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.

Per the latest U.S. Mint report, it costs less than six cents to make a dime ($0.0576). To make a quarter, it costs about 15 cents ($0.1468), and nearly 34 cents for a half-dollar ($0.3397).

Treasury Department will take pennies out of circulation next year. Costly nickels, however, could cancel out savings.

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.

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.

The U.S. Treasury is discontinuing the penny, finalizing its last order for the coin due to its high production cost. Cash transactions will be rou

The cost of producing a penny has skyrocketed in recent years, reaching 3.69 cents, according to the Treasury Department.