If you got $2 bills, you may have just hit a jackpot, says US Currency Auctions

If you have a $2 bill somewhere around, you should know that they may be worth thousands — as per the information provided by US Currency Auctions, certain $2 bills are worth about $5,000.

According to the business, 1890 $2 notes with a red or brown seal might fetch as much as $4,500. That's not all, though.

The value of certain more recent $2 bills may also be greater.

In July 2022, Heritage Auctions sold a 2003 $2 note for $2,400; however, the bill's current worth may be much greater.

According to the US Currency Auctions, there are other bills that are worth between $500 and $1,000.

The value of the bill is influenced by a number of factors, including circulation, seal colour, and printing year.

The Department of Treasury states that six distinct varieties of the $2 note have been produced over the years and that it has been in use since 1862.

"For most of their history, $2 notes have been unpopular, being viewed as unlucky or simply awkward to use in cash exchanges," the Bureau of Engraving and Printing states.

In the 1860s, there were limits on how many $1 and $2 notes the banks could issue due to fears "that the widespread use of small-denomination notes caused inflation."

But the BEP notes that when the United States entered World War II, the bill's fortunes changed.

"In early 1942, the Treasury forbade the carrying of US currency across the Mexican-US border. The Treasury did this 'to prevent use being made of Mexico as a place in which Axis agents may dispose of dollar currency looted abroad,'" BEP's website states. 

"The only exceptions to this blockade were $2 notes and silver dollars as it was believed that there were not many of these items outside the United States. As a result, demand for $2 notes skyrocketed along the border."

Prior to 1928, the banknotes were larger and had more designs on them; however, from that year onward, the front of the bills has always displayed a uniform likeness of Thomas Jefferson.

A depiction of the Declaration of Independence's presentation was substituted for the scene of Jefferson's residence on the reverse of those made between 1928 and 1976, however, there are still some minor variations.