The pace of striking coins for circulation at the United States Mint picked up in July after a sluggish output in June, but the monthly production level remained well below 1 billion for the eleventh month in a row, following eight consecutive months above that level.
In July, the U.S. Mint manufactured 235.2 million coins, spread across cents, quarters, and half dollars, up 39.8% from the prior month but down 79.4% from July 2023. For another month this year, the Mint reported no production of either nickels or dimes.
Here’s how the month compares to others in the past year:
July 2023 to July 2024 Circulating Coin Production
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | 4 |
| January 2024 | 755.98 M | 3 |
| December 2023 | 151.80 M | 13 |
| November 2023 | 604.409 M | 5 |
| October 2023 | 501.911 M | 7 |
| September 2023 | 546.03 M | 6 |
| August 2023 | 1,030.38 M | 2 |
| July 2023 | 1,139.30 M | 1 |
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 July, the Mint struck 82 million Lincoln cents, accounting for 34.9% of all circulating-quality coins produced for the month. A month earlier, in June and in a very rare occurrence, the Mint reported that no cents were produced.
Back to July, and for a third month this year, the U.S. Mint reported no production of either nickels or dimes. The production of quarters increased by 3.3% from the previous month.
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. Nonetheless, this 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 have been produced for general circulation, although it is likely. Half dollar production figures changed in January (+5.7 million), March (+ 1.9 million), April (+2.6 million), May (+3.2 million), June (+4.9 million), and July (+3.2 million), with the latest results showing 9.9 million coins from Philadelphia and 11.6 million from Denver, totaling 21.5 million. 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 were adjusted in February instead of being completed in January. This change was prompted by the absence of reported minting activity for the dollar in Denver throughout January. Since February, the total dollar mintage has remained at 2.24 million coins, with 1.12 million each from 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 July 2024
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 40,000,000 | 42,000,000 | 82,000,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Quarters | 73,200,000 | 76,800,000 | 150,000,000 |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 3,200,000 | 0 | 3,200,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 116,400,000 | 118,800,000 | 235,200,000 |
In the overall production totals for July, the Denver Mint produced 116.4 million coins, while the Philadelphia Mint produced 118.8 million coins, resulting in the combined total of 235.2 million coins.
YTD Totals
Year-to-date, the Denver Mint has struck 1,501,200,000 coins, and the Philadelphia Mint has made 1,400,040,000 coins, bringing the total to 2,901,240,000 coins — the weakest seventh-month start since CoinNews began reporting on monthly production figures in 2011. This is 66.1% fewer than the 8,547,140,000 coins manufactured during the same period in 2023.
If the current production pace were to continue through December, the annual mintage for 2024 would reach 4.97 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 | 780.4M | 32.88M | 138M | 537.2M | 11.6M | 1.12M | 1501.2M |
| Philadelphia | 734.8M | 36.72M | 92.5M | 525M | 9.9M | 1.12M | 1400M |
| Total | 1515.2M | 69.6M | 230.5M | 1062.2M | 21.5M | 2.24M | 2901.2M |
Lowest Mintages for 2024 Dr. Mary Edwards Walker Quarter
In addition to the 2024 Native American dollar with its one-year-only design, the U.S. Mint has also released the first three of five issues for 2024 from their four-year program of American Women Quarters™. These three coins represent the 11th through 13th 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.
For the first time, the U.S. Mint published mintages for the Dr. Mary Edwards Walker quarter. 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.
Of the total production year to date, 10 million quarters have not yet been officially assigned a design by the U.S. Mint. This represents a small portion of the many more Celia Cruz quarters yet to be minted. Celia Cruz quarters entered circulation on Aug. 5, with U.S. Mint rolls and bags of them offered to the public on Aug. 7.
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 first three quarters:
| Denver | Philadelphia | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Cent | 780,400,000 | 734,800,000 | 1,515,200,000 |
| Jefferson Nickel | 32,880,000 | 36,720,000 | 69,600,000 |
| Roosevelt Dime | 138,000,000 | 92,500,000 | 230,500,000 |
| 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 | – | – | – |
| Zitkala-Ša Quarter (expected release on Oct. 21) | – | – | – |
| Kennedy Half-Dollar | 11,600,000 | 9,900,000 | 21,500,000 |
| Native American $1 Coin | 1,120,000 | 1,120,000 | 2,240,000 |
| Total | 1,496,400,000 | 1,394,840,000 | 2,891,240,000 |
