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1909-S Indian Head penny value guide -- the final key date of the series, real mintage, and grade-by-grade prices.
Condition drives the price — full breakdown below.
309,000 struck — against the other key dates in the Indian Head Penny series.
Bars are scaled to keep the smallest mintages visible; the exact figure is printed on every row. Mintage is coins struck, not coins surviving — melting and circulation wear thin those numbers further.
The final-year key date of the entire series -- lowest mintage San Francisco Indian Head cent at just 309,000, and the last Indian Head cent struck before the Lincoln cent replaced it later that same year.
Genuinely scarcer by mintage than the more famous 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent that succeeded it (which had 484,000 struck) -- but carries less mainstream name recognition, so it's sometimes underpriced relative to its actual rarity.
Live listings matching the 1909-S Indian Head Penny
Other dates and varieties in this series
What to check before you pay, specific to this date and its 309,000-coin mintage.
The same date runs from about $376 worn to $1,599 at the top of the scale — a 4× spread. Nearly all of that gap is condition, not the date on the coin, so work out where an example sits on the table above before deciding whether its asking price is fair.
Every figure on this page depends on that S. The same year from another mint is a far more common coin, which is exactly why added and altered mint marks are the usual way this date gets faked. Ask for a close-up of the mark itself — a listing title claiming it is not evidence.
A PCGS or NGC holder settles authenticity and grade in one go, which is most of what you're actually paying for at this level. The premium it adds is small next to the cost of being wrong about either.
Every Indian Head Penny listed here is priced by an individual seller, so the same coin in the same grade can differ by a wide margin on any given day. Sort by price, check Metal Points and order history for a sense of the seller's record, and message them if the photos don't show enough to grade confidently.
About the 1909-S Indian Head Penny
Value depends heavily on condition. A well-worn example brings closer to $376, while an uncirculated one can reach $1,599 or more.
The final-year key date of the entire series -- lowest mintage San Francisco Indian Head cent at just 309,000, and the last Indian Head cent struck before the Lincoln cent replaced it later that same year.
For anything you believe is a key date or an error, professional grading protects both buyer and seller by settling condition and authenticity before money changes hands.
The rest of the series, with what each is worth at the top of the grade scale.
List it free on PeerMetals — flat 2.75% seller fee, zero listing fees, 1–3 day payouts.
