Have you ever used Japanese currency? I’m now in Canada, and I rarely use coins or bills to pay here because we can use credit/ debit cards almost anywhere in Canada. At first, I’m really surprised and a little confused people here usually use cards at any shops. But currency and the system to pay is one of the most important thing to travel, right? So today, let’s learn really basic things about currency of Japan.
What is the unit of Japanese currency?
Japanese currency is called “yen”. You can often see this kanji, 円, for “yen” all over Japan.
How strong is yen?
As of July 17, 2019, the exchange rates are…
CAD1 = about JPY 83
USD1 = about JPY 108
EUR1 = about JPY 120
CHY1 = about JPY 16
How many types of currency does Japan have?
Japanese currency can be divided into 2 types, one is coin, the other is bill. In terms of coins, there are 6 kinds of coins in Japan. Those are…
- 1 yen (coin)
- 5 yen (coin)
- 10 yen (coin)
- 50 yen (coin)
- 100 yen (coin)
- 500 yen (coin)
What about bills? There are only theree!
- 1ooo yen ( bill)
- 5000 yen (bill)
- 10000yen (bill)
So in total, there are 9 kinds of currency in Japan.
What are the materials of Japanese currency?
All bills are made of PAPER! As for coins, there are some materials, but they all are made of metal.
If you get Japanese bills, please be careful not to get them wet and also not to tear them. If they are in a good condition, for example you tore them and missed a part of it, you can’t use them! Take a great care of bills!
What do the coins & bills look like?
Here are the pictures of Japanese currency. As for coins, 500 yen coin is the largest. The colors of coin are all different to each other, so you can easily find the differences and use them correctly!
These pictures of coins are from wikipedia.
In terms of bills, they are almost the same size but colors and the patterns are really different from each other. It’s easy to use them properly as well.
These pictures of bills are from Bank of Japan.
The next article is going to be about the things or people written on coins or bills, so please check it out, too!
