United States Dollar (USD)

United States Dollar information, convert to all major global currencies, check exchange rates for USD with the WorldRemit Currency Converter calculator.

The US Dollar is the official currency of the United States of America, and is represented by the ‘$’ symbol. Dollars are often called ‘Bucks’ – this slang dates back to the colonial period in US history when ‘buckskins’ were used for trade. Today, the USD is the most-traded currency on the foreign exchange market, a truly ‘global’ currency.

The US Dollar USD

Key characteristics of the US Dollar

ISO currency code	USD
Common names	Bucks, Greenbacks, Benjamins
Symbol	$
Minor unit	Cent (¢)
Coin denominations	1¢, 5¢, 10¢, 25¢, 50¢
Bank note denominations	$1, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100
Central Bank	Federal Reserve Bank

A brief history of the US Dollar

The use of dollars as paper currency in the US dates back to 1690, when colonial notes were issued by the Massachusetts Bay Colony for funding military operations. However, it wasn’t until 1785 that the US officially adopted the ‘$’ dollar sign. And it was later still, in 1914, following the inauguration of the Federal Reserve Bank, that the first centralised US dollar was actually printed.

Today, close to 60% of all foreign bank reserves are denominated in US dollars.

3 fun facts about the US Dollar

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#1 The notes are practically tear-proof

Think you could tear a dollar note in half? We’d like to see you try. Each dollar bill has been engineered to take 4,000 double folds, forwards and backwards, before it tears.

#2 The ‘$’ sign was first used in 1785

The dollar sign owes its existence to the Spanish symbol for pesos. It’s believed the $ comes from an abbreviation of pesos: ‘PS’. Overtime, the S came to be written over the P, and the letters converged into the $ sign we know today.

#3 Martha Washington is the only woman to appear on a US Dollar bill

To this day, Martha Washington (the wife of George Washington, first president of the United States) is the only woman to have featured on a US paper currency note.

Which countries use the US Dollar?

The US is regarded as a global currency, and is also the world’s predominant reserve currency. This is largely because of the 1944 Bretton Woods Agreement, post World War 2, when the allied forces sought to create an international trade and monetary system. Today, it’s held in large quantities by foreign banks around the world – the greatest stockpile is held by China.

The US Dollar is official currency in: the US, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Ecuador, the Republic of El Salvador, the Republic of Zimbabwe, Guam, the Virgin Islands of the United States, the British Virgin Islands of the United States, the British Virgin Islands, the Democratic Republic of Tinor-Leste, Bonaire, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Palau, Marshall Islands, Panama, Turks and Caicos Islands.