For years, pennies have ended up in the same places: kitchen drawers, old coffee cans, piggy banks, car cupholders, and jars that somehow seem to fill themselves. Now that penny production has ended, those little copper-colored coins may suddenly seem a lot more interesting.
There’s no need to rush out and get rid of every penny you own. Many are still worth their face value, while a few can be worth considerably more to collectors. If you have a large stash sitting around the house, this is a good time to sort through it and decide what you actually want to keep.
Here are some practical ways to handle the pennies you already have.
Spend Them
Pennies remain legal tender, so you can still use them for purchases. Paying with exact change is an easy way to get some of those coins out of your drawers and back into circulation.
If you have only a small handful, using them during everyday purchases may be easier than sorting, rolling, or taking them to a coin-counting machine.
Check for Rare and Valuable Dates
Before spending a jar full of pennies, take a few minutes to look through them. Certain dates, mint marks, doubled designs, and other minting mistakes can make a penny worth much more than one cent.
Most pennies won’t turn out to be valuable, but finding one unusual coin could make the extra sorting worthwhile. If something looks unusual, check a reputable coin guide or have it evaluated before selling it.
Take Them to Your Bank
If you’ve accumulated hundreds or even thousands of pennies, your bank may be able to turn that loose change into a deposit. Some banks accept rolled coins, while others have coin-counting machines available for customers.
Policies vary from one bank to another, so it’s a good idea to check before showing up with several heavy bags of coins.
Use a Coin-Counting Machine
A coin-counting machine can save a lot of time if you have a mountain of loose change. You simply pour in the coins and let the machine sort them.
Some machines charge a fee, so compare the cost with what your bank offers before using one. For a small amount of change, the convenience may be worth it. For a large collection, avoiding a percentage-based fee can make a difference.
Set Aside Older Pennies
Older pennies deserve a closer look before you cash everything in. Pennies made before 1982 generally contain much more copper than the zinc-based pennies produced later.
That doesn’t mean every older penny is automatically valuable. Condition, date, mint mark, and other details all matter. Still, separating older coins from newer ones can be a useful first step if you’re sorting through a large collection.
Related: The Most Valuable Pennies Still Hiding in Circulation Today
Donate Them
A jar of pennies may not feel like much, but small donations can add up when many people contribute. Schools, food banks, community groups, and charities may accept loose change as part of their fundraising efforts.
If you’re cleaning out several jars of coins, donating some of them can be an easy way to clear space while putting the money toward something useful.
Related: 12 Charities That Will Pick Up Your Donations for Free
Keep a Few as Keepsakes
You don’t have to spend or donate every penny you own. Keeping a few from the final years of production could make a fun little keepsake.
Put a handful in a small jar, coin holder, or family memory box. Years from now, those ordinary pennies may serve as a reminder of how common they once were and how easily they accumulated in everyday life.
Sort Them Before You Cash Them In
If you’ve been saving pennies for years, don’t dump the whole collection into a machine without looking through it first. Separate older coins, unusual dates, coins with possible minting errors, and anything that looks different from the rest.
After that, you can decide what to spend, deposit, donate, sell, or keep. A few minutes of sorting could turn a forgotten jar of change into something more useful, or help you spot a coin worth keeping.
