From México to Colombia to Argentina, the peso is the standard monetary unit. Although several Latin American countries use the peso, they are not all the same. The Chilean peso is, of course, what is used in Chile. There are several paper bills as well as a pocketful of coins. The Chilean peso is fairly stable with a good exchange rate with the US dollar.
Chile finally gained independence from Spain in 1818 after the battle of Maipú. At this time, the first coin of an independent Chile became the silver peso minted in 1817 (see image to the right). With the establishment of the decimal system in 1851, Chile started minting its first copper coins.
In 1975 the peso replaced the escudo (that in 1960 had replaced the old peso), with one peso equal to 1000 escudos.
During my time in Chile (1995-1997) the exchange rate was about 400 pesos to the US Dollar. Inflation has added to that number today. For current exchange rates visit our Chile exchange rate page.
Chilean Peso – Bills
Bills come in denominations of 1000, 2000, 5000, 10000, and 20000 Pesos. Use the links below to learn more about each bill.
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Chilean Peso – Coins
Coins come in all shapes, sizes and values. There are peso coins in denominations of 10, 50, 100, and 500 pesos. The 1 peso and 5 peso coins are being retired in 2018 as all transactions will be rounded either up or down to the nearest 10 pesos. Use the links below to learn more about each of them.
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Need current exchange rates? Visit our Chile exchange rate utility.
