USD to GBP Converter
Convert US dollars to pounds sterling (USD to GBP) at the daily reference rate
Pounds = US dollars × the USD to GBP rate. Enter an amount above to convert it at the latest European Central Bank reference rate, which changes each working day. A bank or card will add its own margin, so treat the result as a benchmark rather than a quote.
Currency converter
Daily rateReference rates from the European Central Bank via Frankfurter, updated each working day. Banks and card providers add a margin, so treat this as a guide, not a quote.
How to convert US dollars to pounds
To turn dollars into pounds, multiply by the number of pounds one dollar buys. Every pair in Panglify's currency converter section works this way, including US dollars to euros. The rate on this page is a cross rate. The European Central Bank does not publish a dollar-to-pound figure directly; it publishes the value of one euro in dollars and one euro in pounds. Dividing the second by the first cancels out the euro and leaves pounds per dollar. The Frankfurter API performs that division, and the converter multiplies the result by your amount and rounds to the nearest penny.
- Enter the amount in US dollars.
- Keep From on USD and To on GBP.
- Read the pounds. The note below shows the rate used and the date of the ECB reference rate.
- To check a quote from a bank, divide the pounds it offers by the dollars you pay and compare that effective rate with the one shown here.
Financial news usually quotes the pair the other way round. Traders write GBP/USD, the number of dollars one pound buys, a pair nicknamed cable after the transatlantic telegraph cable that carried its prices in the 19th century. A cable quote is the reciprocal of the rate this converter uses, so a headline figure must be inverted (1 ÷ quote) before you multiply dollars by it. A trip that continues to the continent can price the euro leg from the same ECB data.
Is the Bank of England rate an exchange rate?
No: Bank Rate is the Bank of England's main interest rate, set by its Monetary Policy Committee, not a price for swapping dollars into pounds. It can move the exchange rate, though, which is why the two get confused.
The Monetary Policy Committee meets eight times a year, as does the Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee, which sets the federal funds target range in the US. When one central bank's interest rate rises relative to the other's, holding that currency tends to become more attractive, and GBP/USD often reacts within minutes of an announcement. Bank Rate decisions are published at 12:00 noon London time, 7:00 a.m. in New York for most of the year.
The Bank of England also publishes indicative daily spot exchange rates, observed by its foreign exchange desk at about 4:00 p.m. London time. Like the ECB's figures they are for reference, not dealing, and because they are captured at a different hour from the ECB's 14:10 CET snapshot, the two sources can disagree slightly on the same day.
- Bank Rate: an interest rate, stated in percent.
- Spot rate: dollars per pound, or pounds per dollar, at one moment.
- This converter: a cross rate built from ECB data, refreshed each working day.
Can I use US dollars in the UK?
Generally no: shops, taxis, buses and trains in the UK price and take payment in pounds sterling, and few accept US dollar bills. A US card is the practical alternative.
Card payments are accepted almost everywhere, and contactless is the norm. London buses stopped taking cash in 2014, and on buses, the Tube and many rail services Transport for London lets you tap a contactless bank card or phone instead of buying a ticket. Many cards issued outside the UK work, although your bank may add a foreign transaction fee to each tap.
A few businesses near airports or tourist sights may take dollars, but they set their own rate, which is rarely a good one. When a card machine asks whether to pay in USD or GBP, choose GBP; choosing dollars hands the conversion to the merchant.
For cash, withdraw pounds from a machine rather than exchanging dollar bills. UK cash machines labeled free to use charge no fee of their own, although your US bank still may, so check its foreign ATM policy before you travel.
US dollar vs British pound: what is the difference?
The dollar and the pound are two of the most traded currencies in the world, with very different histories. These are the fixed facts behind the exchange rate, which itself changes every working day.
| Attribute | US dollar | Pound sterling |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 4217 code | USD (numeric 840) | GBP (numeric 826) |
| Symbol | $ | £, from the L of libra, Latin for a pound weight |
| Central bank | Federal Reserve, created by the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 | Bank of England, founded in 1694 |
| Subunit | 100 cents | 100 pence (singular: penny) since February 15, 1971 |
| Banknotes | Cotton and linen paper, printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing | Polymer; some Scottish and Northern Irish banks issue their own notes |
| Local versions | Ecuador, El Salvador and Panama use US dollar notes | Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man and several overseas territories issue local pounds |
5 key differences
- The Bank of England opened in 1694, 219 years before the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 created the US central bank.
- Sterling adopted 100 pence to the pound on February 15, 1971, while the US dollar has been decimal since the Coinage Act of 1792 defined it.
- In currency markets the pound is the base of GBP/USD, so a news headline shows dollars per pound, the inverse of the pounds-per-dollar rate this converter multiplies by.
- Every Bank of England note in circulation is made of polymer, whereas US notes are 75% cotton and 25% linen.
- Only the Federal Reserve issues US banknotes, but in the UK several banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland also issue sterling notes.
How do I read a GBP/USD quote?
GBP/USD is the number of US dollars one pound buys, because the first code in a quote is always the base currency. The same exchange rate can be written several ways, so before you multiply, make sure the currency you hold is the base of the quote you use.
| Quote | What the number means | To get pounds from dollars |
|---|---|---|
| USD/GBP | Pounds per one US dollar | Multiply dollars by the quote (this converter) |
| GBP/USD (cable) | Dollars per one pound | Divide dollars by the quote |
| EUR/GBP (ECB) | Pounds per one euro | Divide it by EUR/USD to get USD/GBP |
| EUR/USD (ECB) | Dollars per one euro | Used as the divisor in the cross rate |
| Bank sell rate | Pounds the bank gives per dollar | Multiply dollars by it; compare with USD/GBP |
What is pound sterling?
The pound sterling (ISO 4217 code GBP, numeric code 826, symbol £) is the currency of the United Kingdom. Sterling is the name of the currency and the pound is its unit, much as the renminbi and the yuan work in China. It is often described as the oldest currency still in use, and in everyday British English a pound is a quid.
The Bank of England, founded in 1694, issues banknotes for England and Wales and sets UK interest rates. Several commercial banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland are authorized to issue their own sterling notes, and the Royal Mint produces the coins. Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man issue local pounds, and so do Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands and St Helena; all are tied to sterling at par.
Decimal Day
Until 1971 a pound was divided into 20 shillings of 12 pence each, 240 pence in all. On February 15, 1971, the UK switched to decimal currency, with 100 new pence to the pound. Today 1 pound is 100 pence, and the singular is a penny.
UK coins and banknotes
Every Bank of England note is now printed on polymer, and notes showing King Charles III have circulated alongside those showing Queen Elizabeth II since June 2024.
| Denomination | Form | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1p, 2p | Copper-plated steel coins | The smallest change |
| 5p, 10p | Nickel-plated steel coins | Silver-colored |
| 20p, 50p | Seven-sided coins | The 50p is often issued in commemorative designs |
| £1 | Twelve-sided bimetallic coin | Replaced the round pound in 2017 |
| £2 | Bimetallic coin | Less common in everyday change |
| £5 | Polymer note | Features Winston Churchill on the reverse |
| £10 | Polymer note | Features Jane Austen |
| £20 | Polymer note | Features the painter J. M. W. Turner |
| £50 | Polymer note | Features the mathematician Alan Turing |
Common mistakes when converting dollars to pounds
- Using the rate the wrong way round. Multiplying dollars by a GBP/USD headline number overstates the pounds you get. Invert it first, or use the converter.
- Comparing prices without tax. UK shelf prices include VAT, which is 20% at the standard rate, while US prices usually add sales tax at the register. A UK price that looks high after conversion may be closer to the US price than it seems.
- Accepting conversion at the terminal. Card machines and cash machines in the UK may offer to charge a US card in dollars. Choosing pounds lets your card network convert instead, which is usually cheaper.
- Expecting a weekend update. The ECB does not publish rates on weekends or TARGET holidays, so the converter shows the last working day's reference rate while markets reopen on Monday.
- Bringing Scottish or Northern Irish notes home. They are genuine sterling, but banks outside the UK often will not exchange them, so spend them before you leave.
For the rest of the trip, the UK still posts road distances in miles, as the US does, but sells fuel by the liter, which the liters to gallons converter translates, and shoes in UK sizes, which the US to UK shoe size converter handles. London is five hours ahead of New York for most of the year; the time zone converter shows the exact gap for any date.
Sources and further reading
The standards and references behind the numbers on this page. Links open in a new tab.
Standards and official sources
- Euro foreign exchange reference ratesEuropean Central Bank
- Frankfurter exchange rate APIFrankfurter
- ISO 4217: Currency codesISO
- Bank of EnglandBank of England
- H.10 Foreign exchange ratesFederal Reserve Board
Further reading
- CurrencyWikipedia
USD to GBP FAQs
Short, exact answers to what people ask most.
How do I convert US dollars to British pounds?
Multiply the dollar amount by the USD to GBP rate, the number of pounds one dollar buys. The converter uses the latest ECB reference rate and rounds the result to the nearest penny.
Why are pound to dollar rates usually quoted as dollars per pound?
By market convention the pound is the base currency in the GBP/USD pair, so quotes show how many dollars one pound buys. To convert dollars into pounds you divide by that quote, or multiply by its reciprocal.
What does cable mean in currency trading?
Cable is the traders' nickname for the GBP/USD exchange rate. It dates from the 19th century, when pound and dollar prices were sent between London and New York over the transatlantic telegraph cable.
Where does the USD to GBP rate on this page come from?
It is a cross rate built from the European Central Bank's reference rates: pounds per euro divided by dollars per euro. The ECB publishes these once each working day at about 16:00 Central European Time.
Is pound sterling the same as the British pound?
Yes. Sterling is the official name of the UK currency and the pound is its main unit, divided into 100 pence. Its ISO 4217 code is GBP and its symbol is £.
Can I use Scottish banknotes in England?
Scottish and Northern Irish notes are sterling and are usually accepted across the UK, although a shop in England can choose to refuse them. Banks outside the UK often will not exchange them, so spend them before you travel home.
How many pence are in a pound?
There are 100 pence in a pound. Before decimalization on February 15, 1971, a pound was 240 pence, made up of 20 shillings of 12 pence each.
What does GBP stand for?
GBP is the ISO 4217 code for pound sterling: GB is the ISO 3166 country code for the United Kingdom and P stands for pound. Its numeric code is 826.
Why did my UK purchase post a different dollar amount on my statement?
Your card network converts pounds to dollars on the day it processes the transaction, which may not be the day you paid, and your issuer may add a foreign transaction fee. Refunds are converted again at a later rate, so they rarely match the original charge exactly.
Related conversions
Exchange rates are cross rates derived from the European Central Bank's euro reference rates via the Frankfurter API; currency details follow ISO 4217, the Bank of England, the Royal Mint, the Federal Reserve and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and London transport payment details come from Transport for London. Last updated . How we verify our numbers.