1944 Wheat Penny Value Guide

The 1944 Wheat Penny Value

1944 wheat pennies remain consistent in value, with the value being minimal in most cases. The 1944-D/S and 1944-D/D die varieties are far more valuable, however.

An N/A for a value below indicates no publicly known examples of that version of the 1944 wheat penny with that grade, or no value information (or not enough) exists for it yet.

Additionally, all values are conservative estimates based on research. Please note all values are subject to change due to the market or circumstances unaccounted for during research and publication. We always recommend doing further research or consulting with a professional.

Melt Value

The 1944 wheat penny’s melt value is approximately negligible. The melt value will fluctuate with the market.

Circulation Strike Value Chart – Brown Coins (BN)

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1944 Wheat Penny	1944-D Wheat Penny	1944-S Wheat Penny	1944-D/S Wheat Penny	1944-D/D Wheat Penny
Good – G BN	$0.05	$0.05	$0.05	$35	N/A
Very Good – VG BN	$0.05	$0.05	$0.05	$51	N/A
Fine – F BN	$0.05	$0.05	$0.05	$67	N/A
Very Fine – VF BN	$0.10	$0.10	$0.10	$115	N/A
Extra Fine – XF BN	$0.15	$0.15	$0.15	$159	$36
About Uncirculated – AU BN	$0.25-$0.35	$0.25-$0.35	$0.25-$0.35	$216-$298	$50-$63
Mint State – MS BN	$0.80-$34 (67)	$0.80-$33 (67)	$0.80-$37 (67)	$319-$634 (65)	$70-$266 (66)

Circulation Strike Value Chart – Red-Brown Coins (RB)

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1944 Wheat Penny	1944-D Wheat Penny	1944-S Wheat Penny	1944-D/S Wheat Penny	1944-D/D Wheat Penny
MS 60 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 61 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	$367	N/A
MS 62 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	$400	N/A
MS 63 RB	$2	$2	$2	$462	$82
MS 64 RB	$3	$5	$3	$587	$130
MS 65 RB	$8	$9	$8	$1,000	$170
MS 66 RB	$16	$16	$20	$1,600	$280
MS 67 RB	$58	$50	$56	N/A	N/A
MS 68 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 69 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 70 RB	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Circulation Strike Value Chart – Red Coins (RD)

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1944 Wheat Penny	1944-D Wheat Penny	1944-S Wheat Penny	1944-D/S Wheat Penny	1944-D/D Wheat Penny
MS 60 RD	$4	N/A	$2	N/A	N/A
MS 61 RD	$5	N/A	$3	$450	N/A
MS 62 RD	$6	$4	$5	$487	N/A
MS 63 RD	$8	$9	$8	$600	$92
MS 64 RD	$12	$14	$12	$700	$159
MS 65 RD	$16	$21	$19	$1,600	$200
MS 66 RD	$36	$37	$30	$2,800	$302
MS 67 RD	$225	$237	$122	$30,000	$1,150
MS 68 RD	$9,700	$6,200	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 69 RD	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 70 RD	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

What Makes A 1944 Wheat Penny Valuable?

Several factors contribute to the value of a 1944 wheat penny (also known as a 1944 Lincoln wheat cent). These include grading, whether they’re die varieties, have a special designation, or are an error coin.

Let’s start with grading.

Grading

Higher grades do make 1944 wheat pennies more valuable. However, you will need a higher grade paired with a die variety or a red color special designation for significant values. You can find more information on the former in the “Die Varieties” section below and the latter in the “Special Designations” section below.

Rarity

The Mint minted 1944 wheat pennies approximately 2,148,738,000 times across all of its versions. Please see the following list for the breakdown for each version:

• 1944: 1,435,400,000 minted in Philadelphia^1,2
• 1944-D: 430,578,000 minted in Denver^3,4
• 1944-D/S: Part of Denver mintage
• 1944-D/D: Part of Denver mintage
• 1944-S: 282,760,000 minted in San Francisco^5,6

1944 wheat pennies are not rare due to this extremely high mintage. 

However, this higher minting amount also means you’re more likely to locate a 1944 Lincoln wheat cent of the grade and kind you want.

Mint Marks

The U.S. Mint minted the 1944 wheat penny in Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco. 

All three are comparable in value except the highest Mint-State grades for the red version (more on this in the “Special Designations” section below), in which the Philadelphia version pulls away.

Strike Types

The 1944 wheat penny only has a circulation-strike type.^28,29 The fact that it’s a circulation strike does not make it more valuable.

Design Variations

The 1944 Lincoln wheat penny has no design variations (such as the 2009 Lincoln penny’s four design variations).

Special Designations

1944 wheat pennies, like all pennies, feature a range of colors between red and brown.^30-32 For the purposes of coin collecting, this range has been simplified to red (RD), red-brown (RB), and brown (BN).

All pennies start as red but lose this luster over time as they circulate. Circulation naturally causes a coin’s grade to decrease as well, meaning you won’t find a red or red-brown penny outside of a Mint-State grade.

Of the three, red 1944 wheat pennies are the most valuable, followed by red-brown, and finally brown.

Error Coins 

The 1944 wheat penny has a very valuable error coin type made from the previous year’s zinc-coated steel.^33-38 This is a transitional error coin since the error happened due to the transition from one composition (what a coin’s made of) to another. The Mint left some of the planchets (plain metal disks the coins are made from) in production, resulting in 1944 steel pennies.

Even the lowest About-Uncirculated grades are worth over $30,000, making this error coin far more valuable than the 1944 wheat penny’s non-error versions. They range in value from $35,000 and below to $487,000 and up.

Die Varieties

The 1944 Lincoln penny has two notable die varieties. 

The first is the 1944-D/S wheat penny, featuring a “D” mint mark over an “S” mint mark. This variety is also called the 1944-D Over S wheat penny.^10,11 

The second is the 1944-D/D wheat penny, featuring a “D” mint mark over another “D” mint mark. This variety is also called the 1944-D Over D wheat penny.^13,14

Of the two die varieties, the D/S penny is more valuable. However, the D/D penny is more valuable than the regular 1944, 1944-D, and 1944-S pennies.

Composition

The 1944 wheat cent is copper, which does not make it valuable. Of course, the price of copper fluctuates with the market. 

How Do You Know If You Have A Valuable 1944 Wheat Penny?

The best way to know if you have a valuable 1944 wheat penny (or any coin) and to get that value out of it is to have it professionally certified.

However, you can look for many elements to get you started in determining what coin you have.

Let’s start with grading.

Grading

Look for fewer signs of wear and tear to start determining if you have a 1944 wheat penny with a higher grade. 

Color is also especially important to check with pennies, as a penny of a redder luster typically signifies a coin that has experienced less circulation. 

Mint Marks

You can find a 1944 wheat penny’s mint mark underneath the year on its obverse side (the front).^1-6

A Philadelphia coin will have no mint mark.^1,2

A Denver coin will have a “D” mint mark.^3,4

A San Francisco coin will have an “S” mint mark.^5,6

Strike Types

1944 Lincoln penny only have a circulation-strike type. This means you don’t have to spend time trying to determine what strike type you have. 

Design Variations

The 1944 Lincoln penny has no design variations. 

Special Designations

Professionally, a penny must have a certain amount of its original red color to qualify for the red, red-brown, or brown special designation.^30-32 Third-party coin-grading services express this amount as a percentage. 

Interestingly, the exact color percentages differ across those grading services, such as the Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC) and the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS). 

However, generally, a coin must have almost all of its original red color remaining to qualify as red, have most or some remaining to qualify as red-brown, and only a little bit remaining to qualify as brown.

You can likely determine this to some degree with your own eyes. Red coins will look vastly different from brown coins, for example.

However, we highly recommend having a professional make this determination for you, as it can be challenging to figure out if a coin falls into the red-brown or red category, for example.

Error Coins

Unfortunately, the 1944 steel penny error coins are prone to counterfeiting.^39,40 So, here are some steps you can take to determine if you have a real one:

• See if the penny responds to a magnet since steel is magnetic
• Double-check the date to make sure it says 1944 and not 1943
• Double-check the date again to make sure it doesn’t show any signs of tampering
• Weigh the coin (steel pennies weigh 2.70 grams (0.0952397 ounces), and copper pennies weigh 3.11 grams (0.109702 ounces))
• Check the coin’s certification
• If the coin doesn’t have a certification, get it certified or ask the seller to certify it

You should take the last step no matter what. Remember that prices that seem too good to be true likely are, and you should always involve a professional in determining what kind of coin you or a seller have.

Die Varieties

To determine if you have the 1944-D/S or 1944-D/D wheat pennies, look on the coin’s obverse side under the year.^10,13

In either case, you should see a “D” mint mark as you would on a standard 1944-D wheat penny. However, beneath that “D,” you should see a faint mint mark, slightly offset. 

An “S” indicates you have the 1944-D/S variety, while a “D” indicates you have the 1944-D/D variety.

Additional Information About The 1944 Wheat Penny

History

The history of 1944 Lincoln wheat cents is only notable for two reasons. 

The first was that this was the first year the Mint minted over 1 billion coins for any single coin.

The second was that the 1944 wheat cents replaced the 1943 steel pennies minted the year prior.

The Mint had to switch from copper to zinc-coated steel pennies that year because the U.S. needed copper for World War II.

However, the zinc-coated steel pennies presented several problems. In short, these pennies were wearing down due to moisture, and people were mistaking them for dimes.

The U.S. Mint switched to pennies made from copper and brass shell casings in 1944.

^{Sources: 1,41}

The Coin’s Obverse Side

The obverse side of the 1944 wheat penny showcases Abraham Lincoln’s profile. It fills most of that side of the coin. “In God We Trust” curves around above his head just below the rim. The year, “1944” sits to his right, and “Liberty” sits to his left.

1944 wheat pennies minted in Denver have a “D” below the year.

1944 wheat pennies minted in San Francisco have an “S” below the year.

^{Sources: 1-6}

The Coin’s Reverse Side

The reverse side of the 1944 wheat penny features the words “One Cent” and “United States Of America” in the center. Two pieces of wheat curve around these words, contouring the rim. The words “E Pluribus Unum” fill the remaining space. They mean “Out of many, one,” which is the motto of the United States Of America.

^{Sources: 1-2}