EPQ vs. PPQ Explained: Why Those Three Letters Can Double the Value of Your Currency Note

Walk into any major currency auction and you will see it repeatedly: two notes with identical numerical grades sitting side by side, yet one commands nearly twice the price of the other. The difference often comes down to three letters printed on the label. EPQ. PPQ. These qualifiers are not marketing gimmicks. They represent a specific, carefully defined standard that the hobby’s two dominant third-party grading services, Paper Money Guaranty (PMG) and PCGS Currency, use to separate genuinely original, problem-free examples from the vast ocean of cleaned, pressed, and otherwise compromised notes that flood the market every year. If you have ever wondered why a PMG 64 EPQ note outperforms a raw note or even a straight PMG 64 at auction, this guide will give you the answers.

A Brief History of Why These Qualifiers Exist

Before third-party grading became standard practice in the early 2000s, paper money collecting was a strictly buyer-beware marketplace. Dealers and collectors routinely pressed notes between book pages or glass plates to reduce folds, applied chemical solutions to brighten dull paper, and added graphite or color to boost apparent brightness. These manipulations were not always disclosed. A note graded Very Fine by one dealer might be a pressed, cleaned example that would genuinely grade only Fine or even Very Good in its natural state. Buyers had no reliable way to know.

PMG launched its grading service in 2005, followed by PCGS Currency building out its paper money division from the coin-focused PCGS infrastructure that had operated since 1986. Both services recognized from the outset that a purely numerical grade, while useful, told only half the story. A note could receive a grade of 64 based on its fold pattern, centering, and eye appeal, yet still be a pressed or chemically treated example. The qualifier system was the solution. EPQ from PMG and PPQ from PCGS Currency signal to buyers that the note has passed an additional test: the paper itself is original, unaltered, and free from any restoration or enhancement.

What EPQ Actually Means: The PMG Standard

PMG defines Exceptional Paper Quality as a designation awarded when a note exhibits paper that is original in every respect, free from any form of restoration, cleaning, or pressing, and displays a brightness and body consistent with its age and circulation history. Critically, EPQ is not awarded automatically to high-grade notes. A PMG 65 Gem Uncirculated note can fail to receive EPQ if graders detect even subtle evidence of pressing or artificial brightening.

The practical criteria PMG graders apply include checking paper body (the stiffness and crispness natural to an unaltered note), surface texture under raking light, and any evidence of fiber disturbance that would indicate the note was ironed or pressed. They also examine the ink layer under magnification, looking for any evidence that solvents have been applied. Natural aging is not a disqualifier. A note can have light foxing spots or even minor staining and still receive EPQ, provided those characteristics are original and the paper has not been treated. PMG EPQ notes at grades of 63 and 64 frequently sell for prices that match or exceed non-EPQ notes graded one or even two points higher.

What PPQ Actually Means: The PCGS Currency Standard

PCGS Currency uses the designation Premium Paper Quality to convey essentially the same concept, though the service’s internal review process differs somewhat from PMG’s. PPQ notes are those that PCGS graders determine have never been cleaned, pressed, or restored. PCGS Currency also uses the designator “OPH” (Original Paper Highlights) in certain contexts on older, large-size material to describe notes that retain natural sheen without artificial enhancement, though PPQ remains the primary qualifier collectors watch for on labels.

One meaningful difference in practice: PCGS Currency has historically been somewhat more selective about awarding PPQ on certain series where pressing is endemic. Large-size National Bank Notes from the 1880s through 1920s, for instance, are notorious for having been pressed by previous owners across generations. PCGS graders are acutely aware of this and scrutinize these notes with particular care. A PPQ designation on a National Bank Note can carry exceptional weight in the marketplace for exactly this reason.

Where the Two Services Diverge

Despite serving the same fundamental purpose, EPQ and PPQ are not always awarded under identical circumstances. Collectors who submit to both services regularly note a few consistent differences worth understanding.

First, PMG tends to award EPQ somewhat more liberally on circulated material in the Fine-40 to Very Fine-35 range, whereas PCGS Currency is more conservative at those same grades, sometimes declining to award PPQ when folds have created any subtle paper softening that could theoretically indicate light pressing. Second, PMG uses a wider range of additional qualifiers on its labels beyond EPQ, including designations like “Star” for star notes and specific comments for net grading situations, while PCGS Currency’s label real estate is used somewhat differently. Third, the handling of small tears and minor margin issues differs between the two services. PMG may net grade a note with a small margin split and still award EPQ if the paper body is original, while PCGS Currency may handle the same note differently.

The Real-World Price Impact: Specific Examples

Abstract descriptions of grading philosophy matter less than concrete numbers. Looking at Heritage Auctions and Stack’s Bowers realized prices from 2022 through 2024, the premium for EPQ and PPQ notes is consistently measurable across series.

Consider the 1934-A $1,000 Federal Reserve Note. In PMG 63, non-EPQ examples have realized between $8,500 and $11,000 at major auctions. PMG 63 EPQ examples of the same note from the same Federal Reserve districts have consistently realized $14,000 to $18,000. That is a premium of approximately 50% to 70% for the qualifier alone at the same numerical grade. Similarly, for the 1880 $1 Legal Tender (Fr. 29), a note with a vivid red Treasury seal, PMG VF-30 examples without EPQ might realize $275 to $350, while VF-30 EPQ examples of the same Friedberg number have reached $500 to $650 when the paper body is particularly bright and original.

Even on common modern Federal Reserve Notes, qualifiers matter for registry set builders. A 1963-A $1 FRN graded PMG 67 EPQ is a meaningfully different asset than the same note at 67 without EPQ, particularly for series where top-pop registry competition is active.

When EPQ or PPQ Is NOT Awarded: Understanding the Qualifiers That Replace Them

Both services use additional label designations when a note has a specific problem that prevents a clean qualifier but does not make the note ungradeable. PMG uses comments such as “Stains,” “Rust,” “Minor Repair,” “Tears,” “Writing,” and “Tape” directly on the label, typically resulting in a net grade that is lower than the note’s actual paper quality would otherwise suggest. A note with a small piece of tape on the reverse might have VF-25 paper but receive a net grade of 15 or 20 with a “Tape” comment. These notes will never receive EPQ regardless of how original the rest of the paper is.

PCGS Currency uses a similar system of comments and net grades. The key point for collectors is that a note bearing any problem notation will not receive PPQ. If you are looking at a slab with a problem comment and no PPQ designation, you are looking at a compromised note, and pricing should reflect that accordingly.

Practical Guidance for Collectors Building a Type Set

For collectors assembling a type set of US currency, the question of whether to insist on EPQ or PPQ examples involves real tradeoffs. For common 20th-century Federal Reserve Notes in grades of 63 to 67, qualified examples are plentiful and the premium is manageable. For truly rare items, such as a high-grade Demand Note, a Hawaiian overprint, or a Battleship National Bank Note, insisting on a qualifier can mean waiting years for the right example to appear. The practical advice here is tiered.

For notes worth under $500 in the grade you are targeting: insist on EPQ or PPQ. The supply is adequate and the cost premium is not prohibitive. Buying non-qualified examples in this range is often a false economy. For notes in the $500 to $5,000 range: strongly prefer qualified examples but be willing to wait for the right one rather than settling. For notes worth over $5,000 in top grades, particularly for series with tiny surviving populations: evaluate on a case-by-case basis. A note of extreme rarity may be worth acquiring even without a qualifier if the grade is high and the problem (if any) is minor and fully disclosed on the label.

Submitting Your Own Notes: Getting the Best Outcome

If you plan to submit notes for grading and are hoping for an EPQ or PPQ qualifier, preparation and handling matter enormously. Always handle notes by the edges, never the face or reverse. Store notes in archival polyethylene or Mylar holders, never PVC-based pages, which can leach plasticizers onto paper surfaces and mimic the appearance of light cleaning. Do not attempt to flatten a fold before submission. Graders are trained to see fold patterns and will recognize when a note has been pressed, but they cannot know whether that pressing happened 30 years ago or yesterday. The grade will reflect the fold pattern regardless, and pressing eliminates the qualifier.

When choosing between submitting to PMG or PCGS Currency, consider your end audience. PMG slabs are more frequently referenced in mainstream currency auction descriptions and are the dominant standard in many online registry communities. PCGS Currency slabs carry strong credibility, particularly among crossover coin collectors who are familiar with the PCGS brand. For modern Federal Reserve Note collecting specifically, PMG has the larger and more widely tracked population report, which matters for registry competition.

Conclusion: Three Letters That Define a Collection

The EPQ and PPQ qualifiers are not abstract grading bureaucracy. They represent a meaningful commitment by grading services to help collectors distinguish original, unaltered paper money from the vast quantity of cleaned, pressed, and otherwise manipulated notes that have circulated through the hobby for generations. Understanding what these qualifiers mean, when they are awarded, and how they affect value gives collectors a genuine advantage in building better collections and making smarter purchases. Whether you collect obsolete territorial notes, small-size Federal Reserve Notes by district and series, or high-denomination gold certificates, notes that carry these qualifiers represent the standard of quality that serious numismatists have come to expect. Build your collection accordingly, and those three letters will reward you every time you sit down to evaluate what you own.