Copy of A Penny Costs 2.4 Cents to Make!!

Money. It makes the world go round.

And makes most of us pretty miserable in the process. After all, between phone bills, cable packages, rent, health insurance, food, and pet expenses, that nonsense adds up! More and more, all of that stuff is done online, leading to this bizarre phenomenon when money seems like a more amorphous thing than literal, physical dollars and cents.

Most of the time these days, we just watch that number in our checking account dwindle. But did you ever stop to think about how weird money is? Like, “Here, we invented these little pieces of paper that you have to exchange with people to feed yourself and live.” I get it and all, but it’s still pretty odd if you ask me.

Cost of a Penny

It currently costs 2.4 cents to make a penny. In other words, American taxpayers lose money every time the U.S. Mint produces one of those coins.

It might sound funny, but so many coins are produced annually that the cost actually adds up. Based on estimates from numbers in the U.S. Mint, taxpayers lost about $85.4 million from penny production and

The COINS Act of 2017, would have discontinued penny production entirely. However, that bill failed to receive a Senate committee vote. Perhaps recognizing this, advocates of currency reform are now trying a slightly different tack.

What the bill does

The Currency Evolution Now To Save (CENTS) Act would allow the U.S. Mint to change the metallic composition of all American coins, which would bring costs down.

All coins would still be required to maintain their current diameters and weights, because otherwise vending machines might not recognize future coins of different sizes.

Sponsors estimate the bill would save $150 million over the next decade. Although that number is difficult to independently verify, there’s no doubt it would save taxpayers at least some level of money.

Other coins turn a profit.

A nickel costs 7.53 cents to make.

A dime costs 3.9 cents to make.

A quarter costs 9.0 cents to make. All together, the Mint made $289.1 million on coins--the difference between the value of the coin and the cost to make it--despite a $90.5 million drag from the penny and nickel.

Where Do You Stand?

In some respects, we can make the same argument for the paper dollar. Although the cost for printing a dollar bill is about five cents, only lasts an average of eighteen months. A dollar coin can last up to forty years. Maybe this is another consideration that the U.S. government should look at.

As you can see, both sides have some good points. As the U.S. Mint faces the prospect of having to find more cost-effective compositions from which to make the nation's coinage, the debate about the continued existence of the humble penny is sure to carry on.