The cent is a

monetary Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are as ...

unit Unit may refer to: Arts and entertainment * UNIT, a fictional military organization in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' * Unit of action, a discrete piece of action (or beat) in a theatrical presentation Music * ''Unit'' (alb ...

of many national

currencies A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general def ...

that equals of the basic monetary unit.

Etymologically Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words an ...

, the word 'cent' derives from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word meaning

hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...

. The cent sign is commonly a simple

minuscule Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writing ...

(lower case) letter . In North America, the c is crossed by a diagonal

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

or a vertical line (depending on

typeface A typeface (or font family) is the design of lettering that can include variations in size, weight (e.g. bold), slope (e.g. italic), width (e.g. condensed), and so on. Each of these variations of the typeface is a font. There are list of type ...

), yielding the character . The United States one cent coin is generally known by the nickname "

penny A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is t ...

", alluding to the British coin and unit of that name. Australia ended production of their 1¢ coin in 1992, as did Canada in 2012. Some

Eurozone The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro (€) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU policies ...

countries ended production of the

1 euro cent coin The 1 euro coins, euro cent coin (€0.01) has a value of one hundredth of a euro and is composed of copper-covered steel. It is the lowest-value coin in the Eurozone, the next highest are the 2 euro cent coin, 2 and 5 euro cent coins. The coin ...

, most recently Italy in 2018.

Symbol

The cent may be represented by the cent sign, written in various ways according to the national convention and

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a "sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design. In mod ...

choice. Most commonly seen forms are a minuscule letter ''c'' crossed by a diagonal

or a vertical line or by a simple ''c'', depending on the currency (''see

below Below may refer to: *Earth *Ground (disambiguation) *Soil *Floor *Bottom (disambiguation) Bottom may refer to: Anatomy and sex * Bottom (BDSM), the partner in a BDSM who takes the passive, receiving, or obedient role, to that of the top or ...

''). Cent amounts from 1 to 99 can be represented as one or two digits followed by the appropriate abbreviation (2¢, 5c, 75¢, 99c), or as a subdivision of the base unit ($0.75, €0.99) In some countries, longer abbreviations like "ct." are used. Languages that use other alphabets have their own abbreviations and conventions. The use of the cent symbol has largely fallen into disuse since the mid-20th century as inflation has resulted in very few things being priced in cents in any currency. It was included on US

typewriter keyboard A typewriter is a machine, mechanical or electromechanical machine for typing characters. Typically, a typewriter has an array of Button (control), keys, and each one causes a different single character to be produced on paper by striking ...

s, but has not been adopted on computers.

North American cent sign

The cent sign appeared as the shift of the 6 key on American manual typewriters, but that position has been taken over by the freestanding circumflex on

computer keyboards A computer keyboard is a peripheral input device modeled after the typewriter keyboard which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches. Replacing early punched cards and paper tape technology, i ...

. The character (offset 162) can still be created in most common

code page In computing, a code page is a character encoding and as such it is a specific association of a set of printable characters and control characters with unique numbers. Typically each number represents the binary value in a single byte. (In some co ...

s, including

Unicode Unicode, formally The Unicode Standard,The formal version reference is is an information technology Technical standard, standard for the consistent character encoding, encoding, representation, and handling of Character (computing), text expre ...

and

Windows-1252 Windows-1252 or CP-1252 ( code page 1252) is a single-byte character encoding of the Latin alphabet, used by default in the legacy components of Microsoft Windows for English and many European languages including Spanish, French, and German. It ...

: * On

DOS DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...

- or

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

-based computers with a

numeric keypad A numeric keypad, number pad, numpad, or ten key, is the palm-sized, usually-17-key section of a standard computer keyboard, usually on the far right. It provides calculator-style efficiency for entering numbers. The idea of a 10-key nu ...

, can be held while typing or on the keypad. See for techniques involving the hexadecimal

code point In character encoding terminology, a code point, codepoint or code position is a numerical value that maps to a specific character. Code points usually represent a single grapheme—usually a letter, digit, punctuation mark, or whitespace—but ...

that can be used when there is no numeric keypad, as on many laptops. For the US International keyboard can be typed. * On

Macintosh The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and ...

systems, can be held and on the number row pressed. * On

Unix Unix (; trademarked as UNIX) is a family of multitasking, multiuser computer operating systems that derive from the original AT&T Unix, whose development started in 1969 at the Bell Labs research center by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, and ot ...

Linux Linux ( or ) is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution, which ...

systems with a

compose key A compose key (sometimes called multi key) is a key on a computer keyboard that indicates that the following (usually 2 or more) keystrokes trigger the insertion of an alternate character, typically a precomposed character or a symbol. For insta ...

, and are typical sequences.

Orthography

When written in English and Mexican Spanish, the cent sign (¢ or c) follows the amount (with no space between)for example, 2¢ and $0.02, or 2c and €0.02. Conventions in other languages may vary.

Usage

Minor currency units called ''cent'' or similar names

Examples of currencies around the world featuring centesimal () units called ''cent'', or related words from the same root such as ''

céntimo The céntimo (in Spanish-speaking countries) or cêntimo (in Portuguese-speaking countries) was a currency unit of Spain, Portugal and their former colonies. The word derived from the Latin meaning "hundredth part". The main Spanish currency ...

'', '' centésimo'', ''

centavo The centavo (Spanish and Portuguese 'one hundredth') is a fractional monetary unit that represents one hundredth of a basic monetary unit in many countries around the world. The term comes from Latin ''centum'', ('one hundred'), with the added suf ...

'' or ''sen'', are: *

Argentine peso The peso (established as the ''peso convertible'') is the currency of Argentina, identified by the symbol $ preceding the amount in the same way as many countries using peso or dollar currencies. It is subdivided into 100 '' centavos''. Its ISO 4 ...

(as ''centavo'') *

Aruban florin The florin (; sign: Afl.; code: AWG) or Aruban guilder is the currency of Aruba. It is subdivided into 100 cents. The florin was introduced in 1986, replacing the Netherlands Antillean guilder at par. The Aruban florin is pegged to the United Stat ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 5 cents. *

Australian dollar The Australian dollar (sign: $; code: AUD) is the currency of Australia, including its external territories: Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island. It is officially used as currency by three independent Pacific Island s ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 5 cents. *

Barbadian dollar The dollar has been the currency of Barbados since 1935. Globally its currency has the ISO 4217 code ''BBD'', however, unofficially in Barbados the International vehicle registration code code BDS is also commonly used, a currency code that is o ...

Bahamian dollar The dollar (sign: $; code: BSD) has been the currency of The Bahamas since 1966. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign ''$'', or alternatively B$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is divided into 100 cents ...

Belize dollar The Belize dollar is the official currency in Belize (ISO 4217, currency code ''BZD''). It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign ''$'', or alternatively ''BZ$'' to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is divided int ...

Bermudian dollar The Bermudian dollar ( symbol: $; code: BMD; also abbreviated BD$; informally called the Bermuda dollar) is the official currency of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is subdivided into 100 cents. The Bermudian dollar is n ...

Bolivian boliviano The boliviano (; sign: BsBanco Central de Bolivia. "Galeria de monedas y billetes''." Accessed 26 February 2011.Banco Central de BoliviaOfficial websiteAccessed 26 February 2011. ISO 4217 code: BOB) is the currency of Bolivia. It is divided int ...

(as ''centavo''), however all circulating coins are in multiples of 10 centavos *

Brazilian real The Brazilian real (plural, pl. '; currency symbol, sign: R$; ISO 4217, code: BRL) is the official currency of Brazil. It is subdivided into 100 centavos. The Central Bank of Brazil is the central bank and the issuing authority. The real repl ...

(as ''centavo'') *

Brunei dollar The Brunei dollar ( sign: B$, Malay: ''ringgit Brunei'', currency code: ''BND''), has been the currency of the Sultanate of Brunei since 1967. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively B$ to distinguish it from othe ...

(as ''sen'') *

Canadian dollar The Canadian dollar ( symbol: $; code: CAD; french: dollar canadien) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, there is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviation Can$ is often suggested by notable style ...

Cayman Islands dollar The Cayman Islands Dollar ( currency code ''KYD'') is the currency of the Cayman Islands. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign ''$'', or alternatively ''CI$'' to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is subdivided into 1 ...

* Chilean peso (as ''centavo''). Centavos officially exist and are considered in financial transactions; however, there are no current centavo-denominated coins. * Colombian peso (as ''centavo'') *

Cook Islands dollar The Cook Islands dollar was the former currency of the Cook Islands, which now uses the New Zealand dollar, although some physical cash issued for the Cook Islands dollar remains in use. The dollar was subdivided into 100 '' cents'', with some ol ...

(''cent'', although some 50 cent coins are marked "50 ''tene''") *

Cuban peso The Cuban peso (in Spanish , ISO 4217 code: CUP) also known as , is the official currency of Cuba. The Cuban peso historically circulated at par with the Spanish-American silver dollar from the 16th to 19th centuries, and then at par with the U ...

(as ''centavo'') *

East Caribbean dollar The Eastern Caribbean dollar (symbol: EC$; code: XCD) is the currency of all seven full members and one associate member of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). The successor to the British West Indies dollar, it has existed sinc ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 5 cents. *

Eritrean nakfa The nakfa ( ISO 4217 code: ''ERN''; ''naḳfa'', or or نقفة ''nākfā'') is the currency of Eritrea and was introduced on 15 November 1998 to replace the Ethiopian birr at par. The currency takes its name from the Eritrean town of Nakfa, ...

Estonian kroon The kroon (sign: KR; code: EEK) was the official currency of Estonia for two periods in history: 1928–1940 and 1992–2011. Between 1 January and 14 January 2011, the kroon circulated together with the euro, after which the euro became the sole ...

(as ''sent'') *

Euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

– the coins bear the text "Euro cent". Greek coins have ΛΕΠΤΟ (" lepto") on the obverse of the one-cent coin and ΛΕΠΤΑ ("lepta") on the obverse of the others. The actual

usage The usage of a language is the ways in which its written and spoken variations are routinely employed by its speakers; that is, it refers to "the collective habits of a language's native speakers", as opposed to idealized models of how a language ...

varies depending on the language. *

Fijian dollar The Fijian dollar (currency sign: FJ$, Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: FJD) has been the currency of Fiji since 1969 and was also the currency between 1867 and 1873. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively ...

Guyanese dollar The Guyanese dollar (currency sign: $, G$ and GY$; ISO: GYD) has been the unit of account in Guyana (formerly British Guiana) since 29 January 1839. Originally it was intended as a transitional unit to facilitate the changeover from the Dutch gui ...

Hong Kong dollar The Hong Kong dollar (, currency symbol, sign: HK$; ISO 4217, code: HKD) is the official currency of the Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is subdivided into 100 cent (currency), cents or 1000 Mill (currency), mils. The H ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 10 cents. *

Indonesian rupiah The rupiah (Currency symbol, symbol: Rp; ISO 4217, currency code: IDR) is the official currency of Indonesia. It is issued and controlled by Bank Indonesia. The name "Rupee, rupiah" is derived from the Sanskrit word for silver, (). Sometimes, I ...

(as ''sen'') *

Jamaican dollar The Jamaican dollar (sign: $; code: JMD) has been the currency of Jamaica since 1969. It is often abbreviated to J$, the J serving to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is divided into 100 cents, although cent denomin ...

, however there are no circulating coins with a value below one dollar. *

Kenyan shilling The shilling ( sw, shilingi; abbreviation: KSh; ISO code: KES) is the currency of Kenya. It is divided into 100 cents. Notation Prices in the Kenyan shilling are written in the form of , where x is the amount in shillings, while y is the ...

Lesotho loti The Loti (plural: Maloti) is the currency of the Kingdom of Lesotho. It is subdivided into 100 ''lisente'' (sg. ''sente''). It is pegged to the South African rand on a 1:1 basis through the Common Monetary Area, and both are accepted as legal ten ...

(as ''sente'') *

Liberian dollar The dollar (currency code ''LRD'') has been the currency of Liberia since 1943. It was also the country's currency between 1847 and 1907. It is normally abbreviated with the sign $, or alternatively L$ or LD$ to distinguish it from other dollar-d ...

Lithuanian litas The Lithuanian litas (ISO currency code LTL, symbolized as Lt; plural ''litai'' (nominative) or ''litų'' (genitive) was the currency of Lithuania, until 1 January 2015, when it was replaced by the euro. It was divided into 100 centų (geniti ...

(as ''centas'') *

Macanese pataca The Macanese pataca or Macau pataca (; pt, pataca de Macau; sign: $; abbreviation: P; ISO code: MOP) is the currency of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It is subdivided into 100 ''avos'' (; ''sin'' ...

(as ''avo''), however all circulating coins are in multiples of 10 avos. *

Malaysian ringgit The Malaysian ringgit (; plural: ringgit; symbol: RM; currency code: MYR; Malay name: ''Ringgit Malaysia''; formerly the Malaysian dollar) is the currency of Malaysia. It is divided into 100 ''sen'' (formerly ''cents''). The ringgit is issue ...

(as ''sen''), however all circulating coins are in multiples of 5 sen. *

Mauritian rupee The Mauritian rupee (sign: Re (singular) and Rs (plural); ISO code: MUR; ) is the currency of Mauritius. One rupee is subdivided into 100 cents. Several other currencies are also called rupee. Coins In 1877, coins for 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 cents w ...

Mexican peso The Mexican peso (Currency symbol, symbol: $; ISO 4217, code: MXN) is the currency of Mexico. Modern peso and dollar currencies have a common origin in the 16th–19th century Spanish dollar, most continuing to use dollar sign, its sign, "$". ...

(as ''centavo'') *

Moroccan dirham The Moroccan dirham ( ar, درهم, translit=dirham, ary, درهم, translit=derhem; ber, ⴷⵔⵀⵎ, translit=drhm; sign: DH; code: MAD) is the official monetary currency of Morocco. It is issued by the Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank of ...

(as ''santim'') *

Namibian dollar The Namibian dollar (symbol: N $; code: NAD) has been the currency of Namibia since 1993. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively N$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is divided into 100 ...

Netherlands Antillean gulden The Netherlands Antillean guilder ( nl, gulden) is the currency of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, which until 2010 formed the Netherlands Antilles along with Bonaire, Saba (island), Saba, and Sint Eustatius. It is subdivided into 100 ''cents'' (Dutch ...

New Zealand dollar The New Zealand dollar ( mi, tāra o Aotearoa; sign: $, NZ$; code: NZD) is the official currency and legal tender of New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, Tokelau, and a British territory, the Pitcairn Islands. Within New ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 10 cents. *

Panamanian balboa The balboa (sign: B/.; ISO 4217: PAB) is, along with the United States dollar, one of the official currencies of Panama. It is named in honor of the Spanish explorer/conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa. The balboa is subdivided into 100 ''centé ...

(as ''centésimo'') *

Peruvian sol The sol (; plural: soles; currency sign: S/) is the currency of Peru; it is subdivided into 100 ''céntimos'' ("cents"). The ISO 4217 currency code is PEN. The sol replaced the Peruvian inti in 1991 and the name is a return to that of Peru's hi ...

(as ''céntimo'') *

Philippine peso The Philippine peso, also referred to by its Tagalog name ''piso'' (Philippine English: , , plural pesos; tl, piso ; sign: ₱; code: PHP), is the official currency of the Philippines. It is subdivided into 100 ''sentimo'', also called ce ...

(as ''sentimo'' or ''centavo'') *

Seychellois rupee The rupee is the currency of the Seychelles. It is subdivided into 100 ''cents''. In the local Seychellois Creole (Seselwa) language, it is called the ''roupi'' and roupie in French. The ISO code is SCR. The abbreviation SR is sometimes used for ...

Sierra Leonean leone The leone is the currency of Sierra Leone. It is subdivided into 100 ''cents''. As of 1 July 2022, the ISO 4217 code is ''SLE'' due to a redenomination of the old leone (SLL) at a rate of SLL 1000 to SLE 1. The leone is abbreviated as ''Le'' pla ...

Singapore dollar The Singapore dollar (sign: S$; code: SGD) is the official currency of the Republic of Singapore. It is divided into 100 cents. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or S$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currenci ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 5 cents. *

South African rand The South African rand, or simply the rand, ( sign: R; code: ZAR) is the official currency of the Southern African Common Monetary Area: South Africa, Namibia (alongside the Namibian dollar), Lesotho (alongside the Lesotho loti) and Eswatini ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 10 cents. *

Sri Lankan rupee The Sri Lankan Rupee ( si, රුපියල්, ta, ரூபாய்; Currency symbol, symbol: Re and Rs (plural) in English, රු in Sinhala, ௹ in Tamil; ISO 4217, ISO code: LKR) is the currency of Sri Lanka. It is subdivided into 100 ...

Surinamese dollar The Surinamese dollar (ISO 4217 code ''SRD'') has been the currency of Suriname since 2004. It is divided into 100 '' cent''. The Surinamese dollar is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign ''$'', or alternatively ''Sr$'' to distinguish it fro ...

* Swazi lilangeni *

New Taiwan dollar The New Taiwan dollar (code: TWD; symbol: NT$, also abbreviated as NT) is the official currency of Taiwan. The New Taiwan dollar has been the currency of Taiwan since 1949, when it replaced the Old Taiwan dollar, at a rate of 40,000 old dollars ...

, however all circulating coins are in multiples of 50 cents. *

Tanzanian shilling The shilling ( Swahili: ''shilingi''; abbreviation: TSh; code: TZS) is the currency of Tanzania. It is subdivided into 100 ''cents'' (''senti'' in Swahili). The Tanzanian shilling replaced the East African shilling on 14 June 1966 at par. No ...

Tongan paʻanga The paanga is the currency of Tonga. It is controlled by the National Reserve Bank of Tonga (''Pangikē Pule Fakafonua o Tonga'') in Nukualofa. The paanga is not convertible and is pegged to a basket of currencies comprising the Australian, New ...

(as ''seniti'') *

Trinidad and Tobago dollar The Trinidad and Tobago dollar (ISO 4217, currency code TTD) is the currency of Trinidad and Tobago. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively TT$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is subdiv ...

United States dollar The United States dollar ( symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the officia ...

Uruguayan peso Uruguayan peso ( es, peso uruguayo) has been a name of the Uruguayan currency since Uruguay's settlement by Europeans. The present currency, the ''peso uruguayo'' (ISO 4217 code: ) was adopted in 1993 and is subdivided into 100 '' centésimos' ...

(as ''centésimo'') *

Zimbabwean dollar The Zimbabwean dollar (sign: $, or Z$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies) was the name of four official currencies of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 12 April 2009. During this time, it was subject to periods of extreme inflat ...

Minor currency units with other names

Examples of currencies featuring centesimal () units not called ''cent''

Obsolete centesimal currency units

Examples of currencies which formerly featured centesimal () units but now have no fractional denomination in circulation: Examples of currencies which use the cent symbol for other purposes: *

Costa Rican colón The colón (plural: ''colones''; sign: ₡; code: CRC) is the currency of Costa Rica. It was named after Christopher Columbus, known as ''Cristóbal Colón'' in Spanish. A colón is divided into one hundred céntimos. Symbol The symbol for ...

– The common symbol '¢' is frequently used locally to represent '₡', the proper colón designation *

Ghanaian cedi The cedi ( ) (currency sign: GH₵; currency code: GHS) is the unit of currency of Ghana. It is the fourth historical and only current legal tender in the Republic of Ghana. One cedi is divided into one hundred pesewas (Gp). After independenc ...

– The common symbol '¢' is sometimes used to represent '₵', the proper cedi designation

Notes

{{Authority control Denominations (currency) Currency symbols

Symbol

North American cent sign

Orthography

Usage

Minor currency units called ''cent'' or similar names

Minor currency units with other names

Obsolete centesimal currency units

See also

Notes