# What the penny phase-out does to .99 pricing

A $0.99 item still lists at $0.99 and still shows $0.99 on a card. Only the cash total moves, and only at the end.

**5 list prices between $0.98 and $1.02 all settle to $1.00 in cash at 0% tax. Listing at $1.02 instead of $0.99 collects exactly the same from cash customers and 3¢ more from every card customer. That is the only genuinely free move rounding offers, it is worth 3¢, and it evaporates if the tax rate changes.**

Free to take: **3¢**, at 0% tax.

| List price | Exact total | Due in cash | Rounding | Same band |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $0.94 | $0.94 | $0.95 | +1¢ | no |
| $0.95 | $0.95 | $0.95 | 0¢ | no |
| $0.96 | $0.96 | $0.95 | -1¢ | no |
| $0.97 | $0.97 | $0.95 | -2¢ | no |
| $0.98 | $0.98 | $1.00 | +2¢ | yes |
| $0.99 (yours) | $0.99 | $1.00 | +1¢ | yes |
| $1.00 | $1.00 | $1.00 | 0¢ | yes |
| $1.01 | $1.01 | $1.00 | -1¢ | yes |
| $1.02 (best) | $1.02 | $1.00 | -2¢ | yes |
| $1.03 | $1.03 | $1.05 | +2¢ | no |
| $1.04 | $1.04 | $1.05 | +1¢ | no |

Rows in the same band settle to the same cash amount. The cash collected is identical across the band, so the highest list price in it is strictly better — the difference comes from card customers, who pay the listed price to the cent. Pricing BELOW a nickel so that rounding "adds" a couple of cents is the same trade run backwards: identical cash, less on card.

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Canonical URL: https://penny-rounding.gumballtools.com/rounding/ninety-nine-cent-pricing
JSON API: `GET https://penny-rounding.gumballtools.com/api/v1/settle?subtotal=19.99&taxRatePercent=8.25`
MCP endpoint: `https://penny-rounding.gumballtools.com/api/mcp`