# American $2 Bills **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 13, 2012, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579 "2012-09-13T05:59:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2012, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/101 "2012-09-16T07:07:21Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Incorrect. … All of those coins, including the half cent, are legal tender. Sorry. What I meant to say was the “last time _the smallest_ unit of currency was discontinued”. Perhaps I should have said it was the _only_ time a smallest unit of currency was discontinued (not counting the various mill coins produced by some states). Three dollar coins are interesting but irrelevant to the point I was making. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2012, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/102 "2012-09-16T07:16:17Z")
> [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](#): > > I’m not a teller – I work a customer service counter at a supermarket – but I do this all the time. Often enough that I don’t even think to remark on it. You give me $100 for a $10.76 purchase, you’re getting a $50 back if I have it to give. Actually, I meant cashier, not teller, so I did mean you. And perhaps I’m wrong. But as far as I can tell, most places have their cashiers toss large bills under the cash drawer where they’re out of sight and thus never get returned as change. ---
**Author:** ![Gerald\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Gerald\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gerald_II)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2012, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/103 "2012-09-16T10:30:53Z")
I like the half dollar coins. They’re distinctly different in size to other coins unlike The Susan B Anthony ones. The Sacagewa gold dollar coins are good that they stand out from quarters but it’s too weird to see it among dimes, nickles and quarters. If they want to continue making dollar coins they need to stick with silver and pick better pictures. ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2012, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/104 "2012-09-16T10:59:57Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Given a $50 bill in someone’s change? I’ll wager 99.99% of all tellers have never done that. I’ve personally done it tens of thousands of times and I would wager most tellers/cashiers do. There is no slot for $50/100’s, so you get rid of them ASAP because 1. It is easy to forget a big bill underneath your drawer 2. You get to keep more of your 20’s and 10’s to make more change without calling a manager. It’s a good idea to say “Is a 50 okay?” ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/105 "2012-11-01T07:52:25Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > A couple weeks ago I was told this by a bank teller who wanted me to pass it along to my boss. > > Someone has been marking the edges of $2 bills in red. They had a couple as examples; the red is only on the margin, not obscuring anything. According to her, the Fed will not take these marked bills since they’ve been defaced. I asked if the same applied to those “where’s George” bills, since they are being defaced too. She said no, just the outlined ones. The outlined bills will still be read by money counting machines, so that’s not the issue. In fact, she couldn’t really give me a rational reason why, just that the Fed won’t take them. Which means the bank doesn’t want them, so we should refuse them from our customers. > > Anyone else heard this? OK, I finally got some more info about this. The bills are being marked by a strip club in Portland. Here’s a newspaper article about it: [Blood Money](http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-19815-blood_money.html) ---
**Author:** ![Bookkeeper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bookkeeper/32/281_2.png) [@Bookkeeper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bookkeeper)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/106 "2012-11-02T00:00:50Z")
> [@Critical\_Mass](#): > > I don’t think there was very much whining about the transition to $1 and $2 coins in Canada. And it’s not that Canadians won’t bitch about things real or imagined. It’s just that the transition to coins didn’t create any problems. Plus it lets us talk about our loonie-toonie fiscal policies! ---
**Author:** ![Enlightening\_Meditation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecc23a/32.png) [@Enlightening\_Meditation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enlightening_Meditation)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2012, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/107 "2012-11-02T21:14:06Z")
> [@Actraguy](#): > > Does the U.S. government STILL make $2 bills and if they do, why are they so hard to find? The Bureau of Engraving & Printing printed a large run of $2 bills in 1976 and smaller quantity runs in 1995 and 2003. So, the last printing was 9 years ago. Still printing? I say there is a good chance that another series will printed in the future. I am a devoted fan of the $2 Bill. One of my favorite Presidents, Thomas Jefferson, is on the obverse side and the signing of the Declaration of Independence is on the reverse side. I like people’s surprised reaction when I pay transactions with $2 bills. There are still plenty of 1976 2 bills in circulation (that I get from the bank) since the infrequent use of these bills reduces wear and tear. Surprisingly, most self check out machines at grocery stores accept the 2 bills. Occasionally, I order a stack of $2 bills from the bank. They usually don’t have much on hand, so bills arrive several business days after I place my order. I try to do my part to increase circulation. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2012, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/108 "2012-11-02T21:28:24Z")
I would think the government likes to print twos. Often waitresses tell me that every “odd” bill or coin they get (2’s, Susan B. Anthony dollars, etc.) go into a piggy bank for a younger relative. So many are not redeemed at all compared to other denominations. That’s a huge profit for the printer, much like the way the Post Office likes stamp collectors better than stamp users. ---
**Author:** ![listedmia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@listedmia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/listedmia)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/109 "2012-11-02T22:12:29Z")
Two two-dollar-bill related anecdotes, since everybody else seems to be sharing them: When I was a cashier, I would either switch out the two-dollar-bills for regular dollars from my pocket or give them out as change as soon as possible. There was no slot for them and they were a pain to count at the end of the night. We had one regular customer who would pay his entire order with two dollar bills, Sacagaweas and Susan B Anthonys every time, and he was simultaneously amusing and irritating. I once found an envelope with $40 worth of two dollar bills on the sidewalk, and my drug dealer thought they were the coolest thing ever. He offered to give me a slight profit in regular dollars if I could come up with any more. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/110 "2013-11-19T23:08:52Z")
It seems to me that the smart thing for cashiers to do, in the current environment, is to put received $2 bills on top of their $1s. There will usually only be one or two $2 bills there at a time, and typically they can be handed right back out. $2s are actually more useful than $1s, when change is given in the fewest pieces. In other words, it is likely that the very next customer the cashier has to give _any_ $1s to, would be receiving more than one $1, in the absence of $2s. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/111 "2013-11-19T23:32:31Z")
I’ve heard that zombies are paid in 2’s. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/112 "2013-11-20T00:45:38Z")
Jesuschrist, can anyone here ever resist pulling out the moronic “zombie” meme when a dormant thread is deliberately revived with a relevant post? I don’t care, and it doesn’t matter, if previous posters to this thread are or aren’t here. I wanted to make a comment on the subject, so I found the most appropriate existing thread. That’s vastly better than starting a new one which would ‘require’ a bunch of the points or comments already made to be repeated. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/113 "2013-11-20T01:25:09Z")
I salute your undying efforts to improve and disseminate cash-handling techniques. I swear to god, I did not realize that pun was there until I started typing it out. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/114 "2013-11-20T02:10:38Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#): > > Do you want 25¢ bills? Or maybe penny bills? Actually, 25 cent bills [exist](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fractional_currency_%28United_States%29). They haven’t been made in over a hundred years, but if you can find one, it’s still good. US money [never expires](http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/31/5103). ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/115 "2013-11-20T02:17:30Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Jesuschrist, can anyone here ever resist pulling out the moronic “zombie” meme when a dormant thread is deliberately revived with a relevant post? I don’t care, and it doesn’t matter, if previous posters to this thread are or aren’t here. I wanted to make a comment on the subject, so I found the most appropriate existing thread. That’s vastly better than starting a new one which would ‘require’ a bunch of the points or comments already made to be repeated. I’m sure if you had noticed the thread was a zombie, you would have made mention of it. Apparently, you didn’t. Somebody had to. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2022, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/116 "2022-09-20T21:16:15Z")
Bumped. And here we are… > **[Why it's time to start paying with $2 bills | CNN Business](https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/17/business/2-dollar-bill-history/index.html)** > > Inflation has made it hard to pay for much with a buck these days. Wouldn't it make more sense to start paying with $2 bills instead? ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2022, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/117 "2022-09-21T04:59:32Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > I will be very happy to get rid of the penny Your prayer to the zombie gods has been answered… at least in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2022, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/118 "2022-09-21T09:55:46Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Count me in the “I’d rather have 10 one dollar bills in my pocket than 10 dollar coins” camp. One? Not a problem. More than that? Too large, heavy and clunky. Okay: In the UK, the smallest note is a £5. £1 has been a coin since 1983 and people said much the same at the time. In practice, though, few people ever have 10 £1 coins in a pocket. Of course, the fact that Europeans have moved away from cash in droves helps, but even in the 80s and 90s, those people who used cash would rarely have more than four or five £1 coins at a time. Why would you? Paradoxically, the USA is a very conservative country. Right or wrong, they cling on to what they know: Paper money, imperial measurements, enormous military. I shouldn’t mention healthcare, immigration and the shameful treatment of minorities. ---
**Author:** ![vbob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vbob/32/4439_2.png) [@vbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vbob)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2022, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/119 "2022-09-21T10:26:28Z")
For most of the pandemic, our local coffee shop had difficulty making small change - never any pennies, and often low on nickels and dimes. Now all of a sudden nearly every purchase ends up with me getting at least two brand new 2022 US pennies. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2022, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579/120 "2022-09-21T15:18:05Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Okay: In the UK, the smallest note is a £5 In Japan, the smallest note is 1000 yen, about $10. On $2 bills: A local restaurant provides $2 bills when making change. I received one of these when dining there once, and sometime later in a coffee shop I tried to pay for my coffee with it. The young cashier was really suspicious. He didn’t want to come right out and accuse me of passing a fake bill, but he’d never seen or heard of one before and had a hard time accepting that it was real. On $1 coins: Some years ago the US Mint implemented a program to try to get $1 coins into common circulation. They offered a deal where you could order unlimited quantities of $1 coins online using a credit card and have then shipped, _free of charge_, to your home. Enterprising individuals used reward credit cards to purchase tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of $1 coins; when the coins arrived, these individuals would immediately take them to their bank and deposit them into their accounts, which they would then use to pay the resulting credit card bill. The end result: - The US Mint was out for the credit card transaction fee on each of these purchases. - The enterprising individuals racked up huge credit card rewards - cash back, FF miles, hotel points, whatever their rewards card was providing them. - The banks sent the unpopular coins back to the mint, meaning they never ended up in circulation. > **[U.S. Mint Ends The Dollar Coin “Scam” For Airline Miles](https://www.businessinsider.com/us-mint-ends-the-dollar-coin-scam-for-airline-miles-2011-7)** [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-2-bills/634579.md?page=7)