2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie
The 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie is a circulating loonie with 10.9 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2008
- Circulation mintage
- 10,851,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Jean-Luc Grondin
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie worth?
10.9 million were made, so the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie is easy to find. A circulated one is worth face value; collectors pay a little more only for uncirculated coins.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition
- Specimen or proof finish from a Mint set
- Colored versions sold in collector packs
- A genuine mint error
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie rare?
- No. 10.9 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie coins were made?
- 10,851,000 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie?
- The design is credited to Jean-Luc Grondin.
- What is the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie made of?
- Nickel plated with aureate bronze. It weighs 7.0 g and measures 26.5 mm, with an 11-sided shape.
- Is the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie still legal tender?
- Yes. Every loonie, commemoratives included, is legal tender in Canada.
Why the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie was made
Beijing hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics and the Royal Canadian Mint marked the Games with the third lucky loonie. By now the series had a following. The legend of the coin buried under the ice in Salt Lake City was well known and the Mint again sent the design into circulation so that fans could carry one while Canadian athletes competed in China. It was the first time China had hosted the Olympics, which gave the Games a huge global audience.
This turned out to be the biggest lucky loonie of them all. The Mint struck 10,851,000 for circulation, slightly more than the 2006 and 2010 coins and well above every lucky loonie that came after it. Later issues were made in far smaller numbers, so 2008 marks the high point of the series in terms of how many were made. For anyone checking change, that simply means this is the lucky loonie you are most likely to find. It is a natural starting point for a run and a good one to learn the series on before hunting for the scarcer dates.
How to recognize it
Jean-Luc Grondin designed this coin, his second lucky loonie after the 2006 Turin issue. As with the rest of the series, a loon is the main subject and the Olympic rings tie it to the Games. The lucky loonies were designed to share a family look, so a quick glance won't always tell you which one you have. The date is the deciding detail: check for 2008. The Queen's portrait on the other side is Susanna Blunt's. Comparing it side by side with the 2006 coin is a good exercise, since the two come from the same artist. The golden plating on these coins shows scuffs easily, so handle a nice one by the edges.
2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie by the numbers
In mintage terms the 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie ranks 16th lowest of 19 circulating loonies with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 2006 Lucky Loonie Loonie (10.5 million); the next more common is the 2005 Terry Fox Loonie (12.9 million).
For scale, the most common is the 1992 Confederation 125 Loonie with 23 million, about 2.1 times as many. The scarcest is the 2019 Equality Loonie with 3 million, 3.6 times fewer than this one.
It was the only circulating commemorative loonie dated 2008.
What to check on your 2008 Lucky Loonie Loonie
- Confirm the design and date: the Lucky Loonie reverse dated 2008. The 11-sided shape and gold color make a loonie easy to tell from other coins.
- Check whether it has added color. Colored versions come from collector packs, not from change. Keep them in their packaging.
- Look for even plating. Worn spots that show a different metal underneath are normal wear, not an error.
- Specimen and proof loonies from Mint sets have mirror or satin finishes that circulation coins never have.
With 10,851,000 made, the 2008 lucky loonie has the highest mintage in the series and circulated examples are face value coins. That does not make it uninteresting, just easy to get. A coin with sharp detail and no marks on the loon can bring a small premium in uncirculated condition. If yours is loose and shows wear, it came from change. If yours shows added color or sits in a card or sealed holder, it came from a collector product rather than circulation. Keep packaged pieces sealed.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 1 dollar |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 2008 |
| Circulation mintage | 10,851,000 |
| Composition | Nickel plated with aureate bronze |
| Weight | 7.0 g |
| Diameter | 26.5 mm |
| Shape | 11-sided |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Jean-Luc Grondin |
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2008 lucky loonie rare?
No. With 10,851,000 struck, it has the largest mintage of any lucky loonie. Circulated coins are face value and even uncirculated pieces only carry a small premium. It is the easiest lucky loonie to find in change.
How many lucky loonies are there?
Seven were issued for circulation: 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016. Each marked an Olympic Games and the 2008 Beijing coin is the third in that run. No new lucky loonie has gone into circulation since the Rio coin.
Mintage figures: Loonie (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.