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If you have a spare $2 bill in your pocket, think twice before spending it at the store: the bill itself is worth a lot more than $2 and could be enough to make you a substantial fortune.
According to the US Currency Auctions (USCA) website, certain $2 bills can fetch more than $4,500 on the collectibles market. Most of the really valuable bills were printed in the 19th century, but even bills printed within the last 30 years can be worth hundreds of dollars if they are in the right bill.
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The $2 bill was first printed in 1862 and is still in circulation today. It originally featured a portrait of Alexander Hamilton, but was redesigned in 1869 to include Thomas Jefferson. The most recent $2 bill was designed in 1963, according to WFLA, citing the U.S. Treasury Department.
If the $2 bill was minted and printed before 1976, it may be worth more than its face value on the collectibles market. In some cases, it may only be worth $2.25. The highest value is over $4,500 for an uncirculated 1890 bill, but most of these bills are in the $550 to $2,500 range. It is worth the same whether the bill has a red or brown sticker.
An original uncirculated 1862 $2 note is worth anywhere from $500 to over $2,800, while an 1869 note could be worth over $3,800.
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More recently, the USCA lists the value of an uncirculated $2 bill issued in 1995 at $500, and if you have a premium Federal Reserve set of 12 $2 bills issued in 2003, you could be worth more than $700.
Most $2 bills in circulation are worth exactly that: two dollars. While we don’t see them often in our daily lives, they’re still being printed. CNN reports that the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Engravings and Printing (BEP) plans to print 204 million $2 bills in 2022. According to the latest data from the Federal Reserve, there were 1.4 billion $2 bills in circulation in 2020.
Remember: no matter how much a $2 bill is worth on the collectors market, you can’t spend it in a store on anything worth more than $2, so shop wisely.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Check out that $2 bill. It could be worth a ton