New US Quarters: What Is Circulating Now and What Comes Next
The new US quarters are the five 2026 Semiquincentennial designs, issued one at a time from January to October 2026 for the nation's 250th anniversary. The fifth and last, the Gettysburg Address quarter, went to the Federal Reserve Banks on 19 October 2026. Youth sports quarters follow from 2027 to 2030, and their designs are not final yet.
The 2026 coins replaced the American Women Quarters, which ran for four years and 20 designs and ended in October 2025. If you have found an unfamiliar quarter in your change this year, it is almost certainly one of the five below.
The new US quarters of 2026
The Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, Public Law 116-330, let the Treasury issue quarters in 2026 with up to five designs emblematic of the semiquincentennial. One of them had to be emblematic of a woman's or women's contribution to the birth of the nation, or of another monumental moment in American history.
The Mint used all five. Each design has its own obverse as well as its own reverse, and every one carries the dual date 1776 and 2026. The Mint's Semiquincentennial media kit calls the program a one-year-only celebration.
| Order | Design | Obverse (front) | Reverse (back) | Into circulation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mayflower Compact | Two Pilgrims looking toward the New World | The Mayflower under full sail | Shipping began 5 January 2026 |
| 2 | Revolutionary War | George Washington | A Continental Army soldier at Valley Forge | Released 23 March 2026 |
| 3 | Declaration of Independence | Thomas Jefferson | The Liberty Bell ringing, crack visible | Shipping began 1 June 2026 |
| 4 | U.S. Constitution | James Madison | Independence Hall, with WE THE PEOPLE | Shipping began 10 August 2026 |
| 5 | Gettysburg Address | Abraham Lincoln | Two clasped hands, with A NEW NATION CONCEIVED IN LIBERTY | Released 19 October 2026 |
The Mint's Gettysburg Address release of 21 October 2026 describes that coin as the final quarter in the Semiquincentennial program, so the 2026 set is complete at five.
Who is on the new quarters
For the first time since 1932, the Mint is striking circulating quarters without George Washington on the front. Of the five 2026 designs, only the Revolutionary War quarter shows him. The others show two Pilgrims, Jefferson, Madison and Lincoln. The 2026 section of the law contains no Washington requirement, which is why the Mint could do this; the 2022 to 2025 and 2027 to 2030 sections both require him.
The Mayflower Compact quarter is the one that includes a woman: Numismatic News pointed out that it is the only one of the five that depicts a woman alongside a man. The fuller story of who has been on the quarter since 1932 is on our page on who is on the quarter.
The portraits come from several hands. Ronald D. Sanders of the Artistic Infusion Program designed the Pilgrims, Chief Engraver Joseph Menna designed and sculpted the Washington, Joel Iskowitz designed Madison and Justin Kunz designed Lincoln. The Mint's media kit lists the designer of the Jefferson obverse as unknown.
The July 4th quarters
One variety is worth looking for. The Mint struck 250,000 Declaration of Independence quarters with a special "July 4th" privy mark and no mint mark, and mixed them at random into ordinary Declaration quarters sent to banks before the Fourth of July. On 4 July 2026 it also struck 250 silver pieces of 2.5 ounces each with the same privy mark, numbered on the edge from 1 to 250, to be auctioned at a date not yet announced. Our post on the America 250 quarters covers all of this in more detail.
How many of each 2026 quarter exist so far
The Mint publishes running production figures for the 2026 coins. When we checked on 23 October 2026, its dataset showed these totals for Philadelphia and Denver combined: Mayflower Compact 316,400,000; Revolutionary War 202,800,000; Declaration of Independence 196,200,000; U.S. Constitution 63,400,000; Gettysburg Address 2,800,000.
The Gettysburg figure is low only because production had just started, and the others can still rise. Treat any 2026 mintage you see quoted this year as provisional. For comparison, the lowest final mintage among the 20 American Women Quarters is 118,800,000 (see the full American Women Quarters mintage table).
The end of the American Women Quarters
The 2022 to 2025 program ran exactly as the law set it out: up to five women a year, in effect "until the end of 2025." The Mint's Althea Gibson release of 14 October 2025 called her quarter "the 20th and final coin" in the program. It was released on 20 October 2025; every date in the series is on our release dates page.
Across the four years the Mint struck 8,024,800,000 American Women Quarters at Philadelphia and Denver. All 20 used Laura Gardin Fraser's right-facing Washington on the obverse. There will not be a 2026 American Women Quarter, and nothing in the law provides for one. The 2025 honorees were the last five.
New quarters 2027: the youth sports program
From 1 January 2027 the law requires quarters with reverses "emblematic of sports played by American youth," at up to five new designs a year, through the end of 2030. The obverse must keep a likeness of George Washington, designed so it can be told apart from the previous program's obverse.
The Mint's youth sports page confirms a four-year program starting in 2027. It ran a public survey on which sports to include from 22 January to 20 February 2025.
Here is what exists so far, and none of it is final. On 18 November 2025 the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee recommended a Washington obverse candidate known as GW-01. On 24 February 2026 it reviewed candidate 2027 reverses for snowboarding, golf, softball, baseball and soccer, and its letter to the Treasury Secretary lists the designs it recommended for each. The committee advises; the Secretary decides. When we checked the Mint's program page on 23 October 2026, it named no sports and showed no designs.
What happens to the quarter after 2030
The law already answers part of this. When the youth sports program ends, the obverse "shall bear a design containing a likeness of George Washington." The reverse will be chosen by the Treasury Secretary after consulting the Commission of Fine Arts and after review by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee. No post-2030 reverse has been proposed.
New quarter designs, 2021 to 2030
| Year | Program | Reverse designs | Obverse | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | General George Washington Crossing the Delaware | 1 | John Flanagan's left-facing Washington | Issued |
| 2022 to 2025 | American Women Quarters | 20 (5 a year) | Laura Gardin Fraser's right-facing Washington | Ended October 2025 |
| 2026 | Semiquincentennial | 5 | A different subject for each design | All five released |
| 2027 to 2030 | Youth sports | Up to 5 a year | Washington, design not final | 2027 designs at the recommendation stage |
| After 2030 | Not yet set | Chosen by the Secretary | Washington, required by law | Nothing proposed |
That is 26 reverse designs from 2021 to 2026, with up to 20 more possible by 2030. Our post on how many different quarters there are counts every design back to 1932.
How to get the new quarters
Change is the cheapest source. All five 2026 designs are going out through the Federal Reserve to banks and credit unions, and asking a teller for a $10 roll of quarters costs exactly $10.
The Mint also sells each design in two-roll sets and 100-coin bags at a premium. The Gettysburg Address two-roll set ($56) and bag ($63) go on sale on 13 November 2026. A quarter from change is still worth 25 cents; you are paying for coins that have not been handled.
If you are still finishing your American Women Quarters set, those coins are in the same rolls. Print the American Women Quarters checklist and keep it with your roll-searching gear.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is on the new quarters?
- The 2026 quarters show five different subjects on the front: two Pilgrims on the Mayflower Compact quarter, George Washington on the Revolutionary War quarter, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and Abraham Lincoln. Only one of the five shows Washington.
- Are there new quarters in 2027?
- Yes. The law requires youth sports quarters from 2027 to 2030, up to five designs a year. The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee has recommended 2027 designs for snowboarding, golf, softball, baseball and soccer, but the Treasury had not announced final designs when we checked.
- Are the new 2026 quarters worth more than face value?
- A 2026 quarter from circulation is worth 25 cents. Hundreds of millions of the earlier designs have been struck. The exception to watch for is the Declaration of Independence quarter with the July 4th privy mark, of which only 250,000 were made, though no reliable sale prices have been published.
- Will there be any more American Women Quarters?
- No. The law ran the program until the end of 2025, and the Mint called the Althea Gibson quarter, released on 20 October 2025, the 20th and final coin. The 2026 quarters belong to a separate Semiquincentennial program.
- Will George Washington come back on the quarter?
- Yes. The youth sports quarters of 2027 to 2030 must carry a likeness of Washington on the obverse, and the law also requires Washington on the obverse after that program ends. Only the 2026 quarters were free to use other subjects.
Sources
- U.S. Mint, Semiquincentennial media kit
- U.S. Mint, Release of the Gettysburg Address quarter (21 October 2026)
- U.S. Mint, Limited-edition Fourth of July Declaration of Independence quarters (23 June 2026)
- U.S. Mint, Semiquincentennial circulating coins production dataset (CSV)
- U.S. Mint, Althea Gibson rolls and bags (14 October 2025)
- Public Law 116-330, Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020
- U.S. Mint, Youth Sports coin program page
- U.S. Mint, An invitation to all Americans to celebrate youth sports (22 January 2025)
- CCAC letter on 2027 youth sports quarter reverses (24 February 2026)
- Numismatic News, Surprises in U.S. Mint's announced 2026 circulating coinage
Last verified: October 2026. Mintage figures are final.