According to manufacturing figures from the United States Mint, coin production slowed in June compared to the previous month, but remained elevated compared to other months in the past year, with nearly 1.3 billion coins made for circulation.
In the longer time frame, the U.S. Mint has struck nearly 7.4 billion coins for circulation in the first half of 2023. This marks their second quickest six-month start since the first half of 2017, with 2022 ranking higher.
For the June total, production was spread across cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters. The count was 8.5% lower than in May but 13.6% higher than in June of last year. Here’s how the month ranks against others in the past year:
June 2022 to June 2023 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| June 2023 | 1,297.18 M | 2 |
| May 2023 | 1,417.78 M | 1 |
| April 2023 | 1,250.32 M | 3 |
| March 2023 | 1,187.94 M | 5 |
| February 2023 | 1,054.16 M | 9 |
| January 2023 | 1,200.46 M | 4 |
| December 2022 | 846.50 M | 13 |
| November 2022 | 906.00 M | 12 |
| October 2022 | 1,177.14 M | 6 |
| September 2022 | 1,003.72 M | 10 |
| August 2022 | 948.06 M | 11 |
| July 2022 | 1,100.62 M | 8 |
| June 2022 | 1,141.60 M | 7 |
Fewer Pennies
The main mission of the U.S. Mint is to manufacture coins in response to public demand. The Mint produces, sells and then delivers circulating coins to Federal Reserve Banks to support their service to commercial banks and other financial institutions.
Even though it costs the Mint 2.72 cents to make and distribute each 1-cent coin, the Federal Reserve always orders more of them than any other denomination.
In June, the Mint struck 493.6 million Lincoln cents, which accounted for 38.1% of the circulating-quality coins made for the month. This continues a trend that began in May 2022, when the percentage of cents produced in a given month fell below 50%. Historically, before then, more than half of the coins produced in a given month were cents. For instance, in January of last year, 59.8% of the circulating coins minted were cents, which contrasts with the current situation.
Month-Over-Month
In month-over-month comparisons for coins used daily by Americans, production totals in June decreased by:
- 6.5% for Lincoln cents,
- 7.1% for Jefferson nickels,
- 7.5% for Roosevelt dimes, and
- 12.9% for quarters.
Mintages of Native American Dollars and Kennedy Halves
In addition to cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters, the U.S. Mint also produces dollars and half dollars in circulating quality. While the Federal Reserve no longer orders Native American $1 coins, they are still minted in circulating quality for coin collectors. This was also true for Kennedy half dollars until recently, specifically in 2021 and 2022.
Typically, in January, the U.S. Mint produces both denominations in the expected amounts needed for the entire year. However, this remains the case only for Native American dollars, as Kennedy halves saw their mintages increase in multiple months in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
In the past two fiscal years (2021 and 2022), the Federal Reserve unexpectedly ordered millions more Kennedy half dollars for circulation, with amounts of about 12 million and 7 million, respectively. It’s unclear whether any 2023-dated Kennedy half dollars have been produced for general circulation, but the total struck increased by 1.7 million in May, 2.5 million in April, 2.2 million in March, and 4.4 million in January. As of now, the combined total of halves is 10.8 million, with an equal mix of 5.4 million from Denver and 5.4 million from Philadelphia. This is in comparison to the 2022 production runs, which totaled 4.9 million from Denver and 4.8 million from Philadelphia, for a total of 9.7 million coins.
The mintages of Native American dollars have remained unchanged since January, with splits of 1.12 million from the Denver Mint and 1.12 million from the Philadelphia Mint, for a combined total of 2.24 million coins. In contrast, the 2022 dollar recorded equal splits of 980,000 from each facility, for a total of 1.96 million coins.
On Feb. 6, U.S. Mint started selling rolls, bags and boxes of 2023 Native American dollars. On May 15, the bureau started offering collectors rolls and bags of circulating 2023 Kennedy halves.
This next table shows a summary of all the circulating-quality coins produced last month:
U.S. Mint Circulating Coin Production in June 2023
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 240,800,000 | 252,800,000 | 493,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 77,040,000 | 80,640,000 | 157,680,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 171,000,000 | 178,500,000 | 349,500,000 |
| Quarters | 144,400,000 | 152,000,000 | 296,400,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 633,240,000 | 663,940,000 | 1,297,180,000 |
Regarding overall production totals for June, the Denver Mint struck 633.24 million coins, while the Philadelphia Mint made 663.94 million coins, resulting in a combined production of 1,297,180,000 coins.
Coin Production in First Half of 2023
Through the first half of this year, the Denver Mint has struck 3,795,800,000 coins, and the Philadelphia Mint has made 3,612,040,000 coins, for a total production of 7,407,840,000 coins. This figure is 3% lower than the 7,638,340,000 coins manufactured during the first half of 2022.
If the current production pace were to continue through December, the annual mintage for 2023 would exceed 14.8 billion coins. In comparison, the U.S. Mint produced over 13.6 billion coins for circulation in 2022.
This next table lists coin production totals by denomination and by U.S. Mint facility:
YTD 2023 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination
| 1 ¢ | 5 ¢ | 10 ¢ | 25 ¢ | 50 ¢ | N.A. $1 | Total: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 1456.4M | 475.68M | 1021M | 836.2M | 5.4M | 1.12M | 3795.8M |
| Philadelphia | 1359.2M | 442.32M | 970M | 834M | 5.4M | 1.12M | 3612.04M |
| Total | 2815.6M | 918M | 1991M | 1670.2M | 10.8M | 2.24M | 7407.84M |
New 2023 Quarter Mintages
In addition to the 2023 Native American dollar with its one-year-only design, the U.S. Mint through June released the first three of five issues for 2023 from their four-year program of American Women Quarters™. These three quarters represent the sixth, seventh, and eighth overall in the series, and each one features a unique design.
The Bessie Coleman quarter, the first quarter design for this year, began circulating on Jan. 3. On February 14, the Mint made rolls and bags of the quarter available for purchase by the public.
The Edith Kanakaʻole quarter, this year’s second 25-cent design, started circulating on March 27 and is available in Mint rolls and bags. The latest Mint figures offer, for the first time, their production totals, with 368.6 million from Denver and 372.8 million from Philadelphia, for a combined 741.4 million quarters. This is the highest mintage total for any quarter in the series to date.
Lastly, the Eleanor Roosevelt quarter launched on June 6. As of year-to-date, out of the total coin production, 309.6 million quarters have not yet been officially assigned a design by the U.S. Mint. These quarters are Roosevelt quarters, with millions more yet to be minted.
This last table offers a breakdown of this year’s mintages that have been reported by coin design, including the first two quarters:
2023 Circulating Coin Production by Design
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 1,456,400,000 | 1,359,200,000 | 2,815,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 475,680,000 | 442,320,000 | 918,000,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 1,021,000,000 | 970,000,000 | 1,991,000,000 |
| Bessie Coleman Quarter | 317,200,000 | 302,000,000 | 619,200,000 |
| Edith Kanaka’Ole Quarter | 368,600,000 | 372,800,000 | 741,400,000 |
| Eleanor Roosevelt Quarter | – | – | – |
| Jovita Idar Quarter (expected release on Aug. 15) | – | – | – |
| Maria Tallchief Quarter (expected release on Oct. 23) | – | – | – |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 5,400,000 | 5,400,000 | 10,800,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 1,120,000 | 1,120,000 | 2,240,000 |
| Total | 3,645,400,000 | 3,452,840,000 | 7,098,240,000 |
