2019 Proof Set With W Cent

And the current quarters are the only ones released into circulation

Which was the point, keeping with the title. What I've noticed is that dealers are listing both proof sets for a bit over Mint cost but not including the Cent. One such dealer has those listed at $15.95. So, yeah, they're capitalizing on the "rarity" they created. When reality sets in they'll be lucky to get half of that.

I got my 2 sets when they were released in early March. I can only imagine that the Mint added the W cents to this year's sets as an afterthought to attempt to boost flagging sales.

Don't forget, they also changed the silver set to .999 silver for the first time. Next, I would look for them to make the 5 cent coin from silver, maybe even the wartime composition. Just a guess. And if so, why not make the mintmark like the big reverse style?

The only reason I say "afterthought" is because they weren't part of the set packaging and instead came in their own little envelopes and baggies. You separate those W cents from the sets they shipped with and then those sets are just regular annual sets.

I suppose it could have been intentional to keep them separate, but the surprise nature of the W quarters and the W cents seems to be a scramble IMO.

Given that they were calling it a gift I suspect they had no interest in spending money redesigning anything hence the separate baggie

Marketing.

It's a complete guess but I feel the $5 increase in the silver proof sets makes up (or at least, *could* make up) for any cost associated with manufacturing these cents. There certainly was not 5 additional dollars' worth of silver at current prices added to the set by going from .900 to .999. The composition change only amounts to an additional 0.17 troy ounces of silver per set.