Got exact change? Penny shortages already hitting some retailers
A sign posted near the self-checkout area of a Kroger store in Hilliard, Ohio, on Oct. 17, 2025, informs customers that the store has run short of pennies.
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The penny’s days are officially numbered, and some stores are already struggling to keep the one-cent coins in stock.
The Treasury Department signaled the start of the coin’s end in May, placing its last order for penny blanks—the flat metal discs used to make the coins. This followed a directive from President Donald Trump in February to halt production, a decision driven by the fact that pennies cost more to make than their face value—3.69 cents per coin, according to the U.S. Mint.
The Mint reportedly struck its final pennies in August, according to the American Bankers Association on Oct. 17. Since then, convenience stores, supermarkets, and major retailers including Kroger and Home Depot have faced localized shortages.
Without enough pennies, stores struggle to make exact change for cash transactions. “It hit a lot sooner than anybody thought,” said Dave Niemi, spokesman for Kwik Trip, which operates roughly 850 convenience stores in the Midwest. Niemi said locations short on pennies are rounding down transactions to the nearest nickel, a small loss the company accepts “in the best interest of the guests.”
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In this photo illustration, pennies are seen on a table on February 10, 2025 in New York City. President Donald Trump directed the Treasury Department to stop minting new pennies, citing the rising cost of producing the one-cent coin.
Kroger, Home Depot Among Those Affected
Some Kroger stores in central Ohio are posting signs asking cash customers to provide exact change due to limited penny supply. A Kroger spokesperson told The Columbus Dispatch, “We continue to assess the impact of the U.S. Treasury’s decision to end penny production…we kindly ask customers to consider providing exact change.”
Home Depot spokesperson Beth Marlowe said the shortage “is really an industry-wide issue” and referred inquiries to the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA).
RILA and other trade groups—including the National Retail Federation, National Restaurant Association, National Grocers Association, and National Association of Convenience Stores—have urged Congress to pass a law allowing businesses to round cash transactions to the nearest nickel.
“A federal law is necessary because at least 10 states—and some localities—prohibit rounding transactions,” said Austen Jensen, RILA’s senior executive vice president for government affairs. “Retailers are growing concerned that the penny shortage will adversely impact operations as we enter the busiest stretch of the shopping season.”
Challenges for SNAP and Check-Cashing Services
The penny shortage may also affect essential services for low-income Americans. SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, prohibits rounding food prices up or down, meaning stores may be restricted from adjusting prices without legal guidance. Retailers have requested the USDA clarify that rounding transactions to the nearest nickel does not violate SNAP rules.
Additionally, many retailers provide check-cashing services for customers without bank accounts. Trade groups warn that without legislative protections, low-income customers could lose access to these critical services.
Why Pennies Are Hard to Find
Although there are roughly 250 billion pennies in circulation, “localized supply issues” have created shortages, the American Bankers Association said. About one-third of the Federal Reserve’s 165 coin terminals have stopped handling penny transactions, creating distribution bottlenecks.
“By ceasing deposit acceptance at coin terminals, the Fed is gumming up the whole distribution system for pennies,” explained Bill Maurer, dean of the School of Social Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. The result: regional shortages, especially affecting rural banks and low-income communities.
Maurer called the rollout of the penny’s discontinuation “chaotic,” saying it’s impacting the Americans who rely most on cash. “It’s playing out way worse than expected,” he said, “and shows the challenges of changing our payments infrastructure without careful planning.”
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