1982 Penny (Lincoln Cent): Mintage & What to Check

In 1982 the U.S. Mint struck about 16.73 billion Lincoln cents for circulation: Philadelphia 10.71 billion, Denver 6.01 billion, San Francisco 3.9 million. That is 30% more than 1981. Among the 117 years from 1909 to 2025, 1982 ranks number 1 by total mintage (1 = most coins made), so it is one of the most common dates in the series. The scarcest 1982 issue by mintage is San Francisco (3,857,479); the most common is Philadelphia (10,712,525,000). Within the 1980s, 1982 ranks 1 of 10 years for mintage; the decade's high was 1982 (16.73 billion) and its low was 1986 (8.94 billion). Mint by mint: Philadelphia rose 43% from 1981; Denver rose 12% from 1981; San Francisco fell 5% from 1981.

The mint mark, if any, sits under the date on the front of the coin. A 1982 cent with no mint mark was struck at Philadelphia and is the normal, common form for that mint. The letters you can find on 1982 circulation cents are D (Denver) and S (San Francisco).

• 1982 Large Date / Small Date, bronze and copper-plated-zinc varieties. 1982 is the mid-year transition from 95%-copper bronze (3.11 g) to copper-plated zinc (2.5 g); combined with the Large Date/Small Date hub change, up to seven distinct P/D varieties exist from this single year, none separately tallied in official mintage figures.
• 1982 is the transition year: the Mint switched from 95% copper (3.11 g) to copper-plated zinc (2.5 g) mid-year, and both large-date and small-date obverses were used, giving seven regular combinations. Weigh the coin on a scale that reads to 0.01 g. The 1982-D small date on a copper planchet is the rarity; only a few are known.
• Between 1974 and 1986 the West Point facility also struck cents, without any mint mark. A cent from these years with no mint mark can therefore be from Philadelphia or West Point; the two cannot be told apart, and neither is scarce.
• For any 1982 cent, check three things before anything else: that the date and mint mark are fully readable, that the surfaces have not been cleaned (unnatural brightness, fine parallel scratches), and whether any doubling on the lettering is true die doubling (rounded, separated) rather than flat machine doubling.

What a 1982 cent is worth depends on three things in this order: the variety (a recognised doubled die or transitional error is worth far more than a normal coin), the mint (San Francisco is the lowest-mintage 1982 issue), and the grade (an uncirculated coin with original red colour is a different market from a worn brown one). A normal, circulated 1982 cent from the most common mint is a very common coin; published price guides from grading services list values by grade and variety, and they change over time. This page does not give prices. To get a reference range for the exact coin in your hand, photograph both sides in even light and let the app read the date, mint mark and visible varieties first.