Coin reference › Top 100 Most Sought-After U.S. Cents, 1909-Present
Top 100 Most Sought-After U.S. Cents, 1909-Present
The Lincoln cent is the most searched series in American numismatics, and most of what is worth finding in it is still in circulation or sitting in somebody's jar. This list is a hundred collecting targets from 1909 to the present, ordered by year - the dates that finish an album, the branch-mint issues that are genuinely hard, and the varieties that reward a second look.
| Coin | Year | Mintage | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1909 P VDB | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1909 | 27,995,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1909 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1909 | 1,825,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1909 S VDB | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1909 | 484,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1910 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1910 | 6,045,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1911 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1911 | 12,672,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1911 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1911 | 4,026,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1912 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1912 | 10,411,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1912 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1912 | 4,431,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1913 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1913 | 15,804,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1913 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1913 | 6,101,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1914 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1914 | 1,193,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1914 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1914 | 4,137,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1915 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1915 | 22,050,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1915 P | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1915 | 29,092,120 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1915 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1915 | 4,833,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1916 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1916 | 22,510,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1917 P Doubled Die Obverse | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1917 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1917 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1917 | 32,620,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1918 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1918 | 34,680,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1921 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1921 | 15,264,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1922 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1922 | 7,160,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1922 No D - Strong Reverse (die pair II) | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1922 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1922 D Weak D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1922 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1923 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1923 | 8,700,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1924 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1924 | 2,520,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1924 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1924 | 11,696,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1925 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1925 | 26,380,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1926 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1926 | 28,020,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1926 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1926 | 4,550,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1927 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1927 | 14,276,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1931 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1931 | 4,480,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1931 S | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1931 | 866,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1932 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1932 | 10,500,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1932 P | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1932 | 9,062,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1933 D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1933 | 6,200,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1934P-1DO-002 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1934 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1935P-1DO-001 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1935 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1936 P Doubled-Die Obverse - Type 1 | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1936 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1937P-1DR-001P | Lincoln cent DDR | 1937 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1941P-1DO-001 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1941 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1942P-1DO-001 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1942 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1943 D Bronze/Copper | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1943 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1943 P Bronze/Copper | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1943 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1943 S Bronze/Copper | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1943 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1944 D Steel Cent | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1944 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1944 P Steel Cent | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1944 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1944 S Steel Cent | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1944 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1945P-1DO-009 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1945 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1951P-1DO-001P | Lincoln cent DDO | 1951 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1953P-1DO-001P | Lincoln cent DDO | 1953 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1955 P Doubled-Die Obverse | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1955 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1956 D D Above Shadow D | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1956 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1957P-1DO-004P | Lincoln cent DDO | 1957 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1958 P Doubled-Die Obverse | Lincoln Wheat cent | 1958 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1960 D D Over D - Small Date Over Large Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1960 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1960 D Small Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1960 | 158,884,000 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1960 P Small Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1960 | 588,096,602 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1962P-1DR-011 | Lincoln cent DDR | 1962 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1963P-1DO-006P | Lincoln cent DDO | 1963 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1964P-1DR-002P | Lincoln cent DDR | 1964 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1966P-1DO-001 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1966 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1966P-1DR-001 | Lincoln cent DDR | 1966 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1968D-1DR-001 | Lincoln cent DDR | 1968 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1969S-1DO-001 | Lincoln cent DDO | 1969 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1970 S Doubled Die Obverse | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1970 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1970 S Small Date - High 7 | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1970 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1971 P Doubled Die Obverse | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1971 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1971 S Doubled Die Obverse | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1971 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1972 P Doubled Die Obverse | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1972 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1981 S Type 2 - Clear S | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1981 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1982 D Zinc - Small Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1982 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1982 P Copper - Small Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1982 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1982 P Zinc - Small Date | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1982 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1983 P Doubled Die Reverse | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1983 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1984 P Doubled Die Ear | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1984 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1990 S No S Mint Mark | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1990 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1991 S | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1991 | 2,867,787 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1992 D Close AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1992 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1992 P Close AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1992 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1995 P Doubled Die | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1995 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 1997 S | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1997 | 2,796,678 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 1998 P Wide AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1998 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1998 S Close AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1998 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1999 P Wide AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1999 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 1999 S Close AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 1999 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 2000 P Wide AM | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2000 | N/A | Error / die variety |
| 2009 D Birth and Early Childhood Kentucky - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 D Formative Years Indiana - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 D Presidency - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 D Professional Life Illinois - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 P Birth and Early Childhood Kentucky - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 P Formative Years Indiana - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009 P Presidency - Satin Finish | Lincoln Memorial / Bicentennial cent | 2009 | 784,614 | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2009S-1DR-001P | Lincoln cent DDR | 2009 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 2009S-1DR-002P | Lincoln cent DDR | 2009 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 2011P-1DO-004 | Lincoln cent DDO | 2011 | N/A | Die variety: doubling |
| 2017 P | Lincoln Shield cent - Business strike | 2017 | N/A | Date / mint / design issue |
| 2019 W | Lincoln Shield cent - Proof | 2019 | N/A | Intentional collector issue |
| 2019 W | Lincoln Shield cent - Reverse proof | 2019 | N/A | Intentional collector issue |
| 2019 W | Lincoln Shield cent - Uncirculated | 2019 | N/A | Intentional collector issue |
What to look for
Dates and mint marks first, because they are the cheapest thing to check and the fastest to rule out. Then the varieties: doubling on the date and the legends, a mint mark punched twice, and the transitional years where the metal changed and the wrong planchet sometimes went through the press.
The difficulty
The problem with cents is scale. A Lincoln cent is 19.05 mm and the difference between a variety worth four figures and an ordinary coin is often a tenth of a millimetre of displaced metal - too small to judge by eye, and too small to judge from a phone photograph taken under a ceiling light.
NumismaLab measures instead of judging. Calibrate the scale from the coin's own known diameter and the separation between two images of a letter comes back in micrometres, with the measurement shown rather than a verdict pronounced. You can disagree with a number; you cannot disagree with somebody's impression.
Start with the trial
Five days, no card, every tool unlocked. If it cannot settle your coin it will say so, which is the part worth testing.
Start with the trialMore lists
Lincoln cents 1909-present: keys, semi-keys and honorable mentions
Top 100 priced Lincoln cent doubled-die listings
Top 20 Indian Head cents
Top 20 cents: available reference selection
All-time U.S. coinage: colonial roots and major rarities
Compiled 2026-09-15. Mintages and designations are matters of record; which coins are worth a second look is an editorial judgement, and this page says so rather than pretending otherwise.
