Lincoln Penny: Designs, Metals, Key Dates and Values

The Lincoln penny is the U.S. one-cent coin with Abraham Lincoln's portrait, first released on August 2, 1909 to mark 100 years since his birth (Wikipedia). It was the first regular-issue U.S. coin to show a real person rather than an allegorical figure (Littleton Coin). Victor David Brenner designed the portrait, which stayed on the front for the whole series.

The first 1909 coins carried Brenner's initials V.D.B. large at the bottom of the back. Within days officials judged them too prominent, and the coin was restruck without them; the initials came back in 1918, small, on Lincoln's shoulder (Wikipedia). That short run is why the 1909-S VDB is the series' famous key date.

The last penny for general circulation was struck at the Philadelphia Mint on November 12, 2025. Pennies remain legal tender, the Mint still makes them for collector sets, and about a quarter trillion were estimated to be in circulation in 2024 (Wikipedia)).

• Wheat reverse, 1909–1958: two wheat ears. Designed by Brenner. See wheat penny value.
• Lincoln Memorial reverse, 1959–2008: the Memorial building, designed by Frank Gasparro.
• Bicentennial reverses, 2009: four designs for Lincoln's 200th birthday: birth in Kentucky (log cabin), formative years in Indiana, professional life in Illinois, and presidency in Washington.
• Union Shield reverse, 2010 on: designed by Lyndall Bass.

All from Wikipedia. If the date is worn off, the reverse alone narrows the coin to one of these periods; see identify a coin without a date.

From the composition table in Wikipedia's penny article):

• 1909–1942: bronze, 95% copper with tin and zinc, 3.1 g.
• 1943: zinc-coated steel, 2.7 g. A magnet picks it up. See 1943.
• 1944–1946: 95% copper, 5% zinc, 3.1 g.
• 1947–1962: bronze again, 3.1 g.
• 1962 to September 1982: 95% copper, 5% zinc, 3.1 g.
• October 1982 on: copper-plated zinc, 97.5% zinc, 2.5 g.

A scale that reads to 0.1 g sorts copper from zinc in seconds. It matters most for 1982, when both metals were used.

• 2017-P: the first Lincoln cents with a P mint mark, for the Mint's 225th anniversary (Wikipedia).
• 2019-W: West Point struck W-marked cents for collector sets (Wikipedia).
• 2025: final coins with an Omega privy mark, some struck in 24K gold (Littleton Coin). Wikipedia reports 232 gold coins sold for $16.76 million.
• 2026: semiquincentennial cents dual-dated 1776~2026 were planned for collectors (Wikipedia)).

None of these came from ordinary pocket change in quantity; if you find a W or an Omega mark, photograph it before doing anything else.

Highest listed price for each coin in the PCGS Price Guide, updated September 24, 2026:

• 1943-D bronze (unique): $1,700,000 in MS64 BN. Wikipedia records the $1.7 million sale in 2010.
• 1958 Doubled Die Obverse: $1,140,000 in MS65 RD. See double die penny.
• 1943 bronze (10 to 15 known): $1,000,000 in MS63 RD.
• 1943-S bronze (5 known): $1,000,000 in MS63 BN.
• 1969-S Doubled Die Obverse: $605,000 in MS66 RD.
• 1944-S steel (2 known): $525,000 in MS66.
• 1922 No D, Strong Reverse: $275,000 in MS64 RD.
• 1974-D aluminum (1 known): $250,000 in MS63. See 1974.
• 1944 steel (25 to 30 known): $170,000 in MS64.
• 1944-D steel (7 known): $165,000 in MS63.

The 1909-S VDB comes next at $150,000 in MS67 RD. Eight of the ten are wrong-metal strikes or doubled dies, not simply old dates. For 100 coins ranked the same way see top 100 pennies worth money.

• Zinc pennies, October 1982 on: face value, unless it is a listed variety or a perfect certified coin.
• Copper pennies, 1909–1982: a little over face in metal. USA CoinBook put the copper in one at $0.0446 on September 25, 2026, at $6.75 a pound. Melting them is illegal (see 1943 for the rule).
• Common wheat cents: $1 to $5 each in Good 4 for most dates in the PCGS Price Guide (September 24, 2026), for example 1926 $1, 1914 $2, 1936 $2.
• Uncirculated red Memorial cents: $10 to $22 in MS65 RD for typical dates (1961 $18, 1982 $10, PCGS).
• Key dates, doubled dies and metal errors: hundreds to millions; see the lists on this page.

Most of a circulated Lincoln set's value sits in five coins. In Good 4, the PCGS Price Guide (September 24, 2026) lists:

• 1909-S VDB: $875.
• 1922 No D, Strong Reverse: $550.
• 1914-D: $185.
• 1909-S: $90.
• 1931-S: $70.

Those five add up to $1,770. Most other wheat-era dates list $1 to $32 in Good 4 (for example 1911-S $32, 1924-D $26, 1912-S $15), and Memorial cents from circulation are worth little more than face. So a folder or album that is full except for the key dates is usually worth tens of dollars, while one that includes a genuine 1909-S VDB and 1914-D can be worth over $1,000.

Before selling a collection: do not clean the coins (see coin care and cleaning), check the key dates for altered mint marks, keep the set together, and photograph each key coin. The coin collection tracker keeps a list with photos.

• Every wheat cent (1909–1958). Common dates are only a dollar or two, but they are the pool the key dates hide in.
• Copper cents from 1959 to 1982. They hold about 4.4 cents of copper each (USA CoinBook and Metalcharts, September 25, 2026).
• Any coin with doubled lettering in the date, LIBERTY or IN GOD WE TRUST, or on the back of a 1983.
• 1982 cents: weigh them; see 1982.
• 1992 and 1992-D with a close AM on the back: PCGS lists the 1992 Close AM at $2,600 in MS60 BN.
• Any 1943 that is not magnetic, and any 1944 that is.
• Bright red uncirculated coins from rolls and sets, which can grade high.
• 2017-P, 2019-W and 2025 Omega coins from collector sets.

Research and drafting for this page were assisted by AI and checked line by line against the sources listed below. Every price names the guide or sale it comes from and its date; where we could not confirm a figure we say so instead of estimating. Guide prices are for coins certified by a grading service; raw, worn or cleaned coins usually sell for less. If you find an error, tell us and we will correct it.