The annual proof set is usually the most predictable product on the U.S. Mint calendar. The 2026 Proof Set is not. The Mint opened orders on October 6 at noon Eastern, priced at $107.00, and of the 10 San Francisco proofs inside, five are new quarter designs, two are one year redesigns that are not scheduled to return, and the remaining three each carry the founding era in their own way.
Listed on the Mint’s product page as the Semiquincentennial Proof Set 2026 (item 26RG), it is the most direct route to the whole of this year’s anniversary coinage in one purchase, in proof, with the S mintmark on every piece. Sales are capped at 480,000 sets, with no limit per household.
Five quarters, five founding moments
The five Semiquincentennial quarters share one lens of the set’s two-lens package, and each pairs a figure on the obverse with a moment on the reverse. Every obverse carries the dual date 1776 ~ 2026.
The Mayflower Compact quarter opens the sequence with two Pilgrims embracing on the obverse and the Mayflower under full sail on the reverse, a nod to the 1620 shipboard agreement the Mint describes as a forerunner of the nation’s founding documents. George Washington leads the Revolutionary War quarter, backed by a Continental Army soldier at Valley Forge. Thomas Jefferson fronts the Declaration of Independence quarter, whose reverse turns to the Liberty Bell.
James Madison, long remembered as the Father of the Constitution, takes the obverse of the U.S. Constitution quarter, paired with Independence Hall and the words WE THE PEOPLE. The Gettysburg Address quarter closes the run with Abraham Lincoln and a reverse of two clasped hands beneath A NEW NATION CONCEIVED IN LIBERTY, drawn from the speech’s opening sentence.
Laid out in order, the five read as a compressed history of the idea of self-government, from an agreement signed aboard a ship in 1620 to a dedication spoken on a battlefield in 1863.
Two coins at Valley Forge
The Native American $1 coin is the quiet surprise of the 2026 Proof Set. Its reverse shows Polly Cooper of the Oneida Nation holding a basket as she shares the Oneidas’ gift of corn with George Washington, who answers with his hat in hand. The inscriptions POLLY COOPER and ONEIDA ALLIES AT VALLEY FORGE name both the woman and the alliance, and the obverse keeps the familiar portrait of Sacagawea carrying her infant son, Jean-Baptiste.
Set beside the Revolutionary War quarter, the dollar completes a picture neither coin draws alone. The quarter shows the Continental soldier enduring the winter of 1777 to 1778; the dollar shows the help that reached the camp from the Oneida, allies of the Continental cause. Two coins in the same set, looking at the same encampment from two directions, is the kind of pairing that rewards the collector who reads the reverses rather than just filing them.
The one year coins: Enduring Liberty half dollar and Emerging Liberty dime
Two denominations break with tradition for 2026 only. The Enduring Liberty half dollar sets aside John F. Kennedy and the presidential coat of arms in favour of a new design built around the Statue of Liberty. The Emerging Liberty dime returns Liberty to the obverse of the dime for the first time since 1945. The Mint notes that Liberty, or her Phrygian cap, appeared on every dime struck before the Roosevelt design arrived in 1946, which makes this year’s dime less a novelty than a brief homecoming.
In a set designed to be put away for decades, these are the two coins that will need the most explaining in 2076.
A cent made only for collectors
The Lincoln cent and Jefferson nickel keep their standard designs but carry the dual date 1776 ~ 2026. The cent carries an extra layer of meaning. The Mint struck its final circulating one-cent coins in the fall of 2025, ending more than 230 years of continuous production for everyday commerce, and has said it will continue to strike collector cents for its annual products, including the Proof Set, Silver Proof Set and Uncirculated Set.
That makes the 2026 cent a coin that exists only for collectors, and the anniversary year the first in which that has been true for the full 12 months.
2026 Proof Set at a glance
| Coin | Design | Composition | Weight | Diameter | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln cent | Lincoln, dated 1776 ~ 2026 | 2.5% copper, balance zinc | 2.500 g | 19.05 mm | Plain |
| Jefferson nickel | Jefferson, dated 1776 ~ 2026 | 25% nickel, balance copper | 5.000 g | 21.21 mm | Plain |
| Emerging Liberty dime | One year Liberty obverse | Cupro-nickel clad (8.33% nickel, balance copper) | 2.268 g | 17.91 mm | Reeded |
| Semiquincentennial quarters (5 designs) | Mayflower Compact, Revolutionary War, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, Gettysburg Address | Cupro-nickel clad (8.33% nickel, balance copper) | 5.670 g | 24.26 mm | Reeded |
| Enduring Liberty half dollar | One year Statue of Liberty design | Cupro-nickel clad (8.33% nickel, balance copper) | 11.340 g | 30.61 mm | Reeded |
| Native American $1 | Polly Cooper and the Oneida at Valley Forge | 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, 2% nickel, balance copper | 8.100 g | 26.49 mm | Lettered |
All 10 coins are proof strikes from the San Francisco Mint and carry the S mintmark.
Ordering, limits and shipping
The set is item 26RG, priced at $107.00, and went on sale at noon Eastern on October 6. The Mint lists a product limit of 480,000 sets, no mintage limit and no household order limit. The product limit caps how many sets can be sold; it does not cap the coins themselves. Each set comes with a certificate of authenticity, and the Mint also offers the set by subscription.
The Mint gives an expected shipping window of October 6 to December 18, 2026, so early orders are no guarantee of early delivery.
A higher price and a larger cap
The price is the headline change. The 2025 Proof Set sold for $40.25 and the 2024 set for $35, which puts the 2026 set at more than two and a half times last year’s price and roughly three times the 2024 figure, for the same count of 10 coins. The Mint’s announcement did not explain the increase.
The limit moves the other way. According to CoinNews, the 2025 set carried a maximum of 420,002 units with no household limit, while the 2024 set had no stated limit and sold 355,754 units. The 2026 cap of 480,000 sets is roughly 60,000 higher than last year’s, set against a price that has nearly tripled.
With no household limit and a larger cap than either of the last two years, the 2026 Proof Set is sized for the broad market rather than engineered for scarcity. Whether anniversary demand is strong enough to absorb both the higher price and the larger run is the question the set’s sales figures will answer over the coming weeks.
A year in one package
The 2026 Proof Set does what the annual set has always done, recording a year of American coinage in its finest finish. What sets this edition apart is the year it records. Five new quarters, two one year redesigns, a dollar that returns to Valley Forge and a cent that no longer circulates make it the most complete single record of the Semiquincentennial coinage the Mint offers, and very likely the 2026 product that collectors will still be pulling from drawers when the nation turns 300.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 2026 Proof Set? The 2026 Proof Set is the U.S. Mint’s annual set of proof coins for 2026, marketed as the Semiquincentennial Proof Set 2026 to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence. It contains 10 proof coins struck at San Francisco with the S mintmark: five Semiquincentennial quarters, the Native American $1 coin, the Enduring Liberty half dollar, the Emerging Liberty dime, the Jefferson nickel and the Lincoln cent.
How much does the 2026 Proof Set cost and when did it go on sale? The set is priced at $107.00, up from $40.25 for the 2025 Proof Set and $35 for the 2024 set. It went on sale from the U.S. Mint on October 6, 2026, at noon Eastern time. Its item number is 26RG, and it is also offered through the Mint’s subscription program.
How many 2026 Proof Sets will be sold? The U.S. Mint has set a product limit of 480,000 sets, about 60,000 more than the 420,002 cap on the 2025 Proof Set. There is no mintage limit on the coins themselves and no household order limit, so buyers can order more than one set.
Are the coins in the 2026 Proof Set made of silver? No. The dime, quarters and half dollar are cupro-nickel clad, the nickel is 25% nickel and balance copper, the cent is 2.5% copper and balance zinc, and the dollar is a manganese brass alloy. The Mint sells silver proof coins in a separate Silver Proof Set.
Which coins in the 2026 Proof Set are one year designs? The Enduring Liberty half dollar and the Emerging Liberty dime are both scheduled for 2026 only. The half dollar replaces John F. Kennedy and the presidential coat of arms with a Statue of Liberty design, and the dime places Liberty on its obverse for the first time since 1945.
Does the 2026 Proof Set include a penny if pennies are no longer made? Yes. The U.S. Mint ended circulating one-cent production in the fall of 2025, but it continues to strike collector cents for annual products such as the Proof Set, Silver Proof Set and Uncirculated Set. The 2026 Lincoln cent in this set is dated 1776 ~ 2026.
Why do two coins in the 2026 Proof Set feature Valley Forge? The Revolutionary War quarter shows a Continental Army soldier at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777 to 1778, and the Native American $1 coin shows Polly Cooper of the Oneida Nation sharing a gift of corn with George Washington there. Together they show the encampment from two sides: the soldiers who endured it and the allies who helped sustain them.
When will the 2026 Proof Set ship? The U.S. Mint gives an expected shipping window of October 6 to December 18, 2026. Ordering on the first day does not guarantee delivery at the start of that window.
