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US currencyThe US dollar is the official currency of the US. It’s not only the most circulated currency in the world but it's also considered one of the most stable.
Also referred to as the Federal Reserve note and abbreviated as USD, it can be issued as paper money or coins. There were almost 55 billion banknotes (another term for bills, often called “notes”) totaling about $2.3T in circulation by the end of 2023.
The US used to print higher denominations than the seven types of bills in print today—$1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100—but the BEP stopped printing bills over $100 in 1969 (like the $5K and $10K bills) due to lack of use. Paper money is made up of 75% cotton and 25% linen.
There are four coin denominations currently in circulation. Pennies are mainly composed of copper and plated zinc. Nickels, dimes, and quarters are all partly made of nickel.Explore US currency
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The US Currency Education Program created a guide to authenticating currencyThis video was created to teach everyday people a few easy ways to spot some counterfeit banknotes. Specifically, it outlines the main security features to check for that are common across many US banknotes, such as the color-shifting ink visible when tiling US banknotes $10 or higher. US Currency Education ProgramThroughout most of the 1800s, US currency was backed by silver and goldIn post-Civil War America, the government moved to use only the gold standard. This was how US currency was backed for decades in the US. You can read a comprehensive explainer on the gold standard and its history in the US to learn more. InvestopediaThe Federal Reserve tracks how much US currency is circulated around the world every yearIt's estimated that about half of US currency is circulated outside of the US. In 2023, there were 54.6B US notes circulated, with 18.9B of those being $100 bills. This chart shows how many US notes have circulated since 1997. U.S. Currency Education ProgramHow US currency is issuedCash in the US is the result of a collaborative process between the Federal Reserve, the Treasury Department, regional banks, and a little-known agency called the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. From design to issuance, learn the steps in currency production in the US with this smart, aesthetic interactive. U.S. Currency Education ProgramSaccharin was banned in Canada in the 1970s, but regulators may allow its use once againThe product, commonly known as Sweet'N Low, was banned in Canada in the late 1970s due to research indicating that the sweetener could cause cancer in lab rats. Subsequent studies have found that the rodent findings didn't hold true for humans, and so Canadian regulators state that they are considering updating their stance to allow the product to be added to certain foods (the product is currently allowed in the US). Government of CanadaCalibrate to the U.S. government's official clock, synchronized to the atomic standardThe site displays the current time across all American time zones—corrected for network delay—and shows whether your device's clock has drifted. Computer clocks rely on quartz crystals that drift slightly with temperature and age, requiring alignment with atomic clocks (which are so stable that seconds are defined by them). NISTRead the resolutions of the Stamp Act CongressAdopted October 19, 1765, the resolutions argued that taxation without colonial consent violated the British constitution, that admiralty courts without juries subverted English liberties, and that paying the tax in hard currency was practically impossible. Each grievance was framed not as rebellion but as a defense of rights the colonists already believed they possessed. Teaching American HistoryExplore an interactive tool that reveals why Americans are unemployedAmong unemployed Americans ages 25 to 54, almost 30% cited being laid off as the reason for their unemployment. FlowingDataDNA cassette tapes could store 36,000 terabyte hard drives of dataBy translating binary code into the base-pair code found in genetic sequences, researchers in China are storing digital data on DNA-coated tapes for compact, durable, and energy-efficient storage. The tapes use a blend of polyester and nylon with barcode patterns for data addressing. Popular ScienceHamilton has appeared on US paper currency since the Civil WarSince the US began printing money in 1861, Alexander Hamilton has appeared at different times on the $5, $2, $20, $50, $500, and $1000 bills. Since 1928, he has remained on the $10 bill—making him, alongside Benjamin Franklin, one of the two non-presidents currently on US currency. Gilder Lehrman Institute of American HistoryThe portrait of George Washington was first placed on the one-dollar bill in 1869Trace the history of the US dollar from its colonial roots to its adoption as the national currency. The video explores the word's Germanic origins, how the dollar sign evolved from the Spanish peso, and how Washington's portrait came to define US paper currency. Two CentsThe president has the sole authority to call for a nuclear strikeUnder current US policy, the president alone can order the use of atomic weapons at any time without requiring prior approval from Congress—a power rooted in the president's role as commander in chief. Business InsiderSan Francisco has the highest-paying average monthly salary in the US at $7,092Other relatively high monthly average salaries in major cities worldwide include those in Switzerland, specifically Geneva at $7,984 and Zurich at $7,788. This chart shows other major cities across the world with high average monthly salaries. Visual CapitalistBefore the US Mint, people made currency in private mintsAround the year 1652, New England coinage was created at private mints. Historically, private mints were often located in places where governments did not meet the demand for currency. This article dives into the history of private mints, including the ones people can still visit today. CoinweekThe mysterious Fort Knox houses much of America’s gold reservesThis fortified vault, built in 1936, is part of the US Mint, but it doesn’t create any currency. Only a presidential order can open Fort Knox—there has not been an audit of its contents since 1953. YouTubeNuclear-powered missiles replace chemical combustion with energy from nuclear fissionIn these systems, energy is added to an airstream, which passes through a nozzle to generate thrust. Because the amount of energy released per unit mass of nuclear fuel is millions of times larger than that of chemical propellants, nuclear missiles can travel faster and farther with less fuel. The ConversationGovernments have historically used counterfeiting for economic warfareInserting fake currency into an economy can help destabilize it. During the American Revolution, for instance, the British distributed counterfeit “Continental Dollars” in an effort to devalue the currency being used in the US at the time with the goal of undermining America’s growing financial credibility. The Nazis also ran an extensive counterfeiting scheme during WWII. Berlin ExperiencesThe Secret Service was originally formed to combat counterfeitingBy the 1860s, an estimated one-third of US currency in circulation was counterfeit. In 1865, the Secret Service was created specifically to combat the country’s serious counterfeiting problem, which had led to widespread financial instability. This was partly due to the lack of federal currency standardization in the country at the time. Secret ServiceVisualizing the world's $261T in investable assetsNearly half of the world's portfolio of stocks and bonds originate in the US. Roughly 1% of all investable assets are in the form of cryptocurrency. Visual CapitalistThe US asked Japan to leave China less than two weeks before Pearl HarborOn Nov. 26, 1941, Secretary of State Cordell Hull issued a note calling on Japan to withdraw from China and Indochina—terms Tokyo saw as impossible. The note confirmed to Japanese leaders that diplomacy had collapsed, accelerating plans for the Pearl Harbor strike (which had been formally approved Nov. 5). Pearl HarborThe US dollar's value weakened significantly in 2025 amid tariffsExperts at US Bank predicted in August 2025, that the downward trend was likely to continue, although they acknowledged that uncertainty remains high. As tariffs moved to the center of the White House’s agenda, all G10 currencies grew stronger against the dollar—the Swiss franc even posted double-digit gains. UBSThe US national debt is is currently equal to roughly 125% of its GDPAs of 2025, the US debt was roughly $37.6T. Interest costs alone are forecast to reach $952B this year. Visual CapitalistSome North American bats can glow in the darkAfter examining 60 museum specimens from six different species, scientists found that all of them emitted light after being exposed to ultraviolet radiation. Researchers are perplexed by this natural phenomenon and are currently unable to deduce the reason behind it. ScienceAlertThe Dow now tracks 30 major US companies across various industriesSince 1928, the DJIA has included 30 firms. Today's group spans technology, healthcare, and finance—with Apple, Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase, Pfizer, and Coca-Cola among its most recognized components. CNBCVisual Capitalist shows the top 50 countries by central bank reservesAs of 2024, China, Japan, and the United States held the top three spots in terms of the value of their respective central bank reserves. Visual CapitalistUS defense spending peaked during the Korean War at 13% of GDPIn 1953, during the Korean War, US defense spending reached 13.58% of GDP—more than three times today’s level. That peak marked the most militarized moment of the Cold War, and spending has never returned to that level since. EconofactGeneva, Switzerland, has some of the highest grocery prices worldwideOther cities that made the top 20 on the list of the global cities with the highest grocery prices around the world include Boston, Hong Kong, and Toronto, at least as of 2025. Visual CapitalistThe Mint’s first circulating coins were 11,178 copper centsCongress authorized the first national mint in Philadelphia. The next year, the Mint delivered its first circulating coins, which were bigger than today’s quarters. This article shows more early US currency. The Wall Street JournalThe world goes through roughly 100 million barrels of oil per dayFrom drilling to driving, crude oil is processed in refineries and transformed into everyday products like fuel, plastics, lubricants, and cosmetics. The US currently uses about 20 million of those barrels per day. HISTORYExplore an interactive graphic of a wind turbine's componentsWind turbines contain a gearbox that increases the rotation of the blades by a factor of 100 from low to high-speed shafts. The latter moves magnets that change the magnetic field within a generator, creating electricity. Energy.govThe clearest sign of a recession is a steady increase of job losses and high unemploymentThe National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) looks at six key economic indicators, including industrial production, to determine when the economy is experiencing a recession. CBS NewsNiagara Falls helped decide the battle between AC and DC power In the 1890s, Niagara Falls became the proving ground for alternating current (AC) when Tesla and Westinghouse built the first large-scale AC hydroelectric plant—defeating Edison’s push for direct current (DC) in the US electrical system. HISTORYThe ‘commodities’ investment category includes livestock, oil, wheat, and moreCommodities traders look at all of these things as assets, placing short-, medium-, and long-term wagers on how much each is really worth. Business InsiderNearly half of the discretionary funding in the US is allocated to national defenseThe US accounts for roughly 35% of global military spending, with defense taking up nearly half of discretionary funds. In this discussion, Michael E. O'Hanlon of the Brookings Institution explains why these levels are so high—and how they compare historically. EconofactMeet the 9 justices currently serving on the US Supreme CourtThis resource profiles each sitting justice, detailing their legal backgrounds and career paths, and offers audio clips from oral arguments that reveal how they reason and speak from the bench. Supreme Court Historical SocietyCurrent US measles outbreak data from the CDCThis data portal from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracks current cases, hospitalizations, and deaths from measles. A 2025 outbreak in Texas and New Mexico drove US cases to their highest levels since the early 1990s. CDCThe global economy runs on US dollarsNearly 90% of international trade in 2019 was processed in US dollars. It’s not only the most circulated currency in the world but also considered one of the most stable. The Wall Street JournalAn overview of US tariff policyThis comprehensive report from the Congressional Research Service explores the evolving role of tariffs—from a major source of government revenue to a tool for trade and foreign policy—providing insights into current practices, legal foundations, and global trade dynamics. Congressional Research ServiceMany years ago, the US dollar became the world's primary reserve currencyIn 1944, 44 nations gathered in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to rebuild the global economy. The result? The US dollar became the world’s reserve currency, backed by gold. 1440The 'Where's George?' project tracked a trail of $1 bills across the USOver a decade ago, a group dedicated its time to tracking $1 bills in the US. They would stamp single bills with the phrases “currency tracking project” and “Track me at WheresGeorge.com” in a practice they dubbed “Georging.” NPREvery printed bill has its own unique serial numberIn the US, each bill also has its own plate number, series year, Treasury seal, and more. Each design helps track money and combat counterfeiting. US Currency Education ProgramHarriet Tubman will be featured on the $20 bill in 2028While the face of money is changing, most of the historical figures that grace US currency haven’t changed in a long time. From President George Washington on the $1 bill and quarter to President Abraham Lincoln on the penny and $5 bill, this article details all the people you can find on your cash. BiographyContrary to popular belief, the $2 bill is still in circulation todayHowever, it is far less common than other bills. Usage of the $2 bill has been in decline for decades, but the US Treasury hasn’t retired the bill yet. A podcast episode from the Fed’s educational program explains why the Treasury doesn’t print new $2 bills every year, and why they're still considered legal tender. Noteworthy podcast from the U.S. Currency Education ProgramThe US once had a $100K billThere are currently seven denominations of paper money, with the highest value reaching $100. But there used to be more that have since been discontinued, including bills that sported the faces of President William McKinley and President James Madison. InvestopediaIn 1792, Congress established the first national mint to produce all the coins in the USAt the same time, the US also started producing the dollar, its first official currency. The US Mint has since issued coins throughout the country. Official Site of the United States MintThe US has used a wide variety of different currencies between the 1690s and todayFrom colonial money to national banknotes, people have used all kinds of forms of currency throughout the history of the United States before settling on the dollar bills and quarters that we pay for things with today. U.S. Currency Education ProgramThe US dollar is the official currency of the United States and is the most circulated currency around the worldThe US dollar was established in 1792 and comes in the form of coins or paper money. It's considered one of (if not the most) stable currencies in the world due to America’s strong and robust economy, as well as its relatively stable government. InvestopediaThe flow of electricity in AC circuits flips back and forth, unlike DC circuitsAlternating currents in the US change the flow direction 120 times every second, allowing for efficient transformation and transmission of energy across power grids by sending energy at lower currents. This is changed into one-way direct currents when powering electronics. EcoFlow Dive into the fascinating journey of a Federal Reserve note Ever wondered how long an individual dollar bill lasts? After cash is designed and produced, money circulates in the economy, with $100 bills staying in use for the longest on average—roughly 15 years—and the $10 lasting just less than five. U.S. Currency Education ProgramThe current federal budget, deficit, and debt, in chartsThe US Treasury regularly publishes updated data on the federal budget, and this site hosts visualizations of that data. See reports on spending, revenues, deficits, and where the national debt stands. U.S. Department of the Treasury
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