The American penny has been in circulation since 1792. It will be discontinued because it is too expensive to make.

The federal government made its final order of penny blanks this month — the first step to end the production of the 1-cent coin, a spokesperson for the Treasury Department confirmed to USA TODAY.

The American penny will begin its slow fade into non-existence as the government plans stop making the U.S. currency next year.

The federal agency placed its final order for penny blanks this month, with the United States Mint slated to end manufacturing of the penny when that runs out, a Treasury official told CBS MoneyWatch.

The United States Mint is ready to launch the next $1 coin in its American Innovation series, honoring NASA's retired space shuttle.

The U.S. Mint took top honors in "Best Circulating Coin" at the 2025 Mint Directors Conference for the work on the Jovita Idár issue in the American Women quarter dollar series.

“For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump posted on social media. “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let's rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it's a penny at a time.”

There is currently no official plan to recall pennies, and financial institutions are expected to continue accepting them. While pennies will remain legal tender, they will gradually disappear from circulation, which is expected to impact product pricing.