What kind of paper is used to make money?

Money is made with a paper called rag paper, which is made of cotton and linen fibers, How Stuff Works states. Rag paper is thinner than regular paper made from tree cellulose and does not disintegrate when put through a washing machine.

Thousands of pounds of pressure are put on rag paper when it is used for money, a process that makes the paper thinner and gives crispness to new bills, according to How Stuff Works. Fine red and blue fibers are mixed with other elements when the rag paper is made. These fibers are used to help distinguish real money from counterfeit money as they are readily seen in real money but are so small they do not accurately replicate in counterfeit money.