The Philadelphia Mint pressed its final circulating penny on Wednesday, bringing an end to the coin’s two-century run, The Associated Press reported.
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach holds one of the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
A penny costs about 4 cents to make, so President Donald Trump instructed the Mint to stop making them.
There are billions of pennies in circulation as of now, the AP reported.
Despite no new ones being made, the penny will still be legal to use, but as they become rarer, retailers may feel the effects.
Businesses said the change was abrupt and that they had no guidance from the federal government to deal with transactions that involved pennies, the AP reported.
“We have been advocating abolition of the penny for 30 years. But this is not the way we wanted it to go,” National Association of Convenience Stores member Jeff Lenard said in October.
By ceasing penny production, the government is expected to save $56 million annually, or about 5.6 billion pennies.
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Death of the Penny A die for a penny press is seen at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach helps load a blank coin to be one of the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach holds one of the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny Dies and blank coins are set to be the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny Blank coins wait to be the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny A penny press is seen at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach holds one of the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach and Christopher Faulls hold some the last pennies to be pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny Blank coins wait to be the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
Death of the Penny U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach holds one of the last pennies pressed at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum/AP)
