US currency denominations

Denomination	Portrait	Notes
$1 bill	George Washington	Most common; backed by Federal Reserve
$5 bill	Abraham Lincoln	Redesigned 2008
$10 bill	Alexander Hamilton	Smallest denomination with UV security thread
$20 bill	Andrew Jackson	Most frequently counterfeited denomination
$50 bill	Ulysses S. Grant	"Gold thread" woven through paper
$100 bill	Benjamin Franklin	Most widely held outside the US

Making change efficiently

The greedy algorithm works for US currency: always use the largest denomination possible without exceeding the remaining amount. This minimizes the number of bills and coins. Example: $7.43 change = $5 + $2 + $0.25 + $0.10 + $0.05 + $0.03 = 7 coins/bills.

US coin denominations

Coin	Value	Notes
Penny	$0.01	Lincoln portrait; copper-plated zinc
Nickel	$0.05	Jefferson portrait
Dime	$0.10	Roosevelt portrait; smallest US coin by size
Quarter	$0.25	Washington portrait; most-used coin in transactions
Half dollar	$0.50	Kennedy portrait; rarely circulated
Dollar coin	$1.00	Presidential / Sacagawea series; seldom used

Multi-currency note

This counter is configured for US dollars. If you are counting UK pounds, EU euros, or other currencies, note that denomination structures differ. For example, the EU uses 1 and 2 euro coins alongside 5, 10, 20, and 50 cent coins. The greedy algorithm still applies for making change in any decimal currency system.

Cash register reconciliation

At the end of a shift, a standard cash reconciliation process is:

Count all bills and coins in the drawer (your "closing count").
Subtract the starting float (the opening cash placed in the drawer).
Compare the result to the net cash sales recorded by the POS system.
Any difference is an "over" (too much cash) or "short" (too little). Typical acceptable variance is ±$1–2 per shift.