No more new pennies

[hotdogPi]

The countries with the largest "smallest unit", which are the kroner/krona (having recently gotten rid of 50 øre/öre), have a smallest unit approximately equivalent to US$0.10. When I was in Paris, everything was rounded to the nearest 0,10€ (US$0.11), but this doesn't happen everywhere in the Eurozone.

1. I don't think this would be remotely feasible, but the dimes say "one dime" on them, not "ten cents". Get rid of the penny and nickel, and redefine a dime as 1/8 dollar.

2. Keep the dime and quarter, and round everything to the nearest 5¢. If a total would be less than 0.20, including change given (e.g. someone pays $6 for $5.86), round up or down to 0, 0.10, or 0.20, whichever is closest.

3. Take kphoger's proposal (to avoid having to go back a page for those using the default settings: keep 10¢, 50¢, $1, remove 25¢). I have always thought of replacing the large half dollar with a coin that's the same color as the dollar coin and smaller in diameter and something to distinguish like being thicker (like Australia's $2) or heptagonal (like the UK's 20p and 50p). Since people still have a lot of quarters, they could be traded in.

4. Nearest quarter as mgk has proposed whenever this comes up. My local bakery has a small loaf of bread cost $3.25, and it's gone up from $2.75 to $3 to $3.25 over the years, so it's already this way in places. (No tax; it falls in the grocery item category.)

[thenetwork]

(No tax; it falls in the grocery item category.)

Depends on the jurisdiction.  For example, Some "groceries", or foods like fresh bakery & bread, that are created in-house in my area is taxable, as well as some junk food, some soft drinks/teas and others.  In other areas, taxes can be applied to a;; items, including groceries, in certain business districts

[GaryV]

Long ago I heard a story of someone buying a single donut from a store bakery case. The employee asked if the buyer wanted it in a bag. No thanks. So then it had to be charged tax, as it was a take-out food item. Put it in the bag and it would have been a grocery item with no tax.

[kalvado]

The nickel and dime issue would be resolved if we got rid of pennies, nickels, and quarters.  Just leave dimes, half-dollars, and dollars.

A solution in search of a problem. going down to 5 cents IMHO is OK by now, and who knows what would happen next.

[thenetwork]

Long ago I heard a story of someone buying a single donut from a store bakery case. The employee asked if the buyer wanted it in a bag. No thanks. So then it had to be charged tax, as it was a take-out food item. Put it in the bag and it would have been a grocery item with no tax.

If you order fast food in Ohio to-go, there is no tax added.  Order it for dine-in, then you pay a tax.

[kphoger]

Then, of course, there's the fun little fact that not only is Papa Murphy's pizza not taxed in Kansas because they don't bake it before handing it to you (and therefore counts as a grocery item), but it also qualifies for food stamps.

[kalvado]

Then, of course, there's the fun little fact that not only is Papa Murphy's pizza not taxed in Kansas because they don't bake it before handing it to you (and therefore counts as a grocery item), but it also qualifies for food stamps.

A sign on a microwave at a gas station somewhere near Grand Canyon:
"frozen food purchased with food stamps cannot be heated in this microwave"

[mgk920]

the '1-2-5' progression is very 'natural' and the USA tried to convert to a 20¢ coin in 1875, but that idea was rejected by the public and dropped by 1878.  (20¢ in 1875 is equal to about $22.50-23.00 in 2025 money, figuring 'real' inflation.)

Mike

[1995hoo]

The US Mint announced that the final circulation penny was struck today, although limited production will continue for "historical and collector purposes."

[wanderer2575]

Long ago I heard a story of someone buying a single donut from a store bakery case. The employee asked if the buyer wanted it in a bag. No thanks. So then it had to be charged tax, as it was a take-out food item. Put it in the bag and it would have been a grocery item with no tax.

I understand the concept (if not the application) of carry-out vs. dine-in, and grocery item vs. prepared food.  But how is a donut considered a grocery item?  It's not any less prepared than a fast-food burger.

Charging tax if no bag (because it would be considered dine-in) vs. charging no tax if the donut is put in a bag (because it would be considered carry-out) I could understand in Ohio.

[kphoger]

But how is a donut considered a grocery item?  It's not any less prepared than a fast-food burger.

Correction:  it's not any less prepared than croutons.  And either one can be used as a healthy salad topping.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

(No tax; it falls in the grocery item category.)

Depends on the jurisdiction.  For example, Some "groceries", or foods like fresh bakery & bread, that are created in-house in my area is taxable, as well as some junk food, some soft drinks/teas and others.  In other areas, taxes can be applied to a;; items, including groceries, in certain business districts

In MN, if you buy a hot and ready meal at the grocery store deli, that's taxed. But if some of those same items (e.g. pot pie) are in the cold case for you to take home and heat upr yourself, it's grocery and not taxed. I don't understand, but yep.

[hbelkins]

i recently took an item back to Walmart and accepted cash (vs. a return on the debit card or a Walmart gift card) as my method of refund. The item's value was $7.42. I was given $7.45, as Walmart was out of pennies.

I turned around and bought something with cash and there was a "rounding" item on my receipt. The total was $8.54; I gave the cashier a $10 bill and got back $1.50 in change. So it appears that Walmart will round in the customer's favor.

If pennies must be eliminated, I can live with that.

[kalvado]

i recently took an item back to Walmart and accepted cash (vs. a return on the debit card or a Walmart gift card) as my method of refund. The item's value was $7.42. I was given $7.45, as Walmart was out of pennies.

I turned around and bought something with cash and there was a "rounding" item on my receipt. The total was $8.54; I gave the cashier a $10 bill and got back $1.50 in change. So it appears that Walmart will round in the customer's favor.

If pennies must be eliminated, I can live with that.

If you do it wisely, doing 300 buy-and-return transactions per hour (one every 12 seconds) would bring you NY minimum wage in roundings!

[bulldog1979]

(No tax; it falls in the grocery item category.)

Depends on the jurisdiction.  For example, Some "groceries", or foods like fresh bakery & bread, that are created in-house in my area is taxable, as well as some junk food, some soft drinks/teas and others.  In other areas, taxes can be applied to a;; items, including groceries, in certain business districts

In MN, if you buy a hot and ready meal at the grocery store deli, that's taxed. But if some of those same items (e.g. pot pie) are in the cold case for you to take home and heat upr yourself, it's grocery and not taxed. I don't understand, but yep.

Here in Michigan, the rotisserie chicken in the hot case is taxed as a prepared food. Our store puts some leftover chickens into the cold case, and those get a new UPC. The cold chickens are not taxed as grocery items.

[dlsterner]

Long ago I heard a story of someone buying a single donut from a store bakery case. The employee asked if the buyer wanted it in a bag. No thanks. So then it had to be charged tax, as it was a take-out food item. Put it in the bag and it would have been a grocery item with no tax.

If you order fast food in Ohio to-go, there is no tax added.  Order it for dine-in, then you pay a tax.

What's to stop someone from placing a to-go order and carrying it from the counter to a table and eating it there?

[kalvado]

the '1-2-5' progression is very 'natural' and the USA tried to convert to a 20¢ coin in 1875, but that idea was rejected by the public and dropped by 1878.  (20¢ in 1875 is equal to about $22.50-23.00 in 2025 money, figuring 'real' inflation.)

Mike

If you will, 5-10-25 becomes 10-20-50 when multiplied by 2.

[vdeane]

the '1-2-5' progression is very 'natural'

So natural, it was favored by King Arthur!

[thenetwork]

Long ago I heard a story of someone buying a single donut from a store bakery case. The employee asked if the buyer wanted it in a bag. No thanks. So then it had to be charged tax, as it was a take-out food item. Put it in the bag and it would have been a grocery item with no tax.

If you order fast food in Ohio to-go, there is no tax added.  Order it for dine-in, then you pay a tax.

What's to stop someone from placing a to-go order and carrying it from the counter to a table and eating it there?

Did that several times -- either eating at outside tables or eating it in the car in their parking lot.

"Logic is Illogical" when it comes to big companies or government.

[Henry]

And with that, I guess this will also mean the end of prices ending in ".99" or anything that's not divisible by 5. Additionally, states will probably have to adjust their tax rates to conform to the new currency standards. In any case, RIP to the penny.

[Scott5114]

CNN's article on the last penny notes that there are some snags to the "just round it, idiot" approach:

It's not just businesses that face increased costs. Rounding to the closest nickel will cost consumers about $6 million a year, according to a July study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. That is fairly modest, coming to about five cents each across 133 million American households.

And rounding is not a national solution.

Four states - Delaware, Connecticut, Michigan and Oregon - as well as numerous cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Miami and Washington, DC, require merchants to provide exact change, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS).

In addition, the law covering the federal food assistance program known as SNAP requires that recipients not be charged more than other customers. Since SNAP recipients use a debit card that's charged the precise amount, if merchants round down prices for cash purchases, they could be opening themselves to legal problems and fines, said Jeff Lenard, spokesperson for NACS.

"Rounding down on all transactions presents several challenges beyond the loss of an average of 2 cents per transaction," Lenard said. "We desperately need legislation that allows rounding so retailers can make change for these customers."

For that reason, NACS and other retail groups recently wrote to Congress asking for legislation to deal with the questions raised by the end of penny production.

[kphoger]

And with that, I guess this will also mean the end of prices ending in ".99" or anything that's not divisible by 5.

Why?  Pennies will remain legal tender, and there are still billions of them out there.  They're just not minting any more of them.

[Scott5114]

And with that, I guess this will also mean the end of prices ending in ".99" or anything that's not divisible by 5.

Why?  Pennies will remain legal tender, and there are still billions of them out there.  They're just not minting any more of them.

I think it'll be kind of funny if this plan to end the penny ends up never working because, every time a bank run out of pennies, someone cashes in their 5-gallon Culligan jug of pennies and the US economy suddenly has pennies for a few more days.

I mean, I have five rolls of them in my closet at the moment, I just haven't cashed them in because the only bank I have an account at that will take them charges me a fee to see a teller, so I've been trying to save up enough to make the fee worth it.

[LilianaUwU]

And with that, I guess this will also mean the end of prices ending in ".99" or anything that's not divisible by 5.

I can tell you from living in Canada that this has never stopped.

[Ted$8roadFan]

The penny's demise is a long time coming. Now the question is how to deal with unintended consequences.