Skip to main content

1950 Lincoln Cent Date Guide

Korean War and Lincoln cents

(sponsored)

1950 overview Mintage, history, and notes for this year's cents

Philadelphia (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
272,635,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(30 of 140)

Denver (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
334,950,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(18 of 140)

San Francisco (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
118,505,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(63 of 140)

Philadelphia (PR)

Mintage
51,383
Mintage Ranking for Type
(9 of 26)

1950 in history

1950 in history
  • Lincoln wheat cents remained the everyday one-cent piece as the United States entered the Korean War.
  • North Korean forces invaded South Korea in June; the United Nations authorized a U.S.-led defense.
  • President Truman ordered troops to Korea without a formal congressional declaration of war.
  • Senator Joseph McCarthy claimed communists had infiltrated the State Department, fueling Red Scare politics.
  • The first credit card, Diners Club, was introduced for restaurant charges in New York.
  • Peanuts by Charles Schulz debuted in newspapers.
  • India became a republic on January 26, replacing direct British rule.
  • The Schuman Declaration proposed European coal and steel cooperation, a step toward the European Union.

1950 Lincoln cent year notes

A new decade brings us a Lincoln cent issue in which finding GEM or better Philadelphia cents is difficult, but not highly scarce. The Denver and San Francisco cents are much easier to find in nice quality.

Even with lower production, the cents from Philadelphia continue on a quality down swing. Late die state specimens are common, and coins often suffer discoloration from chemical washes at the Mint. Denver Mint cents show signs of the same quality woes. San Francisco cents, however, are often found in full red GEM condition.

There are a number of nice RPMs for both the Denver and San Francisco mints and none are especially difficult to find making this year's issue a very affordable and realistically attainable complete set, making this one of the first years where this is possible.

While all years of rolls continue to decline in availability pushing prices upward, 1950 has rather affordable rolls for all three mints, with the P mint surprisingly taking the top spot for value at just over $100 for a nice roll. Original wrapped rolls are not especially easy to obtain, however nice rolls in tubes are not difficult at all.

Images/Mintage Mint issues and coin images for 1950

Philadelphia (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
272,635,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(30 of 140)

Denver (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
334,950,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(18 of 140)

San Francisco (MS)

Photo Credit: Cotgreave Collection

(click images above to see larger view)

Mintage
118,505,000
Mintage Ranking for Type
(63 of 140)

Philadelphia (PR)

Mintage
51,383
Mintage Ranking for Type
(9 of 26)
1950 in history What else was happening that year
1950 in history
  • Lincoln wheat cents remained the everyday one-cent piece as the United States entered the Korean War.
  • North Korean forces invaded South Korea in June; the United Nations authorized a U.S.-led defense.
  • President Truman ordered troops to Korea without a formal congressional declaration of war.
  • Senator Joseph McCarthy claimed communists had infiltrated the State Department, fueling Red Scare politics.
  • The first credit card, Diners Club, was introduced for restaurant charges in New York.
  • Peanuts by Charles Schulz debuted in newspapers.
  • India became a republic on January 26, replacing direct British rule.
  • The Schuman Declaration proposed European coal and steel cooperation, a step toward the European Union.
1950 cent notes Collector notes for this year's Lincoln cents

A new decade brings us a Lincoln cent issue in which finding GEM or better Philadelphia cents is difficult, but not highly scarce. The Denver and San Francisco cents are much easier to find in nice quality.

Even with lower production, the cents from Philadelphia continue on a quality down swing. Late die state specimens are common, and coins often suffer discoloration from chemical washes at the Mint. Denver Mint cents show signs of the same quality woes. San Francisco cents, however, are often found in full red GEM condition.

There are a number of nice RPMs for both the Denver and San Francisco mints and none are especially difficult to find making this year's issue a very affordable and realistically attainable complete set, making this one of the first years where this is possible.

While all years of rolls continue to decline in availability pushing prices upward, 1950 has rather affordable rolls for all three mints, with the P mint surprisingly taking the top spot for value at just over $100 for a nice roll. Original wrapped rolls are not especially easy to obtain, however nice rolls in tubes are not difficult at all.

Design types Obverse and reverse engravings in use for 1950

Obverse design types (ODT)

  • Flat serif G obverse
    Flat serif G obverse — ODT09 · 1922–1929 · business · 1931–1933 · business · 1935–1955 · business · 1936–1942 · proof · 1950–1955 · proof

Reverse design types (RDT)

See the design types reference. Design types identify engraved designs; when differing designs create collectible alternatives within a year, see Lincoln cent design varieties.

Mint mark types Punch styles used on 1950 Lincoln cents

See the mint mark types reference.

Typical values Series price guide for regular-issue 1950 cents

1950 Lincoln cents from the CopperCoins series price guide (August/September 2026 edition) — approximate values only, not offers to buy or sell. Business strikes show separate BN, RB, and RD lines where priced.

Business strike

Issue G4 VG8 F12 VF20 EF40 AU50
1950-P BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-P RB
1950-P RD
1950-D BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-D RB
1950-D RD
1950-S BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-S RB
1950-S RD
Issue G4 VG8 F12 VF20 EF40 AU50
1950-P BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-P RB
1950-P RD
1950-D BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-D RB
1950-D RD
1950-S BN 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.10 0.10
1950-S RB
1950-S RD

Proof

Issue PR60 PR61 PR62
1950-P BN 20.50 19.25 20.50
1950-P RB 28 24
1950-P RD 32 30
1950-P CAM 42
1950-P DCAM
Issue PR60 PR61 PR62
1950-P BN 20.50 19.25 20.50
1950-P RB 28 24
1950-P RD 32 30
1950-P CAM 42
1950-P DCAM
Die varieties in the catalog Attributed 1950 dies by mint and variety type

Our attribution catalog for 1950—doubled dies, repunched mint marks, and related varieties documented by die number. This is specialist research beyond regular issue Lincoln cents.

Search all 1950 dies Variety value guide for 1950

Catalogued dies for 1950

Number of assigned dies in the CopperCoins catalog, by mint and variety type. Click a count to search that group.

Mint DO Doubled Die Obverse DR Doubled Die Reverse MM Repunched Mint Mark Total
Philadelphia (P) 5 2 N/A 7
Denver (D) 5 0 40 45
San Francisco (S) 0 0 47 47
All mints 10 2 87 99
Variety plate coin videos Roll-reveal videos that sourced plate coins for 1950 dies

Videos on our YouTube channel that show when the plate coins for these dies were found in CopperCoins roll reveal videos.

See all 37 videos

(sponsored)