This study examined the applicability of the ATP bioluminescence assay for the efficient screening of paper-based records requiring disinfection for preservation. For the investigation, microbial contamination was measured on the surfaces of six types of paper-based records (fine-print paper, medium-print paper, ground paper, newsprint paper, practice paper, and tracing paper) using two ATP luminometers (Lumitester SMART PD-30 and 3MTM Clean-TraceTM LM1) at the National Archives of Korea. Among the six paper-based record types, medium-quality paper, tracing paper, and fineprint paper exhibited the highest contamination levels, confirming varying degrees of vulnerability based on the materials. RLU values were measured in the records of old drawings from the year 1111 and in records from the year 1831. RLU values were also present in the records from the years 1904 and 1911. The records from the year 1922 showed high RLU values of 3,639 and 2,662 in both ATP luminometers, indicating a very high level of microbial contamination. The RLU of the drawings stored in NF501 storage ranged from 7 to 57 (LM1 measurement) and 64 to 524 (PD-30 measurement). Overall, measurements of records on paper materials that had not been disinfected showed microbial contamination levels ranging from low to very high, and these materials consisted of records dating from 1900 to 2003. Furthermore, the Lumitester SMART PD-30 luminometer yielded significantly higher RLU values than the 3MTM Clean-TraceTM LM luminometer, demonstrating a substantial discrepancy between the two devices. Therefore, to ensure the reliability and efficiency of the disinfection process, it is necessary to standardize the use of ATP-specific detection methods.