What’s a dollar worth to you? A bagel? A greeting card? Four gumballs?
While a dollar can buy, well, a few cool things, a lot of people don’t consider a single dollar a ton of money. Unless, of course, you’re the owner of a rare dollar bill that may be worth much more than its face value. Yes, there is such a thing, and yes, it can make you wealthy.
So what differentiates a regular dollar bill from one that could pay for a trip to Jamaica? It all depends on the serial number, which is an eight-digit number located on the front, usually on the right side of a bill. If your dollar bill (or any bill) has a “fancy serial number” on it, it might be worth a lot more.
So who died and determined some numbers could make a piece of paper worth a ton of money? One website called CoolSerialNumbers.com, owned by collectors, is currently asking for dollar bills (as well as other currency) that contain certain serial numbers in very specific patterns.
If you have a single dollar that meets their needs, they’re willing to pay hundreds, and sometimes even thousands of dollars for it!
Hurry up and get your wallet out! Here are just some of the patterns of serial numbers they’re looking for:
- Seven repeating digits in a row on $1 Federal Reserve notes (e.g., 09999999, 18888888, 19999999, etc.)
- Seven of a kind on $1 Federal Reserve notes (e.g., 00010000, 00090000, 90999999, etc.)
- Super radars on $1 Federal Reserve Notes (e,g,, 01111110, 10000001, 80000008, etc.)
- Super repeaters on $1 Federal Reserve notes (e.g., 67676767)
- Double quads on $1 Federal Reserve notes (e.g., 11110000, 44440000, 88880000, etc.)
There are just a few of these rare patterns. You can find more listed on their “want list” listed at www.coolserialnumbers.com/Wanted.aspx, so be sure to check it out—and then check your wallet. And your pockets. And your couch cushions. Because one single piece of paper seemingly worth a buck might just be the answer to paying off a lot of your bills.
In addition to a want list, the collectors of the website also have a sale list with many one-dollar bills going for as high as $1,250. They also list several $2, $5, $10, $20, and $50 bills for much more than their face value.
Additionally, there are many sellers on eBay selling some of their bills with unique serial numbers. These ones might not be going for thousands, but not too long ago, a $1 bill was listed for $86 for having the serial number 67676767, and another was going for $66.66 for having the number 00023000. So if your dollar bills aren’t worthy of collector sites, you can try listing them on eBay. Hey, it can’t hurt!
In addition to eBay, “currency auction houses are also good, especially for the more valuable notes. My favorites are Heritage Auctions and Lyn Knight Auctions,” says Dave Undis, the head collector at CoolSerialNumbers.com. He also wrote this awesome article on how rare fancy serial numbers are, so be sure to check it out if your mind is going a little crazy right now, like ours are.
What do you think? Do you think a dollar bill can be worth more than a dollar based on a few numbers? Do you have any bills with a fancy serial number? Have you ever sold any for a good chunk of change? We’d love to hear your experience with this type of cash!