It’s one of the first things you think about when you are going to a new country; what currency do they use and what the exchange rate is? So here is a breakdown of the Chinese currency, what it looks like and what it’s worth.
My wallet full of Chinese currency
The official currency of China is the Renminbi (RMB), while the unit of account is the yuán (Symbols: ¥ or 元 Code: CNY). One yuán is divided into 10 jiǎo while one jiǎo is divided into 10 fēn. You don’t really have to worry about fēn though as you won’t ever see them. Sounds simple enough but when I first got to China I didn’t here the word yuán from the local store owner but rather kuài which is how the yuán is known colloquially, likewise the jiǎo is referred to colloquially as máo.
So with that all cleared up here are some photos of the various denominations notes and coins that make up the Chinese Renminbi. As well as pictures of each I have also included the equivalent value in US Dollars (US$) and South African Rand (ZAR).*
*Currency conversion values were taken from www.xe.com on 15 June 2010.
100CNY equivalent to US$15.43 or ZAR104.99
50CNY equivalent to US$7.72 or ZAR52.49
20CNY equivalent to US$3.09 or ZAR21.05
10CNY equivalent to US$1.54 or ZAR10.55
5CNY equivalent to US$0.77 or ZAR5.28
1CNY equivalent to US$0.15 or ZAR1.06
The 1 yuán coin
With the smaller denominations of the mao there are notes and coins, although the notes are not very common. On my first night in Xiaoshan I went out with a fellow teacher and my new boss for noodles and when the bill came my boss asked if either of us had one yuán so he didn’t have to wait for change. Eager to impress I said “I do” and fished out my wallet. This was before I knew the breakdown of the currency and so I proudly proffered my note with a 1 on it only to be told that it was 1jiǎo (not 1 yuán) and merely a tenth of what was needed. The 1 jiǎo and 5 jiǎo notes are deceptively ornate considering their value although they are slightly smaller than the regular yuan notes.
0.5CNY equivalent to US$0.08 or ZAR0.53
the 5 jiǎo (máo) coin
0.1CNY equivalent to US$0.02 or ZAR0.11
the 1 jiǎo (máo) coin
Whether you are planning a holiday, being sent on a business trip or relocating to China now you know everything you need to know about the currency.
Hey Rory, how much further does the currency go buying things compared to the Rand?
I thought someone would ask that and have thought about doing a price comparison post on a basket of goods. The currency does go further; how much depends on what you buy.
1 litre of long life milk = 7.5-8 yuan (similar to SA)
6 pack of Coke cans = 10-12 yuan (about half what you’d pay in Rand)
750ml of 2.5% beer = 3 yuan in a supermarket but 330ml at a bar anywhere from 12-25 yuan.
McDonald’s Nugget Meal (medium) = 21 yuan (slightly cheaper than back in SA)
large coffee at Satrbucks = 30 yuan while milk tea from corner shop = 5 yuan
noodles in a street shop = 5-10 yuan while a pizza at Pizza hut = 50-60 yuan
Hopefully that gives you an idea. Also electronic good and clothing in the markets are much cheaper. I’ve bought a laptop and DSLR camera at 2/3 of the price they would be back in South Africa.
[...] With that out of the way it is time to be a tourist and see some of the sites of China. The only place in China that I really want to see and still haven’t is Guilin and especially Yangshuo just to the south of it. For those of you who don’t know anything about it here’s a little teaser. It is said to be one of the most beautiful areas of China because of its characteristic karst peaks that rise up on either side of the Li River. You may well have seen some of these images in picture books about China and it is so beautiful it is also the illustration found on the back of the 20 Yuan bank-note. [...]