Canadian dollar

Canadian dollar
Dollar canadien (French)
Can$, C$, CA$, CDN$, CAD
2011 Frontier series (polymer notes)
ISO 4217
CodeCAD (numeric: 124)
Subunit0.01
Units of account
Base unitdollar
Pluraldollars
Symbol$‎
NicknameLoonie, buck (in English)
Huard, piastre (pronounced piasse in popular usage) (in French)
Subunit
 1⁄100cent
Plural
 centcents
Symbol
 cent¢
Nickname
 centIn French: sou, plural is sous.
Denominations
Banknotes$5, $10, $20, $50, $100
Coins
 Freq. used5¢, 10¢, 25¢, $1, $2
 Rarely used1¢, 50¢
Demographics
Date of introduction1858
Replaced
Official user(s)Canada
Unofficial userSaint Pierre and Miquelon (France)
Issuance
Central bankBank of Canada
 Websitewww.bankofcanada.ca
PrinterCanadian Bank Note Company
 Websitewww.cbnco.com
MintRoyal Canadian Mint
 Websitewww.mint.ca
Valuation
Inflation3.0%
 SourceStatistics Canada, July 2026
 MethodConsumer price index

The Canadian dollar (symbol: $; code: CAD; French: dollar canadien) is the official currency of Canada. There is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviations Can$, CA$ and C$ are frequently used for distinction from other currencies, particularly the US dollar.

The base unit is the dollar; each is divided into 100 cents (symbol: ¢). Owing to the image of a common loon on its reverse, the country's dollar coin, and sometimes the dollar itself, may be referred to as the loonie by English-speaking Canadians and foreign exchange traders and analysts. Likewise, amongst French-speaking Canadians, the French word for loon, huard, is also commonly used.

Accounting for approximately two per cent of all global reserves, as of January 2024 the Canadian dollar is the fifth-most held reserve currency in the world, behind the US dollar, euro, yen, and sterling. The Canadian dollar is popular with central banks because of Canada's relative economic soundness, the Canadian government's strong sovereign position, and the stability of the country's legal and political systems.