Yesterday I was at Lowe’s and I noticed the penny “elimination” sign on the garden center window.
I read somewhere that there are 114 BILLION pennies in circulation in the US. And yet… Now stores want you to pay with exact change? Is there a penny shortage where you are? This was the first time I had seen any reference to one.
I knew they had stopped minting new pennies last November, but it’s hard to believe there is actually a shortage of pennies in the United States.
Every one of those need a penny, take a penny trays that I’ve seen still have pennies in them. Do you pay in cash? Do you carry change with you?
Are you seeing signs asking you to pay with exact change where you are? Curious minds want to know.
~Mavis
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JulieP says
Here in Norfolk UK every shop, supermarket and even the fish and chip van which calls at our local pub on Thursdays tries to encourage card payments. In some supermarkets and big box stores there maybe only one check out where you can pay cash which doesn’t encourage you as the queue is usually long for cash payments. Some stores don’t take cash at all but we have one shop which refuses to take cards!
I see a few pennies on my little fruit and veg stall especially from people who aren’t actually going to pay! They drop a few pennies in the honest box to make it look good, you have to laugh, I’d gladly give the food away of they couldn’t afford to pay!
Also some people will pay for things completely in small change as of they need to get rid of it. Times are changing I fear, use it or lose it as they say 🙂
Nancy Settel says
Only thing I have noticed is the panic look on faces of some younger (and by that I mean under 40 years old) people if they need to give you change! Don’t think they have ever been instructed to count money back to people. Everyone has always had a calculator and never learned to do math in their head.
Sue S. says
Yup! That’s been my experience. As a retired schoolteacher, I resent the fact that math is now taught by calculator and ipad. People need to know mental math!
Jeanine says
Yes, the cashiers these days do not count back your change. I commented on a cashier the other day, that in fact told his customer to give him a few Pennies and he could give back a dime. I was surprised that he figured it out so quickly and impressed. When it was my turn to pay, I told the cashier…good job!
PSUCHIC06 M says
I have had the same question…
That said (and Lowe’s is NOT) this way…but places that refuse cash get boycotted
I think people are hoarding pennies to be honest.
Cindy R says
I saw this same notice at a store in Santa Fe, New Mexico recently. I thought to myself I should bring the jar of change I’ve randomly been saving over the past few years into the bank and cash it out. Most likely it’s because the US govt has stopped producing pennies and more people are holding onto the ones they have for sentimental reasons or in the hopes they will one day become collectible.
Tracy says
Here in New York it seems like the minute the announcement was made that there would be no more new pennies, every place put up signs to use exact change.
andrea d says
Most of the stores around here (Pennsylvania) started rounding cash transactions and not giving out pennies anymore as soon as they stopped being minted. They’ve set up the computers to do it automatically. If the total is $10.62, it becomes $10.60. Only about twice has it been rounded in the stores favor- like $10.64 becoming $10.65. A few small mom and pop’s will still give pennies for change.
Carrie says
I believe it is a distribution issue that has caused the “shortage’….so there are pennies, they are no longer circulated at the rates they used to be. Banks can’t just get new ones because they aren’t making them…so businesses can’t get them to have in store. The reserve is still circulated what is out there….but if everyone is like me and keeps a giant change Jat they just aren’t being moved around.
J in OH - IO says
Some businesses are passing along to the charging customers a 3% additional charge card fee if using a card (car dealership for tires and repairs!) Some businesses want you to use cash or checks as much as possible and discourage cards unless you really have to use them (local, honest awesome auto repair shop).
I do not want to have to pay extra for the charge card fees on top of the high costs of things already! Been using cash, checks, and card depending on the place here in Ohio.
I assumed people are collecting pennies now that they are no longer made. Some businesses are just having customers round up since their price stickers have not changed (local hardware).
The world is changing so much faster than any of us can keep up (and with no thoughts about the long term affects in some of the decisions that are being made and it’s downright scary).
Stay focused on the good in this world (especially locally where you live), make each day count, tell your loved ones you love them, stay strong, stay healthy, and keep calm and carry on!
Mavis, love your blog – it’s the only one I read. Enjoy your insights and all the amazing things you and HH accomplish! So inspiring!
K in NE OH says
J, in OH, I am also in OH and ditto to everything you expressed regarding transactions. Also ditto your last few paragraphs.
K in NE OH
Dawn says
I pay cash for my morning caffeine at my local Cumberland Farms and they do sometimes have a sign out. Luckily, I have plenty of pennies to give them from all of the years they’ve been giving them to me as change. Once I’ve used the last penny from the floor of my car they’ll be out of luck though.
Jennifer says
In the Portland (OR) area there are shortage signs some places. At WinCo they have signs requesting exact change and encouraging people to bring in ROLLS of pennies even. We’re guessing they haven’t changed their cash register software and have a hard time balancing their cash drawers now. Other places seem to just round to the nearest nickel, no big deal.
Brianna says
I have seen a few signs, but I don’t think it is an honest problem of a coin shortage. I have found when I pay in cash, I am being shorted change. For example, McDonalds order was $4.43 and my receipt said $0.57 change. They only gave me $0.55 change. I explained to my kids that if they shorten everybody 0.01-0.04 cents and do 1000 transactions, they will have $10-$40 extra in their till. It isn’t right. Maybe they dump it into the Ronald McDonald house, but I doubt it.
My daughter went to Starbucks the other day and her total was $11.21 and she gave them $12.00 cash, they gave her no change back and just her receipt. I went back up with the receipt and told them they forgot to give my daughter her change and they said they don’t do change anymore and she pointed to a sign on the door about a shortage. The “tip” jar had mostly cash in it and she couldn’t tell me what they did with the change they were keeping. I was frustrated for my daughter and her hard-earned money and not rightfully receiving her change back. She would have put it in her piggy bank to save up again for another treat. It isn’t right.
I feel the whole coin shortage thing is a scam and too many places have become opportunists over it so they benefit. All those penny overages they are collecting by not giving out pennies add up and it adds up even more when they refuse to give back any change.
Deborah says
Sometimes I pay cash, but sometimes I use my card. As for Pennys, we have plenty. I guess I need to roll them and use them. I do keep my wheat pennys.
Samantha says
The Fed is eliminating the penny and pulling it out of circulation. Canada did the same thing many years ago. There are several banking institutions that are beginning to stop accepting pennies in deposits, so in turn stores are starting to not accept them and their systems are automatically rounding up or down to the nearest nickel. Going to be strange to not have pennies floating around the bottom of my purse!
Amy says
What happens if nickel gets cancelled? Can use pennies in place of nickel. Wouldnt be a good idea to pull pennies out of circulation. If u need pennies buy them from ebay & amazon.
Sue says
I think that the penny “shortage” came about due to folks not using their change and getting coins back into circulation.
DH (like most men) has no good way to carry change except in his pants/shorts pockets. At the end of the day, that change goes into a 5-gallon glass water bottle. Every day he adds to that bottle and never takes any out.
I have a zippered coin pocket on my wallet. My coins get recirculated daily.
I get ticked off at those signs that say ‘exact change or GTFO’. Uh, NO. You’ll round up or down, as you’re supposed to. And if you won’t? I’ll use my card and stick you with the 3% fee for your thievery.
Lynn from NC Outer Banks says
Here, some stores (including grocery stores) are rounding up-only-and not rounding down. Annoying. Wondering how much extra money, penny by penny, they will make over time.
Carolina Cooper says
I have noticed all of the things the other posters have written.
I have seen signs locally at Shaws, Market Basket & Hannaford (you know Mavis, our local New England grocery stores) requesting pennies.
But they STILL have so many items priced at prices ending in
.99. That is what I don’t get
If there is indeed a penny shortage why not just make the advertised price of steak, cheese, eggs or whatever rounded up to a whole #? It makes no sense!!!
Jenny Young says
I don’t think it’s a shortage. I think stores just don’t want to give exact change when it’s less than a nickel. Most stores are just rounding up & the consumer has to pay the difference.
Gigi says
I think it’s also a lot of customers as well who only pay with bills and can’t be bothered to pay with change.
Debra Beeuwsaert says
My thoughts are when a child learns simple math, how will it end when businesses round up or down? They say Children don’t know math, science etc. Well how are they suppose to when the government and then businesses flip it on the children.
Plus if businesses will only take cards and we become a cashless society, think of all of the tracking businesses and government can do on us. Remember – no cash for gifts, no cash for a fast food restaurant, etc — and everything has a 3% fee tacked on (and yes the business takes from us and from there it goes to the government).
Pj says
In WV and OH I see signs that make the customer round up or down if paying cash and you do not have exact change. Three cents becomes five you owe and two cents rounds down to no pennies.
Heather in Nevada says
Yes and I saw the same thing when we just drove to Iowa. I try to pay cash for things less than $10 or places that charged a fee for using a credit card, on vacation at least. I had specifically put pennies and nickels in my wallet. I was thanked multiple times for having the exact change and giving them a few pennies.
Kathy says
NE Ohio here, between Cleveland and Akron and I see so many things working front end in a drug store but no exact change signs or checks only here. My store has had plenty of pennies. Most customers don’t want the pennies when I give them their change so I just say thank you, I’ll pass it on. We do have a thing where, if I have no pennies in my drawer, I can hit the button and it rounds DOWN. 1-4, rounds down 0; 6-9, down to 5. I also grabbed some spare change of my own and use it for customers who may be short. It’s what I call good customer service, which can be rare right now. It’s a sad day indeed when our government is turning us against each other in matters like this.
wendy j says
In Canada we stopped using pennies in 2012. The price is rounded up or down to the nearest .05. The bank will still accept them if you want to cash them in but they are no longer minted or distributed.
Richelle says
That’s what I see in Tacoma, too. $0.01, 0.02, and 0.6, 0.7 round down. $0.03, 0.4, and 0.8, 0.9 round up. Easy peasy.
No one asks for exact change.
sandy says
I think we should make every check out person count back our change… they would have no idea how to do it.
It is so easy! But a lost “art” or skill.
Helen says
Here in Australia our 1c and 2c were discontinued back in the early 90s and everything was rounded up or down and although annoying at the time, we’ve adjusted and accepted it. Now we all seem to be moving towards using digital payments, and although I did accept that as part of moving with the times, I’ve now decided to use more cash. I feel I have more control of my finances, there’s less tracking of what I’m spending it on, plus use it or loose it. And if cash goes how do you you give pocket money to kids and teach them how to use money, how can you put money in donation bins (a lot of charities rely on those loose change donations). My 2cents worth
Mrs. M says
I work at the post office, and although we don’t have a penny shortage in my neck of the woods, they’ve updated the sales software to round the change up or down to the nearest 5. So, we don’t give pennies back anymore. I also work at a different post office… it’s a manual post office, and I’m still giving and receiving pennies there.
Pamela Sheppard says
I don’t know because I seldom if ever use cash so I don’t notice any signage. Its either debit or credit. When the penny stopped being produced I saw signs at my favorite grocery store encouraging customers to cash in rolls of pennies at the courtesy desk.
Stephanie Lynn Broersma says
I own a small business, and our bank was not able to get pennies from the federal reserve starting last November. We still use pennies since customers are still paying with them, but if we run out then we have to round up or down.
Zadu says
According to the Red Book (for coin collectors), in 2020, the last year for which there are hard numbers for the number of pennies made, between Denver and Philadelphia, there were 7,908,620,000 pennies made (plus just under a million in San Francisco but those were proof strikes for collectors). So your number of 114 billion pennies in circulation probably isn’t far off.
What we need is for everybody to take that big jar of pennies they have in the closet to the bank and cash it in, then we’ll have plenty. And while I can’t prove it, we all know how people in Maine like to hoard stuff (not you, your house is too small!) so there are probably several billion pennies in Maine that could be cashed in to end the shortage. Step up to the plate, Maine, and help out the rest of the country!
Zadu says
Apologies for two comments, but after reading several comments, I’d like to add a bit more to the conversation.
Back in the 1980s when I was stationed in Germany, they decided that it was too expensive to ship pennies to Europe so they started the rounding thing when you paid in cash. Round down if the price ended in a 1, 2, 6, or 7, and round up if it ended in a 3, 4, 8, or 9. You got used to it quickly and it wasn’t a big deal.
We could do the same here with zero issues.
Sue S. says
I’ve had to ask for correct change at a Dunkin’ Donuts a few times. Guess they need to change the price of items or round up when they give change.
Dianne Labadie says
The government has been trying to make the US a cashless society since the 80’s and they are doing well with it. Have you notice there are no more 1 dollar coins or 50 cent coins either. They pulled them all into metals and used the metal to mint new coins when needed. I hate pennies. What do you do with them? Keep them in a jar. There are so many pennies that have been minted by the government, they are not worth a penny anymore. Yes, they are starting to round-up in store is the US. I don’t mind the cashless transactions. Easy to tap/slide. Carrying money is not what it use to be. Vending machines do not coins anymore. Cards are so easy. I’m hitting 70 and I can easily use a card. Don’t get me going on paper checks!
Bill says
Why keep pennies if you hate them? Deposit them in your bank account or use it to make small purchases that cost $1 or less. Look for a store with a coinstar machine. Can get giftcard for your pennies. Need to put coins back into circulation to keep retailers from picket pocketing customers.