The United States Mint produced just over 1.73 billion coins for circulation in the first three months of this year, marking its slowest first-quarter pace since 2010 and nearly half the amount struck through the first quarter of last year.
In March, the U.S. Mint again scaled back its coin production pace, with its facilities in Philadelphia and Denver shipping just 332.7 million coins for circulation. This marks drops of 48.4% from February and 72% from March 2023. The monthly level below 1 billion represents the seventh consecutive month following eight straight months above that threshold.
Here’s how the month compares to others in the past year:
March 2023 to March 2024 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| March 2024 | 332.70 M | 12 |
| February 2024 | 644.86 M | 8 |
| January 2024 | 755.98 M | 7 |
| December 2023 | 151.80 M | 13 |
| November 2023 | 604.409 M | 9 |
| October 2023 | 501.911 M | 11 |
| September 2023 | 546.03 M | 10 |
| August 2023 | 1,030.38 M | 6 |
| July 2023 | 1,139.30 M | 5 |
| 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 | 4 |
The primary mission of the U.S. Mint is to manufacture coins in response to public demand. The Mint produces, sells, and subsequently delivers circulating coins to Federal Reserve Banks and their coin terminals to support their services to commercial banks and other financial institutions.
Even though it costs the Mint 3.07 cents to make and distribute each 1-cent coin, the Federal Reserve always orders more of them than any other denomination. In March, the Mint struck 189.2 million Lincoln cents, accounting for 56.9% of all circulating-quality coins produced for the month.
Month-Over-Month
In month-over-month comparisons for coins used daily by Americans, production totals in March saw:
- 53.7% fewer Lincoln cents,
- 100% fewer Jefferson nickels,
- 100% fewer Roosevelt dimes, and
- 13.6% more quarters.
Mintages of Native American Dollars and Kennedy Halves
The U.S. Mint also strikes other coins in circulating quality, namely half dollars and dollars. Native American $1 coins are no longer ordered by the Federal Reserve, but they are still made in circulating quality for coin collectors. The same was true for Kennedy half dollars until recently — years 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Usually, in January, the U.S. Mint produces both denominations to the expected amounts needed for the entire year. However, that has not been the case for Kennedy halves in each of the three prior years, as the Federal Reserve unexpectedly ordered millions more for circulation — roughly 12 million, 7 million, and 18 million in fiscal years 2021, 2022, and 2023.
It has not been disclosed whether any 2024 Kennedy half dollars will be produced for general circulation. However, figures for 2024 changed in January, and then again in March, with the latest results at 4.8 million from the Denver Mint and 2.8 million from the Philadelphia Mint, for a total of 7.6 million coins. These figures compare to production runs in 2023 totaling 27.8 million from Denver and 30.2 million from Philadelphia, amounting to 58 million coins — the highest since 1983, when it reached 66.6 million.
Unlike the usual practice, the mintages of the Native American dollar changed in February instead of having already been completed for the year. This adjustment was prompted by the absence of reported minting activity for the dollar in Denver throughout January. As of February, the total mintages for the dollar stand at 1.12 million from Denver and an equal 1.12 million from Philadelphia, culminating in a combined 2.24 million coins—a precise match to the splits and overall total recorded in 2023. Notably, no further alterations were reported in March, maintaining the previously established figures.
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, which was recently changed from May 7, the bureau is expected to offer collector 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 March 2024
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 124,000,000 | 65,200,000 | 189,200,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Quarters | 75,400,000 | 66,200,000 | 141,600,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 1,900,000 | 0 | 1,900,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 201,300,000 | 131,400,000 | 332,700,000 |
In the overall production totals for March, the Denver Mint produced 201.3 million coins, while the Philadelphia Mint produced 131.4 million coins, resulting in a combined total of 332.7 million coins.
First Quarter 2023
During the first quarter of this year, the Denver Mint has struck 912.88 million coins, and the Philadelphia Mint has made 820.66 million coins, bringing the total to 1,733,540,000 coins. This is 49.6% fewer than the 3,442,560,000 coins manufactured during the first quarter of 2023. The quarterly level was the lowest since 797.23 million coins were struck in the first quarter of 2010.
If the current production pace were to continue through December, the annual mintage for 2024 would reach 6.9 billion coins. In comparison, the U.S. Mint manufactured over 11.38 billion coins for circulation in 2023, marking the lowest output 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 | 528.8M | 29.76M | 123M | 225.4M | 4.8M | 1.12M | 912.88M |
| Philadelphia | 481.6M | 31.44M | 75.5M | 228.2M | 2.8M | 1.12M | 820.66M |
| Total | 1010.4M | 61.2M | 198.5M | 453.6M | 7.6M | 2.24M | 1733.54M |
2024 Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray Quarter Mintages
In addition to the 2024 Native American dollar with its one-year-only design, the U.S. Mint has also released the first two of five issues for 2024 from their four-year program of American Women Quarters™. These two coins represent the eleventh and twelfth overall 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. According to the latest figures from the Mint, a total of 354.2 million Murray quarters were minted, with 185.8 million coming from Denver and 168.4 million from Philadelphia. This marks the lowest mintage total for any quarter in the series to date. In terms of production by facility across the series, the 2024-P ranks as the scarcest, while the 2024-D ties for third scarcest.
Of the total production, 99.4 million quarters have not yet been officially assigned a design by the U.S. Mint. This represents a portion of the many more Patsy Takemoto Mink quarters yet to be minted. 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.
