It Costs 1.82¢ To Make A Penny

In 2017 it cost 1.82¢ to make a penny and 6.6¢ to make a nickle. So should we keep making them? The mint has looked for cheaper alternatives for the penny, which is 97% zinc, but hasn't been able to identify a cheaper substitute. Money could be saved by making dimes and quarters out of cheaper metals but that would require the owners of vending machines and laundry mats to upgrade their equipment to accept the new coins.

One way for the mint to save money is to simply take pennies out of circulation. This would require congressional authorization and is, I feel, a horrible idea. The price of everything would have to be in increments of $0.05 and manufacturers will, naturally, round the price up; we'd all pay more for our stuff.

Meanwhile Americans are still loath to use a dollar coin, opting for paper dollars instead. It has been estimated that, due to their longer lifespans, a dollar coin could replace 17 paper bills, thus saving the taxpayers a little more money. $2 bills could be put into circulation to fill the gap between ones and fives, if necessary.

Anyway, the original question was should we keep making pennies but any idea that would save us money is fair game.

 

We dropped the penny in Canada a few years ago. If you pay with cash and the price ends in .01 or .02, the price is rounded down, totals ending in .03 or .04 are rounded up. Payments with debit/credit/cheque are still for the exact amount.

Seems silly to bother making and using a coin that is essentially useless.

 

I see no point in continuing to make something that costs more to make than it is worth

But i'm not sure how it would work with sales tax, which is usually an odd number like 7 cents on the dollar. Tax cant be rounded up or down

 

I cannot remember the last time that I used cash. I simply use e debit card.
!0 years ago, some shops offering cashback ran out of cash on Friday evenings, because so few customers were paying with cash to replenish it. These days nearly all bars and clubs accept card payment, so the problem has diminished.
Last year, one of our supermarket chains was considering going cashless, but they changed their mind, because some older customers don't have a card and in certain areas their are customers who the bank refuses to issue them to.
Public transport in London does not accept cash payment either, but their are a few machines that allow you to buy a ticket prior to boarding a bus or train.
We even joke about drug dealers accepting card payment, LOL

 

I never use change of any sort unless I've saved it in a jar and gone to CoinStar.

 

we use coins here for $1 and $2

they are thinking about switching the $5 too

and paper is rare..most of the bills in circulation here are made of polymer plastic

 

i would rather pay 4 more cents for every purchase than to deal with piles of pennies.

the US half cent had the same buying power as 14 cents today when we stopped making them.

 

10+ years ago, a bill in congress was written to discontinue the penny for this very reason: it cost more to make a penny than it was actually worth. The bill was killed because politicians and hardcore traditionalists couldn't fathom the idea of killing the 1-cent coin. What a shame.

 

See, your tax monies aren't wasted. Your tax monies go towards your real monies.

 

But it can be reused over and over.

 

I can count on one hand the number of times I've used physical money in the past two years.

 

it still comes in handy for our weed smoking friends. plus, some businesses have a minimum charge that they will accept a card for, so if you want to run into the gas station and grab a pop you need to either pay cash or buy a bunch of shit you don't want. and it's always better to pay cash at the bar, because that way you can't get drunk and walk out without your card.

 

So, pretty much you're saying stoners need cash...

 

in summary, yes.

 

Preach it Sister!!!!

There are just some things I buy with cash.

But sometimes I use cash for things I don't want to be tracked on a credit transaction (like bolt cutters, stump dissolver or pipe nipples). Back in the 80s I had a dealer in Memphis who sold Amway stuff. It was also a way to take credit cards for pot.