With Philadelphia supporting Denver in the coining of nickels for circulation, San Francisco discontinued this activity. Nickels bearing the S mintmark would henceforth all be proofs.
The nickels of this year feature sharp, new hubs obverse and reverse. Decades of erosion to the originals had left them deficient in detail, and the Mint also wanted to reduce the relief of working dies to increase the number of coins each could produce.
1971 S nickels were very well made, with a higher percentage of Cameo and Ultra Cameo pieces than in the past. The shallower relief reduced erosion of the frosted cavities, and chromium plating of the dies retained this desirable feature for thousands of strikes.
Numerous DDO and DDR varieties exist for this date, but none of them are prominent enough to be seen with the naked eye.
Mintage:
| Philadelphia | Denver | Proof |
| 106,884,000 | 316,144,800 | 3,220,733 |