2001 P Canadian Quarter
The 2001 P Canadian Quarter is a Canadian quarter struck for circulation with 55.8 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2001
- Circulation mintage
- 55,773,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Composition
- Nickel-plated steel
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2001 P Canadian Quarter worth?
With 55.8 million made, the 2001 P Canadian Quarter is common and worth face value in circulated condition. Only uncirculated coins with full luster, recognized varieties and genuine errors interest collectors.
What would make yours worth more:
- Full uncirculated luster
- A recognized variety or genuine error
- Coins from a specimen or proof set
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2001 P Canadian Quarter rare?
- No. 55.8 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2001 P Canadian quarters were made?
- 55,773,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 2001 P Canadian Quarter made of?
- Nickel-plated steel. It weighs 4.4 g and measures 23.88 mm.
- Is the 2001 P Canadian Quarter still legal tender?
- Yes. Every Canadian quarter is legal tender at 25 cents.
The 2001 quarter in context
The 2001-P is the first year of nickel-plated steel quarters in quantity. The mint had developed plated steel, a steel core with a thin nickel coating, as a cheaper material than solid nickel. In 2001 it went into full production for the quarter and 55,773,000 coins were struck with a small P to show the new composition. The thinking was simple: a steel core would cost far less than solid nickel while looking almost the same.
The plated coins are lighter, at 4.4 g against 5.07 g, though they keep the 23.88 mm diameter and the same design. The P stayed on quarters through 2006, when the mint replaced it with its logo. Since 2001, plated steel has been the standard for Canadian quarters, so the 2001-P is the ancestor of almost every quarter you are likely to find in change today. It shares its year with the much scarcer nickel 2001, so the two versions together tell the story of the switch in a single date. The P made the difference easy to see.
How to recognize it
Hahn's caribou fills the reverse with CANADA, 25 CENTS and 2001. The obverse is Dora de Pédery-Hunt's crowned portrait of the queen with ELIZABETH II D·G·REGINA and a small P below it. The P is the quickest way to know your coin is plated steel. The coin weighs 4.4 g and sticks to a magnet, just as the nickel version does. Sharp antler detail and an unscratched field mark the best examples, since plated coins show marks clearly. Hold it beside a nickel quarter and you will hardly see a difference in color. The weight difference is easier to measure on a scale than to feel in the hand.
2001 P Canadian Quarter by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 2001 P Canadian Quarter ranks 99th lowest of 147 Canadian quarter dates and varieties from 1870 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1987 Canadian Quarter (53.4 million); the next more common is the 2003 P Uncrowned Canadian Quarter (66.9 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2000 Canadian Quarter with 434.1 million, about 7.8 times as many. The scarcest is the 1889 Canadian Quarter with 66,324, 841 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 2001 output was 7.8 times fewer than 2000 and 2.8 times fewer than 2002. Other 2001 quarters: 2001 Canadian Quarter (8.41 million).
Over the 2000s the Mint produced 2.66 billion quarters across 12 dates and varieties; the 2001 P Canadian Quarter accounts for 2.1% of that.
What to check on your 2001 P Canadian Quarter
- Try a magnet. Nickel-plated steel is magnetic, so a genuine 2001 coin sticks; a silver one would not.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Look for full luster and no scratches. Modern quarters only interest collectors in uncirculated condition or with a recognized variety.
At 55,773,000, the 2001-P is a face value coin. Its interest is as the first plated quarter and as the partner to the scarcer nickel 2001. Uncirculated coins carry a small premium. If you are sorting a pile of 2001 quarters, set aside any without the P and weigh them; the P coins themselves can go back into circulation. There is no reason to keep worn ones except as a reminder of the switch. Keep one bright 2001-P as a type coin.
Plated steel quarters, 2001 to 2022
To cut costs, the Royal Canadian Mint moved the quarter to steel plated with nickel. The new coins weigh 4.4 g against 5.07 g for pure nickel and carry a small P, for plated, below the portrait. In 2001 the mint made both kinds, so that year comes in nickel and in plated steel. Both are magnetic, which surprises people, so weight and the P are the reliable ways to sort them. In 2006 the P gave way to the mint's own maple leaf logo.
Portraits changed too. Every 2002 coin carries the double date 1952-2002 for the queen's Golden Jubilee. In 2003 Susanna Blunt's uncrowned portrait replaced de Pédery-Hunt's crowned one, so 2003-P quarters come both ways. The quarter also became Canada's favorite coin for commemoratives: the 2004 poppy quarter was the first colored coin issued for general circulation and later years brought designs for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, the War of 1812 and Canada's 150th anniversary.
Most quarters from these years are face value coins with mintages in the tens or hundreds of millions. The 2001 nickel quarter, at 8,415,000, is the one to check for, along with the 2003-P crowned and uncrowned pair if you want a complete set. Weigh any 2001 that has no P. Commemoratives with color draw more attention when clean and unscratched. Queen Elizabeth died in September 2022, ending a run of her portraits on the quarter that began in 1953.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 25 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 2001 |
| Circulation mintage | 55,773,000 |
| Composition | Nickel-plated steel |
| Weight | 4.4 g |
| Diameter | 23.88 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Reeded |
Other 2001 Canadian quarters
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 Canadian Quarter | 8,415,000 | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
What does the P on a 2001 Canadian quarter mean?
It stands for plated. The coin has a steel core with nickel plating and weighs 4.4 g. Quarters without the P from that year are solid nickel and much scarcer.
Is the 2001-P quarter rare?
No. 55,773,000 were struck and it is a face value coin. The scarcer 2001 is the version without a P, made in pure nickel, of which 8,415,000 were struck. Both stick to a magnet.
Mintage figures: Quarter (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.