and for this year (so far), but not for Kennedy halves which saw their mintages increase in multiple months this year (January, May and June) and last year (February, March, April, May and August).
Published mintages of 2022 Native American dollars show equal splits of 980,000 from Denver and 980,000 from Philadelphia for a combined 1.96 million coins. In contrast, the 2021 dollar logged splits of 1.26 million for Denver and 1.26 million for Philadelphia for 2.52 million coins.
In May, mintages for the 2022 Kennedy half-dollar increased for the second time this year, posting a combined increase of 3.6 million to more than double the 3.2 million made in January. They climbed again in June by 2.9 million. Unchanged since, half dollar mintages stand at 4.9 million from Denver and 4.8 million from Philadelphia for a total of 9.7 million. Last year’s half-dollar ended with a mix of 7.7 million from Denver and 5.4 million from Philadelphia for a combined 13.1 million.
The U.S. Mint started selling rolls, bags and boxes of 2022 Native American dollars on Feb. 9. It released rolls and bags of 2022 Kennedy halves on May 5.
Here’s a summary of all the circulating-quality coins produced last month:
U.S. Mint Circulating Coin Production in September 2022
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 228,400,000 | 197,200,000 | 425,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 68,880,000 | 61,440,000 | 130,320,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 133,000,000 | 113,000,000 | 246,000,000 |
| Quarters | 105,800,000 | 96,000,000 | 201,800,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 536,080,000 | 467,640,000 | 1,003,720,000 |
Minting facilities in Philadelphia and Denver are tasked with making all U.S. coins for commerce. Last month, the Denver Mint struck 536.08 million coins and the Philadelphia Mint pressed 467.64 million coins for the combined 1,003,720,000 coins.
YTD Totals
Year to date, the Denver Mint made 5,381,600,000 coins and the Philadelphia Mint made 5,309,140,000 coins for a total of 10,690,740,000 coins, which is 4.7% fewer than the 11,211,540,000 coins minted through the same period in 2021.
This next table lists coin production totals by denomination and by U.S. Mint facility:
YTD 2022 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination
| 1 ¢ | 5 ¢ | 10 ¢ | 25 ¢ | 50 ¢ | N.A. $1 | Total: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 2656.4M | 594.72M | 1164M | 960.6M | 4.9M | .98M | 5381.6M |
| Philadelphia | 2626.4M | 582.96M | 1129M | 965M | 4.8M | .98M | 5309.14M |
| Total | 5282.8M | 1177.68M | 2293M | 1925.6M | 9.7M | 1.96M | 10690.74M |
If the current production pace stretched through to December, the annual mintage for 2022 would reach just over 14.2 billion coins. The U.S. Mint manufactured nearly 14.5 billion coins for circulation in 2021.
2022 Quarter Mintages
In addition to the 2022 Native American dollar with its one-year-only design, the U.S. Mint through September released the first four issues from their four-year program of American Women quarter dollars. Each features a unique design. They include:
- the 2022 Maya Angelou quarter which began circulating in early January. (The Mint started selling collectible Maya Angelou quarters in rolls and bags on Feb. 7.)
- the 2022 Dr. Sally Ride quarter which started circulating toward the end of March. (The Mint started selling collectible Dr. Ride Sally Angelou quarters in rolls and bags on March 22.)
- the 2022 Wilma Mankiller quarter which began circulating in early June. (The Mint started selling collectible Mankiller quarters in rolls and bags on June 14.)
- the 2022 Nina Otero-Warren quarter which started circulating mid-August. (The Mint started selling collectible Nina Otero-Warren quarters in rolls and bags on Aug 16.)
From the overall production total, there are 269.8 million in quarters that the U.S. Mint has yet to officially assign to a design. These are likely Nina Otero-Warren quarters with more yet be made.
This last table offers a breakdown of this year’s mintages that have been reported by coin design, including the first two quarters:
2022 Circulating Coin Production by Design
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 2,656,400,000 | 2,626,400,000 | 5,282,800,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 594,720,000 | 582,960,000 | 1,177,680,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 1,164,000,000 | 1,129,000,000 | 2,293,000,000 |
| Maya Angelou Quarter | 258,200,000 | 237,600,000 | 495,800,000 |
| Dr. Sally Ride Quarter | 278,000,000 | 275,200,000 | 553,200,000 |
| Wilma Mankiller Quarter | 296,800,000 | 310,000,000 | 606,800,000 |
| Nina Otero-Warren Quarter | – | – | – |
| Anna May Wong Quarter (expected release in fall) | – | – | – |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 4,900,000 | 4,800,000 | 9,700,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 980,000 | 980,000 | 1,960,000 |
| Total | 5,254,000,000 | 5,166,940,000 | 10,420,940,000 |
Keep cranking out cents. Countless home storage containers are waiting for them.
I have my 2022 D cent, now I need a P cent and I’m fine for the year.
Antonio, your numismatic restraint is truly impressive; kudos, my friend.
How does everyone feel about the Washington on the AWQs?
Antonio,
Asked and answered on the immediately prior thread. 🙂
Perry Mason would be proud!
For circulating coinage only, just go to plastic coins like the republic of Transnistria..
We should have polymer currency like Mexico and Canada have. We still use paper. I guess it’s tradition.
My goodness! You’re right!
Perhaps this is in anticipation of turning Transnistria into a casino for oligarchs.
Touche!
Oh, those wacky Russian-loving Transnistrians going the goose step one better!
Actually, they were showcasing their Jeet Kune Do skills.
Is that “Field Goal Kicker” in Korean?
If the numbers hold, expect huge amounts of Anna May Wong quarters.
To paraphrase a promise once made to all Americans, we’ll soon have a chicken in every pot, a car in every garage, and an Anna May Wong quarter in every change jar.
🙂
These days it might behoove us to latch onto any cause for celebration.