If you do a lot of business and handle a lot of cash then you might be afraid that some counterfeiters money will get taken by you as the real deal. There are companies that make lots of money by selling machines that can detect counterfeit bills but these are expensive to buy and not affordable for a small business or a regular citizen. While it might be scary that you could be given counterfeit money and lose your money unless you have the money to buy a machine to warn you there are inexpensive ways you can detect counterfeit currency on your own.

An easy way to detect counterfeit bills that most counterfeiters do not even attempt to make money to pass this test since so few people including the counterfeiters even know this test is to use a magnet or magnet up against the bill. Bills have a thin strip of metal that are attracted to magnets. This test will work on any denominations even the $1, and $2 bills that have not been updated like the larger denominations.

The $1 bill has some interesting simple design tricks to stop counterfeiters. Under certain letter you will find small owls formed by the white background mesh. It might look like just a part of the design but those owls are put there on purpose to deter counterfeiters. Another interesting thing to note about the $1 note is that last in circulation for about 21 months the shortest of any denomination.

The $5 is the lowest denomination currency to have the more modern anti-counterfeit techniques employed on it. Some of these features included on the $5 are watermarks, and security threads. When the new currency is viewed in infrared spectrum parts of the bill disappear another trick that few counterfeiters even know about.

The $10 bill accounts for about 10% of all the bills in circulation. The $10 is the only circulating currency from the USA where the portrait faces left. The $20 is the currency in widest circulation. The reason the $20 is so widely used is because almost all ATMs only carry $20 and it would cost much more to make ATM’s that would be able to give different denominations. The life span of a $20 bill is 2 years and it accounts for 22% of all bills in circulation. Under the black light the security strip of a $20 glows green to ward of counterfeit attempts.

Another funny coincidence is the life span of a $50 is 55 months, and 5% of bills in circulation are $50. The 2004 $50 was the first bill since 1905 use multiple colors, which is also a counterfeit measure. The color of the 2004 series 50 changes from copper to green unlike earlier versions.

The $100 is the largest denomination in circulation that is still printed. A $100 last 60 months and accounts for only 7% of the bills in circulation. On the clock of Independence Hall the number IV is used while the real Independence Hall uses its own made up Roman numeral IIII. Late 2008 a new design will be realized of the $100 with a security called motion that has only been used on one other bill in the world and allows the image to shift as the bill is moved.

There have been many other denominations of bills then are now printed some have been smaller then a dollar and as big as