Money Printed Today

The US Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces approximately 38 million banknotes per day with a face value of about $1.22 billion. However about 90% of this replaces worn or damaged currency already in circulation rather than adding new money to the economy. The true expansion of the money supply — measured by M2 — is approximately $2.1 billion per day.

M2 is the Federal Reserve's broad measure of money in circulation. It includes physical cash, checking accounts, savings accounts, and money market funds. As of 2026 the US M2 money supply is approximately $21.5 trillion. When economists talk about money supply growth they are typically referring to M2 not just physical cash.

Money supply growth can contribute to inflation when it outpaces economic growth. When more dollars chase the same amount of goods prices tend to rise. The US experienced significant inflation from 2021 to 2023 partly due to the large M2 expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic when M2 grew by over 25% in a single year.

The Federal Reserve controls monetary policy including the money supply through interest rates and open market operations. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing physically produces banknotes but the Fed controls how many notes enter circulation. Congress and the Treasury Department manage fiscal policy which also affects money supply indirectly.

US M2 money supply grew from approximately $15.4 trillion in February 2020 to $21.7 trillion by April 2022 — an increase of roughly $6.3 trillion or 41% in just over two years. This was the largest peacetime expansion of the US money supply in history and contributed significantly to the inflation surge of 2021-2023.

This counter uses Federal Reserve M2 money supply data published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED database). The annual growth rate is calculated from the most recent 12-month M2 change. Physical note production figures are from the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing annual report. Source: Federal Reserve FRED — fred.stlouisfed.org