Money clips are devices that are used to hold money in lieu of the wallet. It is a good option to carry around for the gentleman who wants to carry some handy cash without the trouble of pulling out a wallet. It is a folded metal about two inches by one inch and is shaped like a letter U that clamps money together.

People who are often in the upper echelons of society prefer the money clip because it is easier to use and is a status symbol than the bulkier wallets.

Materials used for money clips are gold, silver, titanium, platinum, leather, magnets and aluminum. Precious stones are also often a part of the money clip giving it a status that is more preferred than the wallet. A jeweler can personalize money clips to make it more representative of your personality. You can have it monogrammed or in any designs that you want. Just like any other good accessory, money clips are good statements of yourself and you can have it designed in whatever fashion you would like.

But whichever design you choose, money clips are good accessories for formal attire and in formal occasions like black tie parties and weddings. Professionals also choose the money clip, as it is more appropriate in business settings than the wallet that has a workingman stigma to it.

Money clips today can also come in bigger sizes that can be about three times larger than the traditional ones. Newer designs can be attached to credit card holders that can house business cards and ATM cards.

There are four basic kinds of money clips depending on the preference of the user.

The Magnetic Money Clip

Magnetic money clips are made from two rectangular magnets covered in leather where one end of the rectangle swings the money clip to open and to close. It has the best carrying capacity than metal money clips holding as many as 15 folded bills.

The Metal Money Clip

Metal money clips are the most luxurious of all clips. Typically, the metal money clip is a folded rectangular precious metal. With the exemption of titanium, metal money clips can hold few amounts of folded bills because of the unbendable property of the material. Modifications in design however can enable you to carry more bills like money clips that are spring activated.

The Hybrid Money Clip

Hybrid money clips are those that are designed to hold both cash credit cards and ATM cards. It can come designed with a solid plastic clip or a magnetic clip to hold the cash together. Storus and Stienhausen are the more popular makers of the hybrid money clips. This money clip variant can be designed in many various and creative ways that cannot easily be found in any store.

The Rubber Band Variant

While this is not really a money clip, the rubber band variant also serves the same purpose as the clips. The rubber band variant is simply an oversized and overpriced rubber band. What it does is lump together your credit cards and ties in the cash, as you would do with any ordinary fat rubber band.

A money clip can add prestige to your attire and a good addition to your collection of accessories. Money clips have been used and has been identified with the gentleman then and now.