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Did you find a 1941 penny in your pocket change?
You’re probably curious what the current 1941 penny value is.
If you need to find out how much 1941 wheat pennies are worth, you’ve come to the right place!
Read on to find out how many 1941 Lincoln cents were made, what they’re worth today, and whether you should keep them or spend them…
1941 Penny Facts
It’s fairly easy to find 1941 wheat pennies in circulation these days.
More than 1 billion 1941 cents were made. So even today — many decades after they were minted — the 1941 penny still turns up in pocket change.
However, it’s getting scarcer to find old coins like these in circulation as the years go on.
Most 1941 Lincoln cents are pretty well worn and, because so many were made, these heavily circulated pennies aren’t considered very scarce.
In other words, if you have a well-circulated 1941 penny, it’s not really worth very much money. However, that doesn’t mean it’s not valuable or worth keeping.
But, unless you find a 1941 penny with a significant error or other unusual characteristic, it’s not going to pay the mortgage off or take care of your child’s college tuition!
So, is there anything that makes the 1941 wheat penny special? Yes:
- American history buffs will recall that 1941 pennies were made when the United States entered into World War II.
- Those who were born in 1941 might consider pennies from that year particularly special as a birth-year coin.
- Many Lincoln cent coin holders often begin with the 1941 penny for reasons — due largely to the space constraints that come with most 3-panel cardboard coin folders and coin albums.


How Much Are 1941 Pennies Worth?
The 1941 penny is considered a common coin in all but the higher uncirculated grades.
Therefore, most worn 1941 Lincoln wheat pennies are worth only a few cents above face value.
Hobbyists have discovered that the 1941-S Lincoln cent was struck with an “S” mintmark in 2 different sizes with the following diagnostics:
- 1941-S Large Mintmark pennies –The serifed ends of the large mintmark point toward the inside of the “S” mintmark.
- 1941-S Small Mintmark pennies — The small mintmark exhibits thicker serifs that point away from the “S”
Neither the 1941-S Large Mintmark nor 1941-S Small Mintmark Lincoln wheat cent is considered particularly scarce and are worth approximately the same as each other. The 1941-S Lincoln cent is listed below among the coin values as a single entry.
Here’s a rundown on the value and mintage of the various 1941 pennies:
- 1941 Lincoln penny — 887,018,000 minted; 5 to 10+ cents
- 1941 Proof Lincoln penny — 21,100 minted; $40+
- 1941-D Lincoln penny — 128,700,000 minted; 5 to 10+ cents
- 1941-S Lincoln penny — 92,360,000 minted; 5 to 10+ cents
*Values above are for 1941 pennies in average circulated condition unless otherwise noted.
IMPORTANT: Do You Know The Grade Of Your Penny?
To determine the true value of your 1941 penny, you first need to know what condition (or grade) your coin is in.
Grab a coin magnifier and a copy of the U.S. Coin Grading Standards book. Then, watch this video to see how to grade coins yourself at home:
More About Today’s 1941 Penny Value
In addition to the links I’ve included above, here are some other resources to help you learn more about your 1941 pennies:
- My 1941 Penny: The Coin That Hooked Me Into Collecting Coins
- Old Lincoln Cents You Can Still Find In Pocket Change
- Old Copper Pennies: Which Ones To Save & What They’re Worth
- Which Old Pennies Are The Most Valuable?
- 43 Most Valuable Pennies Worth Holding Onto

I’m the Coin Editor here at TheFunTimesGuide. My love for coins began when I was 11 years old. I primarily collect and study U.S. coins produced during the 20th century. I’m a member of the American Numismatic Association (ANA) and the Numismatic Literary Guild (NLG) and have won multiple awards from the NLG for my work as a coin journalist. I’m also the editor at the Florida United Numismatists Club (FUN Topics magazine), and author of Images of America: The United States Mint in Philadelphia (a book that explores the colorful history of the Philadelphia Mint). I’ve contributed hundreds of articles for various coin publications including COINage, The Numismatist, Numismatic News, Coin Dealer Newsletter, Coin Values, and CoinWeek. I’ve authored nearly 1,000 articles here at The Fun Times Guide to Coins (many of them with over 50K shares), and I welcome your coin questions in the comments below!