1979 Roosevelt Dime
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 315,440,000 made
- Mintage
- 315,440,000
- Metal
- Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel
- Weight
- 2.268 g
- Diameter
- 17.91 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 1979 Roosevelt Dime worth?
A worn 1979 is a spender: face value. A bright uncirculated one, or one with a known error, is worth setting aside.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- Full torch bands (FT)
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1979 Roosevelt Dime rare?
- No. 315 million were made, a typical run for the series. Condition and varieties decide its value, not the date.
- Is the 1979 Roosevelt Dime silver?
- No. It's copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel. Dimes dated 1964 and earlier are 90% silver.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1979 Roosevelt Dime?
- On the obverse, just above the date. "P" appears from 1980. No mint mark means Philadelphia.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1979 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no Philadelphia issue had a smaller mintage than the 1979.
- How many 1979 Roosevelt Dime coins were made?
- 315,440,000.
What to check on your 1979
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- 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 horizontal bands on the torch on the reverse. "Full Bands" (FB) coins, where the bands are complete and separated, carry big premiums. On the obverse look at Roosevelt's hair above the ear.
With 315 million made, the 1979 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 1979
Philadelphia made 315,440,000 in 1979, down from 664 million in 1978. The next year it made 735 million (1980-P).
1979-D came to 391 million, so neither mint's 1979 coin is much scarcer than the other.
Philadelphia struck the Roosevelt Dime in 80 issues between 1946 and 2025. By mintage this one lands in the scarcer half, while the key for that mint is the 1955 (12,450,181). Within the 1970s it's 4th smallest of 20, between the 1975-D (314 million) and the 1973 (316 million).
Mint marks move above the date (1968 to 1991)
In 1968 the mint mark moved to the obverse just above the date. San Francisco began striking proof dimes for collectors the same year. A few proof dies left the Mint without the S, creating the rare no-S proofs dated 1968, 1970, 1975 and 1983. The 1975 is one of the great modern rarities with only two examples known. Proof sets of 1979 and 1981 show two mint mark styles: a filled Type 1 S and a clearer Type 2 S that is scarcer.
Philadelphia added a P mint mark to the dime in 1980. Two years later a Philadelphia die missing its P reached circulation. The 1982 no-P dime became one of the most popular modern errors. Business strike mintages stayed in the hundreds of millions per mint and passed one billion at Philadelphia in 1988. Dimes from these years turn up in change constantly. Only well-struck uncirculated pieces, proof varieties and errors draw real collector interest.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1979
The small Susan B. Anthony dollar replaced the Eisenhower dollar. It was too easily confused with the quarter and saw little use.
How to recognize it
Franklin Roosevelt faces left with LIBERTY in front of him, IN GOD WE TRUST below his chin and the date at the lower right. The designer's initials JS sit below the neck. The reverse shows a torch flanked by an olive branch and an oak branch, with E PLURIBUS UNUM across the field. The mint mark was to the left of the torch base until 1964 and has been above the date since 1968.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Roosevelt Dime (1946–present) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1979 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 315,440,000 |
| Face value | 10¢ |
| Composition | Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel |
| Weight | 2.268 grams |
| Diameter | 17.91 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Designer | John R. Sinnock |
Other 1979 Roosevelt Dime issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 Roosevelt Dime | 315,440,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1979-D Roosevelt Dime | 390,921,184 | Circulation strike | – |
Mintage: Roosevelt dime 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.