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Canadian Dollar (C$)

The Canadian Dollar (CAD, ISO 4217 code 124, symbol C$) is the official currency of Canada, issued by the Bank of Canada (est. 1934). Subdivided into 100 cents. Banknotes are polymer (since 2011-2013 transition): C$5, C$10 (featured Viola Desmond as the first non-royal woman on a Canadian regular-circulation note, 2018), C$20 (Queen Elizabeth II → King Charles III planned), C$50, C$100; coins: 5¢ (nickel), 10¢ (dime), 25¢ (quarter), 50¢ (rare), C$1 ('loonie' featuring the common loon Gavia immer, 1987-), C$2 ('toonie', bimetallic, 1996-). The 1¢ penny was withdrawn from circulation 2013 (cash transactions rounded to nearest 5¢). CAD is closely correlated with crude oil prices — Canada is the world's 4th-largest oil producer (~5 million bpd) and the largest US import source. The Bank of Canada targets 2% CPI inflation per its inflation-control agreement (renewed every 5 years, most recently December 2021).

Reviewed by Christopher FloiedUpdated

The Canadian Dollar (C$) is a unit of currency used in scientific, engineering, and practical contexts. Unit standardization in the field of currency has evolved over centuries as international scientific bodies and engineering organizations developed consistent measurement frameworks. The International System of Units (SI) provides the modern foundation for most technical measurements, though legacy units from national and industrial traditions continue to be used alongside SI units in many fields. The Canadian Dollar is precisely defined to ensure consistent, reproducible measurements across laboratories and industries worldwide.

Accurate currency measurement is critical in engineering, science, commerce, and everyday life. Using the correct unit and applying conversions precisely prevents errors that can be costly or dangerous in professional applications. MegaCalc provides instant, precise conversions for the Canadian Dollar and all related units so you can work confidently across unit systems.

Conversions Involving Canadian Dollar

US DollarCanadian Dollar

$C$

EuroCanadian Dollar

C$

British PoundCanadian Dollar

£C$

Japanese YenCanadian Dollar

¥C$

Australian DollarCanadian Dollar

A$C$

Canadian DollarUS Dollar

C$$

Canadian DollarEuro

C$

Canadian DollarBritish Pound

C$£

Canadian DollarJapanese Yen

C$¥

Canadian DollarAustralian Dollar

C$A$

Canadian DollarSwiss Franc

C$Fr

Canadian DollarChinese Yuan

C$¥

Canadian DollarIndian Rupee

C$

Canadian DollarSouth Korean Won

C$

Canadian DollarSwedish Krona

C$kr

Canadian DollarNorwegian Krone

C$kr

Canadian DollarDanish Krone

C$kr

Canadian DollarNew Zealand Dollar

C$NZ$

Canadian DollarSingapore Dollar

C$S$

Canadian DollarHong Kong Dollar

C$HK$

Canadian DollarTaiwan Dollar

C$NT$

Canadian DollarThai Baht

C$฿

Canadian DollarMalaysian Ringgit

C$RM

Canadian DollarPhilippine Peso

C$

Canadian DollarIndonesian Rupiah

C$Rp

Canadian DollarVietnamese Dong

C$

Canadian DollarBrazilian Real

C$R$

Canadian DollarMexican Peso

C$$

Canadian DollarArgentine Peso

C$$

Canadian DollarChilean Peso

C$$

Canadian DollarColombian Peso

C$$

Canadian DollarPeruvian Sol

C$S/

Canadian DollarSouth African Rand

C$R

Canadian DollarNigerian Naira

C$

Canadian DollarEgyptian Pound

C$£

Canadian DollarKenyan Shilling

C$KSh

Canadian DollarGhanaian Cedi

C$

Canadian DollarTanzanian Shilling

C$TSh

Canadian DollarMoroccan Dirham

C$د.م.

Canadian DollarUAE Dirham

C$د.إ

Canadian DollarSaudi Riyal

C$

Canadian DollarQatari Riyal

C$

Canadian DollarKuwaiti Dinar

C$د.ك

Canadian DollarBahraini Dinar

C$.د.ب

Canadian DollarOmani Rial

C$

Canadian DollarJordanian Dinar

C$د.ا

Canadian DollarIsraeli Shekel

C$

Canadian DollarTurkish Lira

C$

Canadian DollarPolish Zloty

C$

Canadian DollarCzech Koruna

C$

Canadian DollarHungarian Forint

C$Ft

Canadian DollarRomanian Leu

C$lei

Canadian DollarBulgarian Lev

C$лв

Canadian DollarCroatian Kuna

C$kn

Canadian DollarSerbian Dinar

C$din

Canadian DollarUkrainian Hryvnia

C$

Canadian DollarRussian Ruble

C$

Canadian DollarKazakhstani Tenge

C$

Canadian DollarGeorgian Lari

C$

Canadian DollarArmenian Dram

C$֏

Common Uses of the Canadian Dollar

  • Scientific research — expressing currency values in published studies, experimental data, and journal articles where SI unit conventions apply
  • Engineering design — specifying currency requirements in technical drawings, calculations, and simulation input files across metric and imperial systems
  • Quality control — measuring and verifying currency in manufactured products to ensure conformance to design tolerances and international standards
  • Education — teaching currency concepts in physics, engineering, and applied science courses with worked examples in multiple unit systems
  • Industry standards — meeting regulatory and specification requirements for currency as defined by international bodies such as ISO, ASME, ASTM, and NIST

Did You Know?

The foreign exchange (forex) market is the largest and most liquid financial market in the world, with over $7.5 trillion traded per day as of 2022. The Canadian Dollar is one of the world's currencies whose value fluctuates continuously in this global marketplace.

Scientific Definition of the Canadian Dollar

The Canadian Dollar (C$) is defined within the context of currency measurement. Modern metrology ties most measurement units to fundamental physical constants or precisely reproducible laboratory references, ensuring that a measurement made in one laboratory gives the same result as a measurement made anywhere else in the world. This traceability to international standards is what makes the Canadian Dollar reliable for scientific research, commercial trade, engineering design, and legal metrology. When you use a conversion tool to translate between the Canadian Dollar and other units, the underlying conversion factors are the exact ratios defined by international standards bodies — not approximations. This means the only limit to the accuracy of a conversion is the precision of your input measurement. For everyday use, converting the Canadian Dollar to equivalent units in other systems is instant and accurate to many more decimal places than any practical measurement could justify.

Tips for Converting the Canadian Dollar

When converting the Canadian Dollar to other currency units, pay careful attention to the direction of the conversion factor — multiplying and dividing are not interchangeable. A quick sanity check is to estimate the expected magnitude of the result before performing the conversion: if the target unit is larger than the Canadian Dollar, the numerical value should be smaller, and vice versa. For chained conversions across multiple unit systems, convert everything to a common intermediate unit (typically the SI base unit) and then from that intermediate to the target. This approach is more reliable than direct conversion through multiple factors and makes the calculation easier to verify. When working with very large or very small values, consider whether a metric prefix (milli-, kilo-, mega-) would make the number easier to interpret without losing precision. For critical applications, always cross-check the converted value using a second method — a different calculator, a published table, or a hand calculation using the conversion factor directly.

Accuracy and Precision

Conversion of the Canadian Dollar is performed using exact, internationally defined factors wherever possible. For units defined by historical artifact or local convention, small differences between national standards may exist — for example, the difference between US survey foot and international foot, or the subtle variations between different definitions of the BTU. These differences are usually negligible for everyday use but matter in precision engineering, legal metrology, and international scientific collaboration. The MegaCalc conversion engine uses the most current internationally accepted values and documents any edge cases where multiple definitions exist. Numerical precision of conversions is carried to at least 10 significant figures internally, with displayed results rounded to a readable length. If you need additional precision for a specific calculation, the underlying engine provides the full precision on request — just inspect the source code or contact us for details.