The Mexican peso is the official currency of Mexico, issued by Banco de Mexico. It is one of the most liquid emerging-market currencies in the world, trading roughly $130 billion in daily volume, and it sits just behind the Brazilian real as the most important currency in Latin America. If you are travelling to Mexico, sending remittances from the US, or running a business that bills customers south of the border, the peso is a currency worth understanding properly.
Peso basics at a glance
- Symbol: $ (same glyph as the US dollar; often written MX$, M$ or Mex$ to avoid confusion)
- ISO 4217 code: MXN
- Subunit: centavo, 100 centavos to 1 peso
- Issuer: Banco de Mexico (Banxico), founded 1925
- First introduced: 1821, after Mexican independence from Spain
- Current series: "Series G" polymer and cotton notes, rolled out from 2018 onward
- Rough rate in 2026: 1 USD buys about 17 pesos
The peso sign is the same as the dollar sign
This surprises almost every first-time visitor to Mexico. That "$" on the menu in Tulum or the price tag in Mexico City is a peso, not a dollar. Both currencies use the "$" sign because both descend from the Spanish colonial peso de ocho, the original "pieces of eight" that circulated across the Americas from the 16th century onward. The symbol predates the US dollar.
To avoid confusion, Mexicans use several workarounds. You will see MX$, M$ or Mex$ on tourist-facing menus. Banks and airlines use the ISO code MXN. Some upscale restaurants quote both prices side by side. In practice, if you see "$" on a price in Mexico with no other letter, it is almost always pesos. A $250 lunch is about $15 USD, not a luxury splurge.
Denominations in circulation
As of 2026, Banxico issues the following:
Coins
- 10, 20 and 50 centavos — rarely used; most cash transactions round to the nearest peso
- 1, 2, 5 and 10 pesos — everyday change, bimetallic design with the Mexican coat of arms
- 20 pesos — newer coin, introduced to replace low-denomination notes
Notes
- 20 pesos (polymer, blue) — historical scenes; a new 20-peso commemorative note marked 200 years of Mexican independence
- 50 pesos (polymer, purple) — features an axolotl and the ancient city of Tenochtitlan
- 100 pesos (cotton, red) — Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, the 17th-century poet and nun, with the ahuehuete tree on the reverse
- 200 pesos (cotton, green) — independence figures Miguel Hidalgo and Jose Maria Morelos, with the El Pinacate biosphere reserve
- 500 pesos (cotton, blue) — Benito Juarez on the front, monarch butterflies on the back
- 1000 pesos (cotton, purple) — Francisco I. Madero, Hermila Galindo and Carmen Serdan, with a Gulf of California marine scene
Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera were previously on the 500 peso note; the design changed when the current "Series G" replaced the older "Series F" family. Expect to see both versions in circulation for several years.
A short history of the Mexican peso
The Mexican peso is one of the oldest currencies in the Americas. Its roots go back to the Spanish silver peso of the 16th century, which was minted in New Spain using silver from Zacatecas, Guanajuato and Potosi. That coin circulated so widely that it became a de facto reserve currency for world trade, and the US dollar was originally defined against it.
After independence in 1821, Mexico kept the peso as its national currency. For most of the 19th and early 20th centuries it was backed by silver. The currency was detached from silver in 1931 and from the gold standard in the 1970s.
The most important modern event is the 1993 redenomination. After decades of high inflation in the 1970s and 1980s, prices had reached absurd levels — a soft drink cost 2,000 old pesos. On January 1, 1993, Mexico removed three zeros and introduced the "nuevo peso", where 1 new peso equaled 1,000 old pesos. The word "nuevo" was dropped in 1996 but the ISO code MXN still carries the "N" as a reminder.
The second defining event is the 1994 Tequila Crisis. In December 1994 the government was forced to devalue the peso after capital flight drained reserves. The currency lost about half its value within weeks, the country needed a $50 billion US-led rescue package, and Mexico switched to a free-floating exchange rate — which it still runs today. Banxico was made fully independent the following year.
How the peso is valued today
The peso floats against all other currencies. Its value is set in open markets 24 hours a day, Sunday evening to Friday afternoon. The main drivers in 2026 are the interest-rate differential between Banxico and the US Federal Reserve, oil prices (Mexico is a significant oil exporter), risk appetite for emerging markets, and remittance flows from the US, which exceeded $65 billion in 2024.
For a deeper look at where the rate might go next, read our USD to MXN forecast, which walks through these drivers one by one.
Peso vs other Latin American currencies
The name "peso" is shared by several countries, which confuses tourists who assume they are interchangeable. They are not. Each is a separate currency with its own value:
- Mexican peso (MXN): about 17 per USD in 2026
- Argentine peso (ARS): about 1,000 per USD; Argentina has battled chronic inflation for decades
- Colombian peso (COP): about 4,100 per USD
- Chilean peso (CLP): about 950 per USD
- Cuban peso (CUP): pegged officially but with a large parallel market
- Uruguayan peso (UYU): about 40 per USD
- Dominican peso (DOP): about 60 per USD
- Philippine peso (PHP): about 57 per USD; the only peso outside Latin America
Is the peso a strong or weak currency?
The honest answer is: it depends on when you ask. Over the last ten years the peso has traded between roughly 17 and 25 per dollar. The two memorable low points were the 2020 COVID shock, when the pair spiked above 25, and the 2023–24 period known informally as the "super peso", when high Banxico rates and a weak dollar pushed the rate below 17.
Entering 2026, USD/MXN is trading near the middle of that multi-year range. Banxico has begun a cautious easing cycle, the Fed is also cutting, and nearshoring investment continues to bring foreign direct investment into northern Mexico. That combination tends to support the peso in the medium term, though it remains sensitive to US politics and global risk sentiment. For current numbers, see our USD to MXN historical rates page.
How to convert pesos to dollars or vice versa
The cheapest way in 2026 is almost always a Mexican ATM at one of the large banks (BBVA, Banamex, Santander, HSBC), funded by a US card with no foreign transaction fee. Wise, Revolut and Charles Schwab debit cards all work well. Avoid airport exchange counters, hotel front desks, and dynamic currency conversion at the point of sale.
For online conversion, use our live USD to MXN converter, go the other way with the peso to dollar converter, or work through round-number amounts in the USD to MXN calculator. All three pull live mid-market rates, not retail spreads.