U.S. paper currency is made from cotton and linen.

The material used for United States paper currency is predominantly a textile-fiber blend: 75 percent cotton and 25 percent linen. It differs from ordinary wood-pulp writing paper. The familiar phrase paper money is therefore accurate as a description of a manufactured sheet, but incomplete as an explanation of its ingredients.

Cotton and linen fibers help produce a durable substrate suited to repeated folding and handling. Money must survive conditions that would quickly damage many ordinary printed documents. The substrate is one component of a wider manufacturing process that also includes specialized inks, printing techniques, and denomination-specific security features.

The material alone does not make a sheet genuine currency. An authentic banknote depends on authorized production and a combination of design and manufacturing characteristics. Texture can help someone notice a suspicious note, but no single tactile impression is an infallible test of authenticity.

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces United States paper currency. Manufacturing brings together prepared currency paper and multiple printing and inspection stages. The Federal Reserve then plays a central role in putting notes into circulation and removing worn or unfit notes from use.

Small red and blue fibers are embedded in the paper. They are not simply colored lines printed on the surface. Many denominations also use watermarks and embedded security threads, although features vary by denomination and design generation. The one-dollar note does not carry all the features found on higher-denomination notes.

A United States banknote weighs approximately one gram regardless of denomination. Modern notes also share a standard size. Consequently, a hundred-dollar note is not heavier because it represents more purchasing power; denomination is established by the authorized design and monetary system, not by the amount of fiber in the sheet.

The distinction between face value and production material is fundamental. A banknote's purchasing power does not come from the resale value of its cotton and linen. The substrate supports durability and authentication, while the monetary system gives the authorized instrument its role as currency.

Wear is still unavoidable. Repeated circulation can soil notes, weaken fibers, and damage edges. Banks and Federal Reserve processing facilities separate fit notes from those that should be destroyed and replaced. Denominations circulate differently, so note life is not determined solely by the shared material or the note's nominal value.

Other countries use polymer substrates, and some combine different technologies. Those alternatives do not mean American currency is ordinary printer paper or that one material automatically prevents counterfeiting. Security depends on a package of features that can be checked in context. Advice for one country's notes should not be applied uncritically to another country's currency.

Calling American notes paper money can be misleading if paper suggests an ordinary office sheet. Their cotton-and-linen substrate is a specialized material. The familiar comparison is closer to a durable fiber-based product designed for repeated handling than to a disposable printed document.