1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar
Circulation strike struck at the Denver Mint · 302,097,424 made
- Mintage
- 302,097,424
- Metal
- Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel
- Weight
- 11.34 g
- Diameter
- 30.61 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar worth?
Worn examples are worth face value and can be spent. Keep it only if it looks uncirculated or shows a known variety.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar rare?
- No. With 302 million made, it's one of the most common Kennedy Half Dollars.
- Is the 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar silver?
- No. It's copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel. Halves dated 1964 and earlier are 90% silver. Kennedy halves from 1965 to 1970 are 40% silver.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1971 Kennedy Half Dollar?
- On the obverse, below Kennedy's portrait and above the date. On this coin the mark is D, for Denver.
- Which Denver dates near 1971 are scarcer?
- The 1970-D at 2,150,000, the 1974-D at 79,066,300, the 1973-D at 83,171,400, plus 4 more. So the 1971-D is one of the easier dates of its stretch.
- How many 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar coins were made?
- 302,097,424.
What to check on your 1971-D
- Make sure the mint mark really is a D. A worn or filled mark can be misread. It's what separates your coin from the 1971 (155 million made).
- Proof or circulation strike? A proof has mirror-like fields and frosted design details and was sold to collectors, not released in change. The 1971-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof (3,220,733 made) is the one to compare with.
- A face that's fully copper colored could be a missing clad layer error. Patchy discoloration is usually damage.
- Judge the grade under good light. Check the hair above Kennedy's ear and the center of the eagle on the reverse.
With 302 million made, the 1971-D still turns up in everyday change. Keep yours only if it looks uncirculated or shows a variety; otherwise it's worth face value.
The story of the 1971-D
Denver ramped up hard in 1971: 302,097,424 coins, about 141 times the 1970 run. In 1972 the figure was 142 million.
1971 came to 155 million, so neither mint's 1971 coin is much scarcer than the other.
Of the 58 Kennedy Half Dollars Denver struck between 1964 and 2025, none was made in bigger numbers. The scarcest Denver issue is the 2008-D at 1,700,000. No Kennedy Half Dollar of the 1970s had a bigger run.
It also marks a change of metal: 1971 is the first year of the Kennedy Half Dollar in copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel, which lasted until 2025.
Copper-nickel clad and the bicentennial reverse (1971 to 1976)
Silver was dropped in 1971 and the half took the same copper-nickel clad composition as the dime and quarter, weighing 11.34 grams. Philadelphia returned to half dollar production that year. Denver struck more than 302 million in 1971. A 1974-D doubled die obverse shows clear doubling in IN GOD WE TRUST.
No halves are dated 1975. Coins struck in 1975 and 1976 carry the dual date 1776-1976 with Seth G. Huntington's view of Independence Hall on the reverse. San Francisco made 40 percent silver versions for collector sets in addition to clad proofs. Bicentennial halves were struck in enormous numbers, more than 520 million for circulation, so they remain common. Collectors seek the silver versions and sharp uncirculated clad coins.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1971
The Eisenhower dollar was introduced and the Kennedy half dollar changed to copper-nickel clad.
How to recognize it
Gilroy Roberts' portrait shows John F. Kennedy facing left with LIBERTY above, IN GOD WE TRUST below and the date at the bottom. The reverse, by Frank Gasparro, is based on the Presidential seal: an eagle holding arrows and an olive branch surrounded by a ring of 50 stars. The mint mark was on the reverse in 1964 and has been below Kennedy's neck since 1968.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Kennedy Half Dollar (1964–present) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1971 |
| Mint | Denver Mint |
| Mint mark | "D" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 302,097,424 |
| Face value | 50¢ |
| Composition | Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel |
| Weight | 11.34 grams |
| Diameter | 30.61 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Designer | Gilroy Roberts (obverse); Frank Gasparro (reverse) |
Other 1971 Kennedy Half Dollar issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 Kennedy Half Dollar | 155,164,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar | 302,097,424 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1971-S Kennedy Half Dollar Proof | 3,220,733 | Proof | – |
Mintage: Kennedy half dollar mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.