$50 Note

    2004-Present-front
    2004-Present-front
    2004-Present-back
    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait. The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 and a small flag in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Watermark

    Watermark

    Hold the note to light and look for a faint image of President Grant in the blank space to the right of the portrait.  The image is visible from both sides of the note.

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Tilt the note to see the numeral 50 in the lower right corner on the front of the note shift from copper to green.

    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait. The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 and a small flag in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Watermark

    Watermark

    Hold the note to light and look for a faint image of President Grant in the blank space to the right of the portrait.  The image is visible from both sides of the note.

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Tilt the note to see the numeral 50 in the lower right corner on the front of the note shift from copper to green.

    1997 - 2004- front
    1997 - 2004- front
    1997 - 2004- back
    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait.  The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 and a small flag in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note.  The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Watermark

    Watermark

    Hold the note to light and look for a faint image of President Grant in the blank space to the right of the portrait.  The image is visible from both sides of the note.

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Tilt the note to see the numeral 50 in the lower right corner on the front of the note shift from green to black.

    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait.  The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 and a small flag in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note.  The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Watermark

    Watermark

    Hold the note to light and look for a faint image of President Grant in the blank space to the right of the portrait.  The image is visible from both sides of the note.

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Color-Shifting Ink

    Tilt the note to see the numeral 50 in the lower right corner on the front of the note shift from green to black.

    1990 - 1997 - front
    1990 - 1997 - front
    1990 - 1997 - back
    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait.  The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note.  The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Microprinting

    Look carefully (magnification may be necessary) to see the small printed words THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA along the outer edge of the portrait’s oval frame.

    Security Thread

    Security Thread

    Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the right of the portrait.  The thread is imprinted with the text USA 50 in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note.  The thread glows yellow when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

    Microprinting

    Look carefully (magnification may be necessary) to see the small printed words THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA along the outer edge of the portrait’s oval frame.

    1914-1990 - front
    1914-1990 - front
    1914-1990 - back
    Federal Reserve Bank Seal

    Federal Reserve Bank Seal

    A black seal to the left of the portrait bears the name of the distributing Federal Reserve Bank. 

    Raised Printing

    Raised Printing

    Move your finger along the note’s surface to feel the raised printing, which gives genuine Federal Reserve notes their distinctive texture.

    Paper

    Paper

    Federal Reserve note paper is one-fourth linen and three-fourths cotton, and contains red and blue security fibers.

    Portrait and Vignette

    Portrait and Vignette

    The $50 note features a portrait of President Grant on the front of the note.  The vignette on the back of the note changed in 1929 to feature the United States Capitol.

    Treasury Seal

    Treasury Seal

    A seal to the right of the portrait represents the U.S. Department of the Treasury.  The design of the seal was changed to incorporate 
    an English inscription and appears on all Federal Reserve notes of the 1969 series year or later. 

    Serial Numbers

    Serial Numbers

    A combination of numbers and letters appears twice on the front of the note.

    Federal Reserve Bank Seal

    Federal Reserve Bank Seal

    A black seal to the left of the portrait bears the name of the distributing Federal Reserve Bank. 

    Raised Printing

    Raised Printing

    Move your finger along the note’s surface to feel the raised printing, which gives genuine Federal Reserve notes their distinctive texture.

    Paper

    Paper

    Federal Reserve note paper is one-fourth linen and three-fourths cotton, and contains red and blue security fibers.

    Portrait and Vignette

    Portrait and Vignette

    The $50 note features a portrait of President Grant on the front of the note.  The vignette on the back of the note changed in 1929 to feature the United States Capitol.

    Treasury Seal

    Treasury Seal

    A seal to the right of the portrait represents the U.S. Department of the Treasury.  The design of the seal was changed to incorporate 
    an English inscription and appears on all Federal Reserve notes of the 1969 series year or later. 

    Serial Numbers

    Serial Numbers

    A combination of numbers and letters appears twice on the front of the note.

    The $50 note features subtle background colors of blue and red, and includes an embedded security thread that glows yellow when illuminated by UV light. When held to light, a portrait watermark of President Grant is visible from both sides of the note. The note includes a color-shifting numeral 50 in the lower right corner of the note.

    Fifty dollars

    $50 Note Life Cycle

    Before a Federal Reserve note enters circulation, it must pass through four critical steps: design, order, production, and issuance.

    • 364.8
      million notes
      2018 FY Print Order
    • $86.4
      billion
      2017 Value in Circulation
    • 8.5
      years
      Estimated Lifespan