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what to do with old pound coins

You’ve got options – and in 2026 old pound coins are still far from useless.

Quick Scoop

Old round £1 coins are no longer legal tender, but you can often still bank them, deposit them via the Post Office, or sell/keep them as collectibles depending on condition and rarity. There’s also surprisingly lively forum and social chatter about people finding stashes in jars, drawers and old cars and trying to squeeze a last bit of value (or fun) out of them.

1. Can you still use old pound coins?

Short answer: not in shops – they’re not legal tender – but there are ways to turn them into money in your account.

  • They were withdrawn and replaced by the 12‑sided £1 coin back in 2017, and can’t be used for day‑to‑day purchases anymore.
  • However, millions are still out there: the Royal Mint has estimated tens of millions of old-style £1 coins remain unreturned, sitting in homes, tills and piggy banks.
  • Some people still report the odd vending machine, car-park meter or trolley lock that will take them, but that’s hit‑and‑miss and not guaranteed.

“Try using them in a vending machine or car park machine… they might still work and then it’s someone else’s problem.” – typical forum humour on old coins.

2. Best practical options (2026)

2.1 Pay them into a bank or Post Office

This is still the most straightforward route for most people.

  • Post Office deposits
    • Many UK banks let you deposit old coins and notes into your bank account via the Post Office under the Banking Framework.
* A Post Office spokesperson has confirmed they still accept “old” £1 coins over the counter in good condition, but they must be deposited into a participating bank account (they won’t just swap them for cash).
  • High street banks
    • Many high street banks may accept old £1 coins for deposit or exchange as a courtesy to existing customers.
* Because they’re no longer legal tender, banks aren’t legally obliged to take them; policies differ between banks and branches, so you should check ahead.

2.2 Specialist exchange services

  • Some commercial services still promote exchanging old £1 coins (and other obsolete coins) and paying you via bank transfer.
  • These services basically take coins in bulk and handle the aggregation and processing that individuals can’t do directly with the Royal Mint.

3. Other smart uses (value beyond face value)

3.1 Check for collector value

Not all old pound coins are created equal.

  • Coin forums and numismatic sites have ongoing discussions about which designs, mint years and errors have collector interest.
  • Most common old £1s will just be worth face value, but specific designs, low-mintage years or error coins can sell for more on auction sites or specialist marketplaces.

Mini‑plan:

  1. Sort coins by date and design.
  2. Look up the rare or interesting ones on coin-collector sites or forums.
  1. Consider listing the better ones individually, and bulk out the rest.

3.2 Sell them in bulk online

  • Lifestyle and money sites suggest selling old coins in bulk on platforms like eBay or through coin dealers if you don’t want the hassle of checking each one.
  • You usually won’t get more than face value this way, but it can be a quick declutter move.

4. Fun or creative ideas (from forums and blogs)

If you don’t have enough to bother with the bank, or you like a creative twist, there are plenty of non‑boring suggestions floating around.

  • Keep a few as souvenirs
    • A lot of people keep a single old round pound as a little time‑capsule of the pre‑2017 coinage.
  • Use them in trolleys or as tokens
    • Some shoppers still use old £1 coins in shopping trolleys where the locks aren’t picky.
* Others repurpose them as tokens in games, jar “markers”, or DIY board-game pieces.
  • DIY projects
    • Crafty blogs and forums suggest resin coasters, framed displays of old designs, or using them in art projects as nostalgic “British currency” collages.
  • Charity and fundraisers
    • Charity tins, especially older ones, may still contain old £1s; some organisations batch them and send them through banks or exchange services.
* If your own stash is small, donating them to a charity that knows how to process them can be an easy win.

On thrifty blogs you’ll see people treating old pound coins as “found money” for emergency jars, kids’ savings games or travel souvenirs rather than pure currency.

5. Latest news & trend context

There is still a surprisingly large amount of old UK cash floating about.

  • As of mid‑2025, over £6.6 billion in outdated UK banknotes and coins remained unreturned, including huge amounts in old paper £20 and £50 notes.
  • The Royal Mint has reported around 70 million old-style £1 coins remain unreturned, despite years of media reminders to cash them in.
  • Over the last decade, the Mint has processed millions of old coins from multiple denominations as they modernise coinage and retire older issues.

This keeps “what to do with old pound coins” popping up regularly on money sites, personal finance blogs, and coin forums, where people swap stories about forgotten jars of change suddenly found during moves, clear‑outs, and spring cleans.

6. Simple action checklist

  1. Count and sort your old pound coins by year and design.
  2. Decide your priority : maximum convenience (bank/Post Office), maximum value (check for rarities), or creativity/souvenir.
  3. Contact your bank or Post Office to confirm current rules on depositing old £1s.
  1. Check for collector interest for any unusual coins via coin sites/forums.
  1. Choose a route : deposit, specialist exchanger, sell in bulk, donate or keep a few for fun.

At the bottom of many money and coin guides you’ll see a similar message: don’t leave them sitting forever – either turn them into current money, or consciously keep them as collectibles so they’re part of your plan, not just clutter.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.