1979 Penny Value: 1979-S Type 1 vs Type 2 Proofs and Top Grades

A 1979 penny is worth one cent in circulated condition, as of October 2026, and about $16 to $25 in MS65 red by price guide. The 1979-S proof comes in two mint mark styles: the common Type 1 filled S and the scarcer Type 2 clear S. Either cent is worth a few dollars to about $45 in typical proof grades, but a Type 2 graded PR70 Deep Cameo sold for $1,140 to $1,586 at Heritage in 2024-2026.

The Mint struck more than 10 billion business strike cents dated 1979 at Philadelphia and Denver, so the coin from your pocket is common and worth face. The questions that matter are about proof sets, where the shape of a single letter S decides whether a set is worth a few dollars or many times that, and about the few near-perfect red coins that graders have placed at MS68.

Quick answer

• A circulated 1979 or 1979-D penny is worth one cent, as of October 2026.
• Uncirculated red coins are worth about $16-25 in MS65 by guide; MS68 red coins have sold for $1,320-2,640 at Heritage.
• The 1979-S proof Type 1 (filled, blobby S) is about 85 percent of the mintage; Type 2 (clear S) is about 15 percent, according to Greysheet.
• Single proof cents of either type sell for a few dollars to about $45 up to PR69. In PR70 Deep Cameo, a Type 2 brought $1,140-1,586 at Heritage in 2024-2026, and the PCGS guide lists it at $1,250.
• The Type 2 premium is largest for complete six-coin proof sets, where every coin carries the clear S.

How do you tell a 1979-S Type 1 from a Type 2, step by step?

Look at the S under the date with a 5x or 10x loupe: a blob that looks filled in is Type 1, a crisp S with open loops and clear ends is Type 2.

1. Confirm it is a proof. The 1979-S cent was struck only as a proof. It has mirror-like fields, frosted design details and sharp edges, and it came in a six-coin proof set: cent, nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar and Susan B. Anthony dollar. A 1979 cent with an S and normal, satiny surfaces does not exist as a business strike.
2. Find the mint mark. On the cent, the S sits directly below the date on the front.
3. Look at the S under magnification. Type 1 has a blobby, indistinct S: the loops look filled and the letter reads as a lump. Greysheet describes it as "blobby-looking". Type 2 has a clear, well-defined S with open upper and lower loops and distinct ends.
4. Compare with another coin from the same set. In an original Mint set, all six coins should carry the same type. The difference is often easiest to see on the larger coins, such as the half dollar or the dollar, and that tells you what to expect on the cent.
5. Check the packaging. Original 1979 proof sets came in a hard plastic holder. A set where the coins have been swapped in from other sets is worth less to collectors, so check that the holder is unopened and undamaged.
6. Check the cameo. Proofs with strong, frosted contrast between Lincoln and the mirror field are designated Cameo or Deep Cameo by grading services. Almost all 1979-S proofs grade PR67 to PR69, so the designation and the jump to PR70 drive the money.
7. Leave it in the holder. Fingerprints and air spots on a proof are permanent, and a mark ends any chance of PR70.

What is a 1979 penny worth?

Figures are price guide values from CoinValueChecker and the PCGS price guide, with recorded sales from Heritage, Stack's Bowers and David Lawrence, as of October 2026. Mintages are the US Mint's published figures.

The ordinary business strikes need one honest note. A 1979 cent from a roll is worth a few cents at most even if it is bright, because the grades that carry money, MS67 and especially MS68, are rare finds. Those top coins trade mainly between collectors building top-ranked registry sets.

How much is a 1979-S Type 2 proof worth?

As a single cent in an ordinary proof grade, only a little more than a Type 1, and in some sales no more at all. PCGS auction data for the Type 2 Deep Cameo cent show PR66 to PR68 sales between about $6 and $33 and PR69 sales between about $13 and $45. The PCGS price guide lists PR69 at $18.

The money is in PR70 and in complete sets:

PCGS population data show far more PR69 than PR70 examples for the Type 2 cent, which is why the price jumps dozens of times between those two grades. A coin that looks perfect to the eye is usually a PR69 under a grader's loupe.

For sets, Greysheet notes that the Type 2 mint mark was introduced near the end of 1979 proof production and is scarcer than the graded population suggests, because owners are far more likely to send Type 2 coins for grading. A complete, original Type 2 set, with the clear S on all six coins, sells for many times the price of a Type 1 set. CoinValueChecker puts Type 1 sets at about $8 to $10 and Type 2 sets at about $100 to $120; check current sold listings before you price one, and see our guide to proof sets for how sets are valued.

Which other 1979 pennies are worth money?

Apart from top-grade red coins and the Type 2 proof, the list is short:

• Genuine mint errors. Off-center strikes with a readable date, clipped planchets, broadstrikes and struck-through errors occur in the billions of 1979 cents. A strike about half off center with the date showing sells for roughly $100 or more; small clips sell for roughly $5 to $15.
• Repunched mint marks on 1979-D cents. A D with traces of a second D punched slightly off sells for a few dollars to a collector of these minor varieties.
• Die cracks and "BIE" errors. A raised line between letters, often between B and E of LIBERTY, is a die crack. It is a fun find worth a few dollars, not a rarity.

No 1979 cent doubled die is listed among the major varieties in the price guides we checked. Treat any online claim of a valuable 1979 doubled die with caution and ask for an attribution from a recognized variety reference. Our guide to error coins worth money explains how to tell a real error from damage.

A worked example

Say you inherit a stack of old proof sets and find a 1979-S set in its original holder. Under a 10x loupe, the S under the date on the cent is sharp, with two open loops and clean ends. The same crisp S shows on the dime and the half dollar. That is a Type 2 set.

The cent alone, ungraded, is worth a few dollars. The set as a whole is worth noticeably more than a Type 1 set, so sell it intact, with a clear photo of a mint mark through the holder. Only if the cent looks flawless, with frosted Lincoln and clean mirror fields, is it worth considering PCGS or NGC in the hope of PR70, where a Type 2 cent has sold for $1,140 to $1,586. Most coins come back PR69, worth about $20, so the grading fee is a bet, not a sure gain.

Common mistakes

• Calling a filled S a Type 2. Type 2 is the clear S. A blobby mint mark is the common Type 1.
• Checking a business strike for Type 2. The 1979 cents in change have no mint mark or a D. Type 1 and Type 2 apply only to the 1979-S proofs.
• Splitting a Type 2 set. The premium is largest for the complete original set.
• Pricing a raw proof from the PR70 column. Most proofs grade PR68 to PR69 and are worth a few dollars to about $45.
• Opening the holder. Handling a proof with bare fingers leaves marks that never come off.
• Cleaning the coin. It destroys the mirror surface and the original red; see should you clean old coins.

How WorthPic reads 1979 penny photos

WorthPic runs on the newest and most capable AI model available, tuned for exactly this kind of identification. From photos it reads the date and mint mark, tells a proof's mirror surface from a business strike, and looks at the shape of the S to judge Type 1 against Type 2 when the close-up is sharp enough. It judges wear, color and cameo contrast and gives an honest value range in US dollars with a most likely figure. A small mint mark seen through scratched plastic can be hard to read, so it says so and asks for a close-up of the S, ideally through the clearest part of the holder. It cannot tell PR69 from PR70 in a photo. It identifies and estimates. It does not authenticate, grade or appraise.

What to photograph

• The S mint mark close up, through the holder, with light from one side so the loops show.
• The whole proof set in its holder, front and back, with all six coins visible.
• The cent's front straight on, to show cameo contrast.
• For business strikes, both sides straight on in daylight, with the date and the space under it sharp.

When to get it looked at in person

A worn 1979 or 1979-D cent needs no expert. A coin dealer can confirm a Type 2 set in seconds with a loupe, and many will at no charge. Grading by PCGS or NGC only makes sense for a proof cent that might reach PR70, or a business strike that might reach MS67 or MS68, and most do not. For later years, see our 1982 penny value guide on the switch to zinc, and for other dates, what pennies are worth money.

Sources

• PCGS CoinFacts: 1979-S 1C Type 2, Deep Cameo: price guide values for PR69 and PR70, the 1979-S mintage and auction results including the $3,819 record.
• Greysheet: 1979-S Type 2 cent, PR red Deep Cameo: the description of the blobby Type 1 and clear Type 2 S, the 15 percent estimate and Heritage PR70 results from 2024 to 2026.
• CoinValueChecker: 1979 penny value: mintages, guide values by grade and auction results for 1979, 1979-D and both proof types.