Coin production slowed in November, breaking a streak of four consecutive months of increased output, according to U.S. Mint figures shared this week with CoinNews. Total production remained below 1 billion coins for the 15th straight month, following an earlier run of eight months exceeding that mark.
In November, the Mint produced 602.9 million coins for circulation, comprising cents, nickels, dimes, quarters, and half dollars. Notably, nickel production resumed after a four-month pause. The monthly total marked a 27.1% drop from October and a 0.3% decline compared to November 2023.
Here’s how the month compares to others in the past year:
November 2023 to November 2024 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| November 2024 | 602.90 M | 5 |
| October 2024 | 826.60 M | 1 |
| September 2024 | 486.00 M | 6 |
| August 2024 | 405.20 M | 7 |
| July 2024 | 235.20 M | 11 |
| June 2024 | 168.22 M | 12 |
| May 2024 | 396.08 M | 8 |
| April 2024 | 368.20 M | 10 |
| March 2024 | 332.70 M | 9 |
| February 2024 | 644.86 M | 3 |
| January 2024 | 755.98 M | 2 |
| December 2023 | 151.80 M | 13 |
| November 2023 | 604.409 M | 4 |
The U.S. Mint’s primary mission is to manufacture coins in response to public demand. It produces, sells, and delivers circulating coins to Federal Reserve Banks and their coin terminals, enabling these entities to meet the needs of commercial banks and other financial institutions.
Despite costing the Mint 3.07 cents to produce and distribute each 1-cent coin, the Federal Reserve consistently orders more pennies than any other denomination. In November, the Mint struck 324 million Lincoln cents, accounting for 53.7% of all circulating-quality coins produced for the month. This figure represents a 38.6% drop from October’s total of 528 million cents – the highest monthly output since May 2023.
Quarter production remained steady at 150 million for the third consecutive month, while dime production fell by 30.1% from October, following three months of no dimes being minted.
Mintages of Native American Dollars and Kennedy Halves
The U.S. Mint also produces other circulating-quality coins, including half dollars and dollars. While Native American $1 coins are no longer ordered by the Federal Reserve, they continue to be struck in circulating quality for collectors. This was also true for Kennedy half dollars until recent years – 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Typically, the Mint produces both denominations in January to meet the expected demand for the entire year. However, this pattern was disrupted for Kennedy half dollars over the past three years, as the Federal Reserve unexpectedly ordered additional coins for circulation – approximately 12 million in 2021, 7 million in 2022, and 18 million in 2023.
In 2024, Kennedy half dollars were once again minted for general circulation. Production figures increased incrementally across several months: January (+5.7 million), March (+1.9 million), April (+2.6 million), May (+3.2 million), June (+4.9 million), July (+3.2 million), October (+5.6 million), and November (+7.3 million). The latest totals show 15.7 million coins from Philadelphia and 18.7 million from Denver, combining for 34.4 million. This is notably lower than the 2023 production run, which reached 27.8 million from Denver and 30.2 million from Philadelphia, totaling 58 million – the highest since 1983’s mintage of 66.6 million.
Meanwhile, the Native American dollar’s production schedule deviated from the norm. Instead of being completed in January, mintages were adjusted in February due to no reported production activity in Denver during January. Since February, the total mintage has remained at 2.24 million coins, evenly split with 1.12 million from both Denver and Philadelphia, matching the 2023 total.
On Jan. 29, the U.S. Mint started selling Denver- and Philadelphia-minted rolls, bags, and boxes of 2024 Native American dollars. On April 23, the bureau started offering rolls and bags of circulating 2024 Kennedy halves.
This next table shows 2024 circulating coin mintages by production facility, denomination, and design.
U.S. Mint Circulating Coin Production in November 2024
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 144,000,000 | 180,000,000 | 324,000,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 0 | 21,600,000 | 21,600,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 37,000,000 | 63,000,000 | 100,000,000 |
| Quarters | 75,000,000 | 75,000,000 | 150,000,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 3,900,000 | 3,400,000 | 7,300,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 259,900,000 | 343,000,000 | 602,900,000 |
In November, the Denver Mint produced 259.9 million coins, while the Philadelphia Mint struck 343 million coins, resulting in the combined total of 602.9 million coins for the month.
Year-to-Date Totals
So far in 2024, the Denver Mint has produced 2,568,300,000 coins, and the Philadelphia Mint has manufactured 2,653,640,000 coins, for a combined total of 5,221,940,000 coins. This represents the slowest eleven-month start since CoinNews began tracking monthly production figures in 2011. It also reflects a 53.5% decline from the 11,229,900,000 coins produced during the same period in 2023.
If the current production pace continues through December, the annual mintage for 2024 is projected to reach approximately 5.7 billion coins. By contrast, the U.S. Mint manufactured over 11.38 billion coins for circulation in 2023, which was the lowest annual total since 2012.
This next table lists coin production totals by denomination and by U.S. Mint facility:
YTD 2024 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination
| 1 ¢ | 5 ¢ | 10 ¢ | 25 ¢ | 50 ¢ | N.A. $1 | Total: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 1,455.6M | 32.88M | 219M | 841M | 18.7M | 1.12M | 2,568.3M |
| Philadelphia | 1,502M | 58.32M | 254.5M | 822M | 15.7M | 1.12M | 2,653.64M |
| Total | 2,957.6M | 91.2M | 473.5M | 1,663M | 34.4M | 2.24M | 5,221.94M |
Mintages for 2024 Zitkala-Ša Quarters
In addition to the 2024 Native American dollar with its one-year-only design, the U.S. Mint has also released all five issues for 2024 from their four-year program of American Women Quarters™. These five coins represent the 11th through 15th releases in the series, each featuring a unique design.
The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray quarter, the first quarter design for this year, began circulating on Jan. 2. On Feb. 1, the Mint made rolls and bags of the quarter available for purchase by the public. First reported in March figures and unchanged since, a total of 354.2 million Murray quarters were minted, with 185.8 million coming from Denver and 168.4 million from Philadelphia.
Patsy Takemoto Mink quarters entered circulation on March 25, and on March 28, the U.S. Mint began selling rolls and bags of them to the public. The latest figures show Patsy Takemoto Mink quarter mintages at 187.2 million from Denver and 210.2 million from Philadelphia, for a combined 397.4 million.
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker quarters entered circulation on June 3, and on June 17, the U.S. Mint started selling rolls and bags of them to the public. The latest figures show Dr. Mary Edwards quarter mintages at 159.4 million from Denver and 141.2 million from Philadelphia, for a combined 300.6 million. This marks the lowest mintage total for any quarter in the series to date. In terms of production by facility across the series, both the 2024-P and the 2024-D also rank as the scarcest.
Celia Cruz quarters entered circulation on Aug. 5, with U.S. Mint rolls and bags of them offered to the public on Aug. 7. According to the latest data, Celia Cruz quarter mintages stand at 156.2 million from the Denver Mint and 149.6 million from the Philadelphia Mint, for a combined total of 305.8 million.
Zitkala-Ša quarters entered circulation on Oct. 21, followed by the U.S. Mint’s release of rolls and bags to the public on Oct. 28. Production data indicates 152.4 million quarters were struck at the Denver Mint and 152.6 million at the Philadelphia Mint, combining for a total of 305 million. This marks the second-lowest mintage for any quarter in the series, with the Dr. Mary Edwards Walker quarter still holding the lowest overall total.
Significantly, the 2024-D Zitkala-Ša quarter is now the scarcest in the series from the Denver Mint, while the 2024-P Dr. Mary Edwards Walker quarter remains the scarcest from the Philadelphia Mint, with a mintage of 141.2 million.
2024 Circulating Coin Production by Design
This last table offers a breakdown of this year’s mintages that have been reported by coin design, including the five quarters:
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 1,455,600,000 | 1,502,000,000 | 2,957,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 32,880,000 | 58,320,000 | 91,200,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 219,000,000 | 254,500,000 | 473,500,000 |
| Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray Quarter | 185,800,000 | 168,400,000 | 354,200,000 |
| Patsy Takemoto Mink Quarter | 187,200,000 | 210,200,000 | 397,400,000 |
| Dr. Mary Edwards Walker Quarter | 159,400,000 | 141,200,000 | 300,600,000 |
| Celia Cruz Quarter | 156,200,000 | 149,600,000 | 305,800,000 |
| Zitkala-Ša Quarter | 152,400,000 | 152,600,000 | 305,000,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 18,700,000 | 15,700,000 | 34,400,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 1,120,000 | 1,120,000 | 2,240,000 |
| Total | 2,568,300,000 | 2,653,640,000 | 5,221,940,000 |
Well there you go, the 2024-D nickels are hanging tough Cali, Tony@GA and gang!
The hype will continue, so beware!
Congrats to those that have a few!
Ok-ok, I’ll join in the hunt ✓, better late than never. But just pocket change, as I keep all of my nickels anyway…
i have yet to see ANY 24 Quarter nor nickel. Dimes a few, where do all these cons go, Ecuador….Chile somewhere not here.
I always get $10 in nickels wherever I go to the bank.Last x 5 BU rolls, all 2020D, suspect the 24s surface in 2027
JQC,
I’ve collected several 2024 quarters from the local laundromat. Nickels, I’ve found very few of in circulation, but a few Lincoln cents. I have, upon inspection, found 4 Patsy Minks and one each of Wilma Mankiller and Dr. Mary Walker. All from Philly, as expected. Last year, all the new AWQ’s I found were from Denver, which struck me as odd, here in NC.
Rick, just like you, I cull every 5-cent coin I find, regardless of age. If I live long enough, they’ll be similar to silver circulated coins; worth substantially more than face. Maybe…
Sorry, misread the date on the Wilma Mankiller! That’s from 2022 – mea culpa!
And yet only within the last 2 months have i started to find any 2024s in circulation. Are they ACTUALLY releasing them or holding onto them when needed like extra toilet paper?
Good Question, Domenic! I’d like to know what’s become of tens of millions of Kennedy halves, reportedly produced over the last couple of years. Has anyone here at CN actually seen one, outside a Mint set?