What currency is used in Panama
March 10, 2004The official currency is the Balboa. However fear not, this is the exact same thing as the US dollar. There are no balboa paper notes, all are US federal reserve notes. Cents are known as Centavos. If you see a price as B. 90 it means 90 US dollars. All governments and many businesses give prices in Balboas, however just about all regular people use the word dollar.
You will find Panamanian coinage however. They have the following coins available:
- 1 centavo
- 5 centavo (known colloquially as “Real”)
- 10 centavo
- 25 centavo (known colloquially as “Cuara”, try to pronounce quarter in a Jamaican accent and you have got it right)
- 50 centavo (known colloquially as “Peso”)
The Peso is a lot more common here than the 50c coin is in the US.
The Panamanian coins are the same shapes, sizes and metal as the US counterpart. The US coins are also in circulation. It is very common to receive change in both Panamanian and US coins. While youre in Panama dont worry about it. If you are bringing back change to the US, you may want to try to spend the Panamanian ones before you reach Miami. However I can certify that they do work fine in coin operated machines in the US.
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