The currency of Europe
The
EuroEUR
The euro (EUR) is the currency of 21 European Union countries, known as the euro area, and of six more countries outside the EU. It is divided into 100 cents and its value is safeguarded by the European Central Bank: one euro costs ₹108.87 at our selling rate right now.
- Code
- EUR
- Symbol
- €
- Subunit
- 100 cents
- In use since
- 1999
What is the currency of Europe?
The euro is the currency of 21 of the 27 European Union countries, code EUR, written with the euro symbol €. Together they are called the euro area, or the eurozone, and Bulgaria, the newest member, joined on 1 January 2026. One euro is divided into 100 cents, and the European Central Bank, set up on 1 June 1998, safeguards its value. The euro began as a non-cash currency on 1 January 1999, and euro notes and coins have circulated since 1 January 2002. Europe as a whole has no single currency, so when people search for the Europe currency they usually mean the euro: six more countries outside the EU use it, but Britain, Switzerland, Sweden and Poland, among others, keep their own money. On 5 Oct 2026, one euro was worth about ₹108.87 at our selling rate.
Euro at a glance
- Currency
- EuroThe single currency of the euro area
- Code
- EURNumeric code 978
- Symbol
- €From the Greek epsilon, with two lines for stability
- Subunit
- 1 euro = 100 centsPrices run to two decimal places
- Issuer
- European Central BankSet up in 1998; member states issue the coins
- Introduced
- 1 January 1999As a non-cash currency; cash followed on 1 January 2002
- Exchange rate
- FloatingThe ECB targets no rate; the market sets it
- Used in
- 21 EU countriesPlus six countries outside the EU
- Banknotes
- 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 eurosThe Europa series, in issue since 2013; the 500 euro is no longer issued
- Coins
- 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cent, and 1 and 2 euroEight coins, each with a common side and a national side
Euro currency notes and coins
Euro money comes as six banknotes and eight coins. The notes are the Europa series, in issue since 2013, and each is longer than the one below it, so you can tell them apart by size as well as colour. Windows and gateways on the front stand for openness and cooperation, bridges on the back for communication, and the bigger the note, the newer its style. The 500 euro note, no longer issued but still legal tender, is shown too. Each is priced in rupees at our selling rate today.
- European Central BankFive euros€5
Five euros €5
≈ ₹544.37 today- Colour
- Grey, 120 x 62 mm
- Front
- A Classical window and gateway
- Back
- A Classical bridge
- European Central BankTen euros€10
Ten euros €10
≈ ₹1,088.74 today- Colour
- Red, 127 x 67 mm
- Front
- A Romanesque window and gateway
- Back
- A Romanesque bridge
- European Central BankTwenty euros€20
Twenty euros €20
≈ ₹2,177.49 today- Colour
- Blue, 133 x 72 mm
- Front
- A Gothic window and gateway
- Back
- A Gothic bridge
- European Central BankFifty euros€50
Fifty euros €50
≈ ₹5,443.72 today- Colour
- Orange, 140 x 77 mm
- Front
- A Renaissance window and gateway
- Back
- A Renaissance bridge
- European Central BankOne hundred euros€100
One hundred euros €100
≈ ₹10,887.43 today- Colour
- Green, 147 x 77 mm
- Front
- A Baroque and rococo window and gateway
- Back
- A Baroque and rococo bridge
- European Central BankTwo hundred euros€200
Two hundred euros €200
≈ ₹21,774.86 today- Colour
- Yellow-brown, 153 x 77 mm
- Front
- An iron and glass window and gateway
- Back
- An iron and glass bridge
- European Central BankFive hundred euros€500
Five hundred euros €500
≈ ₹54,437.15 today- Colour
- Purple, 160 x 82 mm, no longer issued
- Front
- A modern 20th century window and gateway
- Back
- A modern 20th century bridge
Coins, in cents
Eight coins, each with a common side and a national side chosen by the country that issued it. Every coin is legal tender across the euro area, so you may get German and Italian sides in the same handful. The 1 euro has a silver-coloured centre and a gold-coloured ring, and the 2 euro is the other way round.
- 11 cent
≈ ₹1.09 - 22 cents
≈ ₹2.18 - 55 cents
≈ ₹5.44 - 1010 cents
≈ ₹10.89 - 2020 cents
≈ ₹21.77 - 5050 cents
≈ ₹54.44 - 11 euro
≈ ₹108.87 - 22 euros
≈ ₹217.75
Sources: European Central Bank, banknote design; ECB coins page; Wikipedia, "Euro banknotes"; colours as printed. Rupee values at our selling rate, 10:25 AM IST, 5 Oct 2026.
A Dutch town built the bridges on the notes
The ECB says none of the bridges on its notes is real, and the usual explanation is that no country was to be favoured. Then a town next to Rotterdam built all seven.
Notes with imagined bridges
Euro notes enter circulation in twelve countries. Their windows, gateways and bridges are drawn from seven periods of European architecture, and the ECB says none shows a real monument or bridge.
The first bridges are built
In Spijkenisse, a town next to Rotterdam, the first two bridges open in the Het Land housing area, designed by Robin Stam.
All seven stand
The last of the seven bridges opens, so every bridge from the back of the euro notes can be visited in one town.
New notes are being designed
The ECB publishes ten shortlisted designs for the next series, on two themes: European culture, and rivers and birds. A decision is due around the end of 2026, and today's notes keep their value.
Sources: European Central Bank, banknote design pages and press release of 23 July 2026; Wikipedia, "Eurobridges Spijkenisse"; Bicycle Dutch, 21 June 2023; The Low Countries; Euronews, 27 July 2026.
Why the euro has no fixed rate
The euro is not pegged to the dollar or to any other currency. Its price is set by the market, which is why the rupee price of a euro changes through the day.
No fixed rate
The European Central Bank does not target an exchange rate for the euro, so the market sets it. Nothing holds it at one price, and its rupee price keeps moving.
Traded everywhere
The euro was on one side of about 29 percent of all currency trades in April 2025, second only to the US dollar, in the Bank for International Settlements survey.
The ECB rarely steps in
The ECB has intervened in the currency markets only twice, in 2000 and 2011, and otherwise leaves the euro to trade freely.
One unit in rupees · our selling rate, 5 Oct 2026
The euro since 1999
The euro began as a non-cash currency in 1999 and became cash in 2002. What changed along the way, in eight entries.
- EntryEurope
The road to the euro
The Maastricht Treaty, signed on 7 February, sets the route to a single currency. In December 1995 the European Council in Madrid agrees to call it the euro.
- EntryEurope
The European Central Bank
On 1 June the European Central Bank is established, taking over from the European Monetary Institute.
- EntryEurope
The euro is launched
On 1 January the euro starts as a non-cash currency in eleven countries, at rates fixed for good: 1.95583 German marks to the euro, for example.
Launch - EntryEurope
Notes and coins arrive
On 1 January euro notes and coins enter circulation in twelve countries. The old currencies, from the mark to the lira, stop being legal tender after 28 February.
Cash - EntryEurope
Whatever it takes
On 26 July, in the middle of the sovereign debt crisis, ECB President Mario Draghi tells a London conference the ECB is ready to do "whatever it takes" to preserve the euro.
- EntryEurope
The Europa series is complete
On 28 May the 100 and 200 euro notes complete the second series, which began with the 5 euro in 2013. The 500 euro note is no longer issued.
New notes - EntryEurope
Croatia joins
On 1 January Croatia adopts the euro and becomes the twentieth member.
- EntryEurope
Bulgaria joins
On 1 January Bulgaria becomes the 21st member, at 1.95583 lev to the euro, the same figure as the German mark had.
Newest member
Sources: European Central Bank, history of Economic and Monetary Union, banknote pages and speech of 26 July 2012; European Union, euro pages; Bank of Spain, irrevocable conversion rates; Learning Corner, Bulgaria joins the euro; Wikipedia, "History of the euro" and "Euro banknotes".
Euros and rupees side by side
Worked out at our selling rate at 10:25 AM IST on 5 Oct 2026. For the live rate on any amount, use the EUR to INR or INR to EUR converter.
| You pay | You get |
|---|---|
| ₹10,000 | € 91.85 |
| ₹25,000 | € 229.62 |
| ₹50,000 | € 459.25 |
| ₹1,00,000 | € 918.49 |
| ₹2,00,000 | € 1,836.98 |
| ₹5,00,000 | € 4,592.45 |
| You buy | It costs |
|---|---|
| € 10 | ₹1,088.74 |
| € 50 | ₹5,443.72 |
| € 100 | ₹10,887.43 |
| € 500 | ₹54,437.15 |
| € 1,000 | ₹1,08,874.30 |
| € 2,000 | ₹2,17,748.60 |
Spending euros in Europe
Three things about money in the euro area that help on the first day.
Prices can read 12,50 €
EU institutions write the euro sign before the amount in English, Dutch, Irish and Maltese (€12.50) and after it in the other official languages (12,50 €). Either way it is twelve euros and fifty cents, about ₹1,360.93.
€12.50 = 12,50 € = 12 euros + 50 centsCarry both a card and cash
Cash was still 52 percent of shop payments by number across the euro area in 2024, from 22 percent in the Netherlands to 67 percent in Malta, so a card alone is not enough everywhere. In Germany, cashless payments overtook cash for the first time in 2025.
Cash: 52% of shop payments, 2024Small coins round to 5 cents
In Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Lithuania, a cash total is rounded to the nearest 5 cents and card payments are not. The 1 and 2 cent coins stay legal tender, and shops must still accept them.
€4.32 in cash pays €4.30; €4.33 pays €4.35Taking euros from India
The Reserve Bank of India's rules apply to every currency, and the euro is no exception.
Up to the equivalent of USD 3,000 per trip can leave India as euro notes. The rest goes on a forex card or as a bank transfer.
Every resident can send up to USD 250,000 abroad each financial year under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, travel included.
Tax collected at source applies once your foreign-exchange purchases in a financial year cross ₹10 lakh: nil when an education loan pays, 2% for self-funded education and medical treatment, and 20% for travel and everything else. It is credited against your income tax when you file.
Euros are on our booking form. Send your amount and the desk confirms your exact rate before anything is booked.
Book Euros→Euro questions
The questions people type about the euro, answered in full, in three groups.
The basics
9 questionsWhat is the currency of Europe?
Europe has no single currency, but the euro is the one most people mean. It is used by 21 of the 27 European Union countries, from Germany and France to Spain and Greece, while Britain, Switzerland, Sweden and Poland, among others, keep their own money.
Euro is the currency of which country?
The euro is not the money of one country. It is the currency of 21 European Union countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. Six more countries outside the EU use it too.
How many countries use the euro?
Twenty-one of the 27 EU countries use the euro. Eleven started in 1999 and ten have joined since, from Greece in 2001 to Bulgaria on 1 January 2026, while Czechia, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Sweden keep their own money. Six more countries outside the EU use it as well: Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City by agreement with the EU, and Montenegro and Kosovo without one.
Does a Schengen visa cover every country that uses the euro?
No. Ireland and Cyprus use the euro but are outside Schengen, while ten Schengen countries, among them Switzerland, Norway and Sweden, do not use it. Nineteen of the 21 euro countries are in Schengen, and Bulgaria joined both, Schengen on 1 January 2025 and the euro on 1 January 2026.
What is the full form of EUR?
EUR stands for Euro. It is the ISO 4217 code for the currency, so the EUR full form is simply euro, and "EUR currency" and "euro currency" both mean the same money. Its numeric code is 978.
What is the euro symbol?
The euro symbol is €, the Europe currency symbol you will see on price tags across the euro area. The EU says its design is based on the Greek epsilon, echoes the first letter of Europe and has two parallel lines for stability. The code EUR is used alongside it, and its Unicode code point is U+20AC.
Where does the euro sign go in a price?
EU institutions put the euro sign before the amount, with no space, in English, Dutch, Irish and Maltese, as in €30, and after it, with a space, in every other official EU language, as in 30 €. Everyday habits generally follow each country's old style, and most European countries use a comma for the decimal, so 12,50 € is twelve euros and fifty cents.
What is the Europe currency name?
The Europe currency name is the euro, code EUR, and its small change is the cent. Europe is a continent, not a country, so the euro is the name of the money shared by the euro area, also called the eurozone. Countries outside it keep their own names, such as the pound, the Swiss franc, the krona and the zloty.
How many cents make one euro?
One euro is 100 cents, and prices run to two decimal places. Coins come in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cent, plus 1 and 2 euro. Some countries no longer use the 1 and 2 cent coins in daily payments and round cash totals to the nearest 5 cents.
Value and history
5 questionsIs the euro pegged to the US dollar?
No. The euro floats: the European Central Bank does not target an exchange rate for it, so the market sets its price and the price of a euro in rupees keeps moving. The ECB has stepped into the currency markets only twice, in 2000 and 2011.
Which euro banknotes are in use?
The Europa series: 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 euro, in grey, red, blue, orange, green and yellow-brown, issued from 2013 to 2019. The 500 euro note is no longer issued but is still legal tender. The notes get bigger with their value, from 120 x 62 mm for the 5 euro to 153 x 77 mm for the 200 euro, although the 50, 100 and 200 euro share one height of 77 mm.
Are old euro notes still valid?
The 500 euro note has not been issued since 2019, but it is still legal tender and national central banks can exchange it. Money from before the euro is not: the mark, franc, lira and the other old currencies ended in the first twelve countries when the euro became the only legal tender on 1 March 2002. When new notes arrive, the ECB says the current notes will keep their value and circulate alongside them.
Are the bridges and buildings on euro notes real?
No. The ECB says none of the notes shows a real monument or bridge, and the windows, gateways and bridges are imagined, in seven architectural styles. A Dutch town, Spijkenisse near Rotterdam, has since built all seven bridges, which opened between 2011 and 2013, and real landmarks appear on some national sides of the coins instead, such as the Brandenburg Gate on Germany's 10, 20 and 50 cent coins.
When will new euro notes arrive?
No date has been set. On 23 July 2026 the ECB published ten shortlisted designs for the next series, five on European culture and five on rivers and birds, and a decision is expected around the end of 2026. The current notes will keep their value and circulate alongside the new ones.
Buying from India
2 questionsHow much euro cash can I take out of India?
Up to the equivalent of USD 3,000 per trip in currency notes. Anything above that goes on a forex card or as a bank transfer, all within the USD 250,000 a year Liberalised Remittance Scheme limit.
How do I get euros for a trip to Europe?
Order them before you fly. Matrix Forex, an RBI-authorised Category-II dealer, has euros on its booking form: send your amount through the booking bar at the top of this page and the desk confirms your exact rate before anything is booked. For the live rate on any amount, see the EUR to INR converter.