Every serious currency collector has heard the phrase “condition rarity” tossed around at shows and on auction floor, but precious few know how to systematically hunt for it. A note might have a print run of several million, yet fewer than a handful survive in Gem Uncirculated condition. The inverse is also true: a note with a modest mintage might turn up in high grades with surprising frequency if it was set aside at the time of issue. The PMG (Paper Money Guaranty) Population Report is the tool that separates guesswork from data-driven collecting, and learning to read it fluently can give you a genuine edge in the marketplace.
What the PMG Population Report Actually Is
PMG launched its population report as a running census of every note the company has authenticated and graded. Each entry records the Friedberg catalog number (the standard reference number used in Robert Friedberg’s “Paper Money of the United States,” now in its 22nd edition), the specific series year, Federal Reserve district or issuing authority, and the total number of notes graded at each grade level from 10 through 70. The data accumulates over time, meaning a pop report pulled today will differ from one pulled six months from now as newly submitted notes enter the registry.
For U.S. small-size notes, the report breaks down by series (for example, Series 1934, 1934-A, 1950-B), by Federal Reserve district (Boston through San Francisco, identified by letter A through L), and crucially, by star note versus regular issue. This granularity is what makes the tool so powerful: you are not just looking at a denomination in the abstract, but at a highly specific variety within that denomination.
Understanding Conditional Rarity vs. Absolute Rarity
Absolute rarity refers to a low total print run. A note like the 1890 $1,000 Treasury Note (Fr. 379a) is absolutely rare because only a handful were ever produced and perhaps a dozen are known to exist in any condition. Conditional rarity is a different animal entirely. The Series 1950-E $5 Federal Reserve Note from the Chicago district (Fr. 1967-G) had a perfectly respectable print run, yet the PMG census shows fewer than fifteen examples in PMG 65 Gem Uncirculated or better. Notes from the 1950 series circulated heavily during the postwar economic boom, and surviving high-grade examples are genuinely scarce despite the millions originally printed.
When evaluating a note’s desirability, always check BOTH the total print run from a reference like the Standard Catalog of United States Paper Money AND the PMG pop report for that specific series and district. A note with 2 million printed but only 4 graded above PMG 64 is functionally rarer in top condition than a note with 50,000 printed but 200 high-grade survivors.
How to Navigate the PMG Pop Report Step by Step
Start at PMGnotes.com and click “Population Report” in the navigation menu. You will find a search interface that accepts Friedberg numbers, series years, or denomination keywords. For the sharpest results, enter a specific Friedberg number. If you are researching the Series 1928-B $1 Legal Tender Note, enter Fr. 1500 and the report will display columns for every grade from VF 25 through 70, showing the total graded at each level.
The columns you want to study closely are the high-end grades: PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated, PMG 64 Choice Uncirculated, PMG 65 Gem Uncirculated, PMG 66 Gem Uncirculated, PMG 67 Superb Gem, 68, and the near-mythical 69 and 70. A note with 400 total graded examples but only 3 in PMG 65 or better tells a compelling story about survival rates in top condition. That note in PMG 65 is not “one of 400” at auction; it is effectively “one of 3.”
Always check for EPQ (Exceptional Paper Quality) designations separately. PMG awards EPQ when a note retains original paper quality with no repairs, no cleaning, and no pressing. An EPQ example typically commands a 20 to 40 percent premium over a non-EPQ example at the same numerical grade, and in some cases the premium is far larger because the EPQ population is a small subset of the already-thin high-grade total.
Filter specifically for EPQ designations when using the pop report. For many 1928-era small-size notes and pre-1950 large-size nationals, the number of PMG 65 EPQ examples can be in the single digits even when the total PMG 65 population is twenty or thirty notes. That EPQ subset is where the real conditional rarity lives.
Real-World Examples: Where the Pop Report Reveals Hidden Gems
Series 1928 $1 Legal Tender Notes
The Series 1928 $1 Legal Tender Note (Fr. 1500) is a favorite entry point for small-size collectors. The total print run was 1,872,012 notes, which sounds substantial. However, these circulated in everyday commerce during the Great Depression and were used hard. Pull the PMG pop report and you will find the total graded population is healthy, but the PMG 65 EPQ population is remarkably thin, often showing fewer than 20 examples. Finding one at a major auction in 2022 realized over $800, a multiple of what raw examples in comparable stated grades bring from dealers.
Federal Reserve Bank Notes, Series 1929
Series 1929 Federal Reserve Bank Notes (Fr. 1860 through Fr. 1890 across denominations and districts) present a fascinating pop report study. The $5 Minneapolis (Fr. 1870-I) and $5 Kansas City (Fr. 1870-J) districts had among the lower print runs in the series, but the PMG census often shows that some higher-print-run districts like Chicago (Fr. 1870-G) are actually tougher to find in PMG 64 or better because they circulated more intensively in the Midwest banking system. The pop report cuts through regional mythology and shows you the hard numbers.
Star Notes Across Multiple Series
Star notes, printed as replacements for damaged notes during production, consistently produce some of the most dramatic conditional rarity findings in the pop report. The Series 1963-A $1 Federal Reserve Star Note from the Minneapolis district (Fr. 1900-I*) had a small replacement print run to begin with, but the pop report reveals that PMG 67 Superb Gem examples number in the low single digits. These regularly sell for $500 to $1,200 at Heritage or Stack’s Bowers auctions, while a PMG 67 common-district star from the same series might bring $50.
Cross-Referencing with the PCGS Currency Population Report
PMG is not the only third-party grading company for currency. PCGS Currency (formerly known as PCGS Banknote) maintains its own population report, and savvy collectors cross-reference both. A note might show only 2 examples in PMG 65 but 8 examples in PCGS 65, painting a more complete picture of the true high-grade population. Conversely, some note types were submitted overwhelmingly to one service versus the other, making one report more statistically meaningful.
The important discipline is to add the two populations together before drawing conclusions, while remaining aware that the grading standards between services are not perfectly calibrated. A PMG 65 EPQ and a PCGS 65 PPQ (Premium Paper Quality) are broadly equivalent but not interchangeable in the eyes of all buyers, and in some specialized series like National Bank Notes, one service is strongly preferred by registry set collectors, which affects realized prices independently of raw census numbers.
Before bidding on a conditionally rare note at auction, search both the PMG and PCGS Currency population reports and add the high-grade totals together. Then check auction archives on Heritage Auctions and Stack’s Bowers going back at least five years. If the combined high-grade population is under ten examples but the note rarely appears at auction, you may be looking at a sleeper with strong upside potential.
Building a Pop Report Spreadsheet for Your Collection Focus
One of the most productive exercises for a focused collector is to build a simple spreadsheet mapping pop report data across an entire series. Choose a collecting focus, for instance all twelve districts of the Series 1950-B $10 Federal Reserve Note (Fr. 2010-A through Fr. 2010-L). Pull the PMG pop report for each Friedberg number and record the PMG 64, 65, 66, and 67 populations in your spreadsheet. You will almost certainly discover that certain districts are dramatically underrepresented in top grades relative to their print runs, while others seem to survive well. This exercise transforms abstract collecting goals into a precise target list.
Repeat this process annually because the pop report is a living document. As estate collections surface and new submissions arrive, the census changes. A note that was unique in PMG 67 in 2018 might now have two or three companions, which affects both its rarity story and its market value.
Important Limitations to Keep in Mind
No tool is perfect, and the pop report has meaningful limitations. First, it only reflects graded examples. Millions of notes survive in private collections, bank trays, and shoeboxes, never submitted to a grading service. The pop report tells you how many have been graded, not how many exist. For recent series (post-1990), large populations of ungraded Gem notes likely exist and could theoretically flood the pop report if submitted en masse, which would instantly deflate any conditional rarity premium.
Second, crack-outs and resubmissions create some inflation. A collector who cracks a PMG 64 out of its holder and resubmits hoping for a 65 is not adding a new note to the census, but if it upgrades, the 64 population drops by one and the 65 gains one. In aggregate these events are relatively rare, but for notes where the total graded population is already small, a few resubmissions can meaningfully distort the data.
| Series / Friedberg No. | Denomination and Type | Total Print Run | Rarity in PMG 65+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1928 / Fr. 1500 | $1 Legal Tender | 1,872,012 | Scarce |
| 1928-A / Fr. 1501 | $1 Legal Tender | 1,872,012 | Rare |
| 1950-E / Fr. 1967-G | $5 FRN Chicago | approx. 3.2 million | Rare |
| 1929 / Fr. 1870-I | $5 FRBN Minneapolis | 1,476,000 | Key Date |
| 1963-A / Fr. 1900-I* | $1 FRN Star, Minneapolis | approx. 640,000 | Key Date |
| 1934-A / Fr. 2306 | $500 FRN (any district) | approx. 200,000 combined | Rare |
| 1935-A / Fr. 1607* | $1 Silver Certificate Star | aprox. 4.8 million | Scarce |
| 1950-B / Fr. 2010-B | $10 FRN New York | approx. 94.4 million | Common |
| 1950-B / Fr. 2010-E | $10 FRN Richmond | approx. 7.2 million | Scarce |
| 1966 / Fr. 1550 | $100 Legal Tender | 768,000 | Key Date |
Putting It All Together: A Practical Collecting Strategy
The collectors who use pop report data most effectively tend to share a few habits. They pick a focused collecting area, whether that is Series 1935 Silver Certificates, 1929 National Bank Notes from a specific state, or high-denomination Federal Reserve Notes from the 1934 series. They build that spreadsheet of pop data across every variety in their focus area. They set alerts on Heritage Auctions for Friedberg numbers where the PMG 65 or better population is under ten. And they are patient, sometimes waiting years for a specific conditionally rare note to surface at a price below its intrinsic value.
The pop report does not replace expertise in grading, paper quality, or market timing. A PMG 65 is not automatically worth buying at any price simply because the census shows only five examples. But combined with knowledge of typical realized prices, an understanding of the collector base for that specific type, and your own grading eye, the pop report becomes an irreplaceable compass pointing toward the notes that are genuinely undervalued by the broader market.
Currency collecting rewards the patient and the informed in equal measure. The PMG Population Report is, at its core, a democratizing tool: it hands any collector, regardless of experience level, the same statistical foundation that major dealers use when acquiring inventory. All that remains is knowing what to do with it.
