1989-P Jefferson Nickels: Common Yet Tough In High Grades

PCGS - The 1989-P Jefferson nickel is a decidedly modern coin, and examples still turn up with relative ease in pocket change from sea to shining sea. Though, like all circulating coins from the late 20th century, these once-prolific coins are beginning to drop away from circulation. Natural attrition in circulation, loss to natural disasters like fires and storms, and countless withholds once being dropped in coin jars for who knows how long are all contributing to the decline of 1980s coinage, like the 1989-P Jefferson nickel, in circulation.

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1989-P Jefferson nickel, PCGS MS67FS

To be sure, the 1989-P Jefferson nickel is still worth just five cents in worn grades. It's still an affordable coin in lower Mint State grades. And with a mintage of 898,812,000, the 1989-P Jefferson nickel ought to be easy to find and pose little financial barrier in collectible grades. But what's happening up the grading scale suggests something different.

While 1989-P Jefferson nickels with Full Steps (FS) in the lower grades can be found with little degree of difficulty and are not necessarily all that expensive, prices for examples in the better grades skyrocket. Of course, it helps to know what constitutes an FS specimen. As PCGS describes, a Full Steps Jefferson nickel is "MS60 or better, [and has] at least five complete steps that must appear on Monticello. Any steps that join or fuse together, whether created that way or subsequently damaged, cannot be considered for the Full Steps designation."



Indeed, it's tough to find top-tier 1989-P Jefferson nickels worthy of the FS designation, as clearly reflected in the PCGS Population Report and PCGS Price Guide. As of this writing in autumn 2026, only 13 specimens of the issue are graded PCGS MS67FS, and only one qualified for the finest grade of PCGS MS68FS. Prices are presently rising on the MS67FS, with those going for $1,050 apiece. The MS68FS hasn't been recorded yet in a public sale, but the PCGS Price Guide suggests that the single finest specimen has a value of $5,500!

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