Lincoln Shield Cent · Cents

2025 Lincoln Shield Cent

Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 655,200,000 made

Mintage
655,200,000
Metal
97.5% zinc core, 2.5% copper plating
Weight
2.5 g
Diameter
19.05 mm

Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.

Zinc content2.44grams
Value band: Face value

Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.

What is a 2025 Lincoln Shield Cent worth?

In circulated condition it's worth face value. Only uncirculated coins with full original luster, or a recognized variety, carry a premium.

What would make yours worth more:

  • Uncirculated condition with full original luster
  • A die variety or minting error

For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.

Quick answers

Is the 2025 Lincoln Shield Cent rare?
Not in absolute terms: 655 million were made. It is one of the smaller runs in the series, though, so uncirculated examples are worth a little more than most dates.
Where is the mint mark on a 2025 Lincoln Shield Cent?
On the obverse, below the date. Philadelphia cents have no mint mark, except the 2017-P (struck for the Mint's 225th anniversary).
Which Philadelphia dates near 2025 are scarcer?
None. Within five years either side, no Philadelphia issue had a smaller mintage than the 2025.
How many 2025 Lincoln Shield Cent coins were made?
655,200,000.
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What to check on your 2025

  • There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
  • Bubbles, peeling or gray patches on a zinc cent are corrosion of the copper plating, not a minting error. They don't add value.
  • Judge the grade under good light. Modern zinc cents are judged on luster and eye appeal; spots, scratches and plating flaws lower value. Proofs are graded for cameo contrast (CAM / DCAM).

With 655 million made, the 2025 still turns up in everyday change. Keep yours only if it looks uncirculated or shows a variety; otherwise it's worth face value.

The story of the 2025

Philadelphia made 655,200,000 in 2025, down from 1.7 billion in 2024.

2025-D came to 645 million, so neither mint's 2025 coin is much scarcer than the other.

Of the 16 Lincoln Shield Cents Philadelphia struck between 2010 and 2025, this is the scarcest. Among the 2020s issues, only the 2025-D had a smaller run.

Declining output and the end of the cent (2022 to 2025)

Cent production fell steadily in these years as the cost of making each coin climbed above three cents. Output dropped to about 2.3 billion per mint in 2023 and to about 1.7 billion at Philadelphia in 2024. In 2025 the Treasury announced it would stop ordering new cent blanks. Only about 655 million cents were struck at Philadelphia and 645 million at Denver.

The last circulating cents were struck at the Philadelphia Mint in November 2025, ending production after more than 230 years. A small number of final cents were struck with an omega privy mark for collectors. Proof cents from San Francisco continued in collector sets through 2025. With no new cents being made, existing coins continue to circulate. Many people are now saving 2025 cents as the end of an era.

Elsewhere in US coinage in 2025

The Treasury announced the end of penny production for circulation and the last circulating cents were struck in Philadelphia in November 2025. It was also the final year of the American Women quarters.

How to recognize it

The reverse shows a union shield with a scroll reading ONE CENT across it, with E PLURIBUS UNUM above and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top. The shield stands for Lincoln's work to preserve the Union. The obverse keeps the Lincoln portrait, with the date and any mint mark to the right.

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Mintage chart

Lincoln Shield Cent mintages, 2025 highlightedLog scale · hover or tap a bar · 2010–2025
100M1B

Specifications

SeriesLincoln Shield Cent (2010–present)
Year2025
MintPhiladelphia Mint
Mint markNone
Strike typeCirculation strike
Mintage655,200,000
Face value1¢
Composition97.5% zinc core, 2.5% copper plating
Weight2.5 grams
Diameter19.05 mm
EdgePlain
DesignerLyndall Bass (reverse), sculpted by Joseph Menna

Other 2025 Lincoln Shield Cent issues

CoinMintageTypeSilver
2025 Lincoln Shield Cent655,200,000Circulation strike–
2025-D Lincoln Shield Cent645,200,000Circulation strike–
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Mintage: Lincoln cent mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.