How to Spot Penny Rim Errors + How Much They’re Worth

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Learn which penny errors are most valuable with our complete guide

Co-authored by Max Hockley and Hunter Rising

Last Updated: July 30, 2026 Fact Checked

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Penny Rim Errors

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Mint Errors vs. Rim Damage

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More Penny Errors

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Additional Resources

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Video

Now that pennies have stopped being produced, you might wonder if any you have at home are worth money. Rim errors on pennies include any damage or incorrect appearances around the edge of the coin from the minting process, and there are a few common errors to keep your eyes out for. We’ll walk you through which errors are valuable and how to tell them apart from normal wear and tear. wikiHow also spoke with numismatic experts about other penny errors you might encounter, and how to spot them!

Penny Rim Errors Diagram

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An illustration of different penny rim errors, including double rims, broadstrikes, and die cuds.

Some of the most common rim errors on pennies include double rims, finned rims, off-center errors, and the “L” in “Liberty” being printed along the rim. The value of a penny rim error depends on the size of the error and the coin’s condition.

Section 1 of 4:

Common Penny Rim Errors

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“L” on rim When some pennies are slightly misaligned during minting, the “L” in the word “Liberty” gets pressed onto the rim instead of on the face. These penny rim errors are some of the most valuable because there are not many still in circulation.
- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1946 Wheat Penny with no mint mark: $1,500 USD^{[1]
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  - 1959 D Lincoln Penny L on Rim: $1,000 USD^{[2]
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Meet the wikiHow Experts

Max Hockley is a numismatics and precious metals expert who runs the Silverpicker YouTube channel about collecting coins.

Ryan Quinlan is a coin collector who created the QuinsCoins YouTube channel garnering over 28 million views.

Dean Kinzer is a numismatics expert who founded the rare ancient coin dealership Kinzer Coins.
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Double rims Double rim pennies have 2 distinct rings along the edge of the coin, and they’re caused when the dies used to make them are misaligned. Double rims usually look consistent around the entire edge of the penny.^{[3]
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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1982 No Mint Mark Double Rim: $150 USD^{[4]
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  - 1972 P Doubled Rim: $50 USD^{[5]
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Finned rims Finned rims on pennies have a small raised area taller than the normal rim. Finned rims are caused when the coin is pressed too hard during minting, and some of the metal squeezes between the die and the collar. Most finned rims are in one small area, but they may wrap around the entire coin.^{[6]
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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1919 S Wheat Penny with Finned Rim: $47 USD^{[7]
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Broadstrike errors Broadstrikes occur when a penny is struck without a retaining collar, making the rim and diameter wider than a normal coin. Broadstrikes can either be centered or uncentered depending on the die’s position.^{[8]
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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1999 Broadstrike Penny: $96 USD^{[9]
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  - 1996 Broadstrike Penny: $80 USD^{[10]
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Off-center errors Numismatics and precious metals expert Max Hockley notes that off-center errors happen when a coin is punched off-center, leaving a portion of the coin blank. He notes this can happen on any coin.^{[11]
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Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - No Date 1C Indian Penny 20% Off Center: $1,150 USD^{[12]
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  - 1924 Lincoln Wheat Coin 1C Off Center: $348 USD^{[13]
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  - 2003 NGC Off Center Penny: $230 USD^{[14]
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Die cuds Die cuds occur when a die breaks and leaves odd blank shapes near the rim on the coin’s face. Cud errors typically have one side of the coin with a flat raised area while the other side has a recessed area.^{[15]
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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1989 P Lincoln Penny with Die Cud: $380 USD^{[16]
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  - 1977 Lincoln Penny with Large Die Cud: $187 USD^{[17]
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Rim burrs Rim burrs are small rough spots left along the rim of a coin after part of the die breaks or gets damaged. Rim burrs tend to have irregular shapes and patterns on the surface
- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1919 Penny with Rim Burr: $35 USD^{[18]
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  - 1977 D Lincoln Penny with Rim Burr: $30 USD^{[19]
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Rim clips^{[20]
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Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

Expert Interview} A rim clip, or clipped planchet, is when a portion of the coin’s rim is clipped off during the minting process, which can create a straight or curved missing section along the edge. Rim clips also usually have distorted designs by the clipped section, which prove that the error happened when the coin was made instead of after.^{[21]
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- Notable Pennies and Values:
  - 1909 S Penny with Rim Clip: $1,250 USD^{[22]
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  - 1929 D Lincoln Wheat Penny with Rim Clip: $32 USD^{[23]
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Section 2 of 4:

How to Tell Mint Errors from Rim Damage

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Dents, dings, and flat edges are typically caused by normal damage. While you may be excited if you see marks and dings along the rim of a penny, most times these are only caused after they’ve been minted. Mint errors will typically have more noticeable issues on the coin’s faces as well, so any small damage you see is most likely just regular wear and tear.^{[24]
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- Hockley notes that if it looks like your penny has scratch marks or if it's uneven, then it was probably scraped against something or machined in some way after the fact and not a genuine error.^{[25]
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EXPERT TIP

Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert
Max Hockley is a numismatics expert based in New York City. With over 15 years of experience collecting coins, he is the creator of the Silverpicker YouTube channel, where he informs, educates, and entertains people about numismatics, precious metals stacking, and personal finance. His channel has over 238K subscribers on YouTube. Max has been creating content on YouTube since 2011, and frequently teaches his subscribers about making money from buying precious metals and coins. He received a BA in Philosophy and Chinese and an MBA from Emory University.

Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

Errors only occur during the manufacturing process. A coin error is anything that damages or alters the coin while it’s being minted. If damage occurred after the coin was made, then it doesn’t add any value.
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Spooned edges and obscured letters are signs of wear. If you notice that a penny’s edges are really raised up or even covering some of the letters, it’s typically not a minting error. When coins are left in a dryer or go through a lot of centrifugal force, the edges may become raised and bend upward.^{[26]
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- To tell minting errors and damage apart, Hockley recommends Googling penny rim errors or visiting a coin store. This allows you to compare what real errors look like to the pennies you have in your collection.^{[27]
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Section 3 of 4:

Other Common Penny Mint Errors

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Mules Numismatics expert Dean Kinzer explains that mule errors occur when a coin is minted with 2 dies that don’t match.^{[28]
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Dean Kinzer
Numismatics Expert

Expert Interview} For example, the die for a penny may be used for the front, but the back has the face of a dime, explains Hockley.^{[29]
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Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

Expert Interview} Mule errors are some of the rarest mint errors, so they can be worth a lot of money.
- Hockley notes that the name comes from the mule, which is a hybrid between a horse and a donkey. “So, two different types of coins together make a mule error,” he explains.^{[30]
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Double die Hockley notes that double die errors happen when the coin shifts when it’s stamped, so it creates a double-vision or blurred view on the words, dates, or designs.^{[31]
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Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

Expert Interview} Coin collector Ryan Quinlan notes that the 1955 double-die wheat penny is one of the most prominent examples of the error because you can clearly see the doubled design.^{[32]
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Ryan Quinlan
Coin Collector

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- The 1955 double die wheat penny has recently sold for almost $20,000 USD, making it one of the most valuable penny errors.^{[33]
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Die breaks Die breaks happen when a piece of the die breaks or snaps off during the minting process. Die breaks involving the rim are called cuds, but they can also occur on the face of a coin. Many die breaks look like small and narrow cracks, but they may also look like blank spots on the middle of the coin.^{[34]
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- Die breaks are sometimes called “die chips.”
A brockage error occurs when a coin gets stuck in a die and presses a mirror image of the face onto the next coin. Brockages also are more recessed rather than having raised areas.^{[35]
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Wrong planchets The planchet is the name of the blank disc that the coin is stamped onto, explains Hockley. And sometimes, the wrong planchet is used to make a penny. For example, he says you might have a dime design stamped onto a penny.^{[36]
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Max Hockley
Numismatics and Precious Metals Expert

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- If the wrong planchet is loaded into the machine, a coin may get minted onto a different material. For example, a penny pressed onto a dime planchet looks silver instead of the standard copper color.^{[37]
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- Hockley notes that this error can occur in different types of coins. For instance, a nickel design might get stamped onto a quarter.^{[38]
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- There are also blank planchets that are counted as errors, Hockley notes, which are where the coin never got stamped at all.^{[39]
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Section 4 of 4:

Additional Resources for Coin Collections

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Check these wikiHow pages to learn more about valuable coins. If you’re trying to find more coins in your collection that are worth money, there are a lot of errors and rare finds to look out for. Dive deeper into our other pages about specific coins and how much they’re worth so you can easily spot valuable ones: