Everything You Need To Know About The New Benjamins

The new $100 bill goes into circulation on Tuesday. Find out how to check if your bill is legit.

By
Michelle Broder Van Dyke
by Michelle Broder Van Dyke

BuzzFeed News Reporter

1. The bill feels different.

Mark Wilson / Via Getty Images

For the first time, the engraving process includes the effect of "raised printing," giving the bill a distinct texture around Benjamin Franklin’s shoulder on the left side of the note. "It should feel rough to the touch, a result of the enhanced intaglio printing process used to create the image," explains newmoney.gov, a website affiliated with the Federal Reserve Board, U.S. Secret Service, and the Treasury Department.

2. A new 3D blue security ribbon is set next to Franklin's head.

Via newmoney.gov

Tilt the note back and forth while focusing on the blue ribbon, and you will see the bells change to 100s. To make fakes more difficult, the blue ribbon is woven into the bill — not printed on it. Also, the background color of the new $100 note is pale blue, but the color can be counterfeited so it won't be used to determine if the bill is real.

3. And there's a new copper-colored bell in the inkwell icon.

Via newmoney.gov

Within the inkwell is another security feature, a color-shifting bell that changes from copper to green when you tilt the note.

4. A quill above the inkwell represents the pen used by the Founding Fathers to sign the Declaration of Independence.

To the right of Ben's portrait, the new $100 note features the quill the Founding Fathers used to sign the historic document.

5. A watermark of Franklin's face is still there, and it has been simplified for the new note.

Via newmoney.gov

Hold a note to the light to see Benjamin Franklin's face appear on the right side of the bill.

6. An embedded thread reads "USA" and "100" in an alternating pattern, and also glows pink.

Via newmoney.gov

An embedded thread running vertically in the left of the bill becomes visible when it is held to the light. The thread is imprinted with the letters "USA" and "100" in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread also glows pink when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

7. Very small words are printed in several places on the bill.

newmoney.gov
newmoney.gov

Look carefully to see words printed around Benjamin Franklin's jacket collar, around the blank space containing the portrait watermark, along the golden quill, and in the note borders.

8. And a large gold 100 is featured on the back.

Mark Wilson / Via Getty Images

A large gold 100 on the back of the note helps those with visual impairments distinguish the denomination, says newmoney.gov.

9. A new picture of Independence Hall appears on the back of the bill too.

Via newmoney.gov

There is a new vignette of Independence Hall featuring the back, rather than the front, of the building.

10. New $100 notes printed in Fort Worth will have a small "F.W." in the top left corner of the bill's face, just to the right of the numeral 100.

Getty Images
Mark Wilson

Getty Images

The redesigned $100 notes are printed in two locations: Washington, D.C., and Fort Worth, Texas. New $100 notes printed in Fort Worth, will have a small F.W. in the top left corner on the front of the note to the right of the numeral 100. If the note does not have an F.W. indicator, then it was printed in Washington, D.C.

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