Strongest African Currencies 2026: Full Ranked List

Strongest African currencies, ranked

Every African currency ordered by how many units buy one US dollar — with an honest explanation of what that does and does not mean.

African currencies ranked by exchange rate

All 42 African currencies, ordered by how many units it takes to buy one US dollar. Fewer units sits higher in the table. The CFA francs each cover several countries, so the list is by currency rather than by country.

Rank	Currency	Code	Used in	Per 1 USD
#1	🇹🇳 Tunisian Dinar	TND	Tunisia	2.96
#2	🇱🇾 Libyan Dinar	LYD	Libya	6.43
#3	🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham	MAD	Morocco	9.35
#4	🇬🇭 Cedi	GHS	Ghana	11.61
#5	🇸🇨 Seychellois Rupee	SCR	Seychelles	13.32
#6	🇧🇼 Pula	BWP	Botswana	13.63
#7	🇪🇷 Nakfa	ERN	Eritrea	15
#8	🇸🇿 Lilangeni	SZL	Eswatini	16.82
#9	🇱🇸 Loti	LSL	Lesotho	16.82
#10	🇳🇦 Namibian Dollar	NAD	Namibia	16.82
#11	🇿🇦 Rand	ZAR	South Africa	16.82
#12	🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha	ZMW	Zambia	18.64
#13	🇸🇹 Dobra	STN	São Tomé and Príncipe	22.54
#14	🇸🇱 Leone	SLE	Sierra Leone	22.7
#15	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG)	ZWG	Zimbabwe	26.8
#16	🇲🇷 Ouguiya	MRU	Mauritania	39.7
#17	🇲🇺 Mauritian Rupee	MUR	Mauritius	47.36
#18	🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound	EGP	Egypt	51.33
#19	🇲🇿 Metical	MZN	Mozambique	63.6
#20	🇬🇲 Dalasi	GMD	Gambia	72
#21	🇨🇻 Escudo	CVE	Cabo Verde	101.44
#22	🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling	KES	Kenya	129.44
#23	🇩🇿 Algerian Dinar	DZD	Algeria	133.18
#24	🇪🇹 Birr	ETB	Ethiopia	160.01
#25	🇩🇯 Djiboutian Franc	DJF	Djibouti	177.72
#26	🇱🇷 Liberian Dollar	LRD	Liberia	190
#27	🇰🇲 Comorian Franc	KMF	Comoros	452.61
#28	🇸🇴 Somali Shilling	SOS	Somalia	571
#29	🇸🇩 Sudanese Pound	SDG	Sudan	600.17
#30	🇧🇯 CFA Franc BCEAO	XOF	Benin + 7 more	603.48
#31	🇨🇲 CFA Franc BEAC	XAF	Cameroon + 5 more	603.48
#32	🇦🇴 Kwanza	AOA	Angola	917.5
#33	🇳🇬 Naira	NGN	Nigeria	1,364.79
#34	🇷🇼 Rwandan Franc	RWF	Rwanda	1,474.54
#35	🇲🇼 Kwacha	MWK	Malawi	1,746.79
#36	🇹🇿 Tanzanian Shilling	TZS	Tanzania	2,635
#37	🇨🇩 Congolese Franc	CDF	DR Congo	2,850
#38	🇧🇮 Burundian Franc	BIF	Burundi	2,900
#39	🇺🇬 Ugandan Shilling	UGX	Uganda	3,709.45
#40	🇸🇸 South Sudanese Pound	SSP	South Sudan	4,400
#41	🇲🇬 Ariary	MGA	Madagascar	4,550
#42	🇬🇳 Guinean Franc	GNF	Guinea	8,650

What this ranking does — and does not — tell you

It measures the nominal rate, nothing more

A currency needing few units per dollar is not therefore “strong” in any economic sense. The number reflects the value each currency happened to start at and how many times it has been redenominated since — not the size, growth or health of the economy behind it.

The clearest proof is outside Africa

The Japanese yen trades at roughly 150 per dollar and the Kuwaiti dinar at about 0.31 — a difference of nearly 500×. Nobody would argue Kuwait’s economy is 500 times healthier than Japan’s. The same logic applies here.

Redenomination moves a currency up the table overnight

When Ghana dropped four zeros in 2007 and Zambia dropped three in 2013, their currencies jumped up rankings like this one without anything changing in the real economy. Sierra Leone did the same in 2022, and Zimbabwe has done it repeatedly.

What actually matters instead

If you want to judge a currency, look at its inflation rate, whether it floats or is pegged, how far the official rate sits from the street rate, and whether the country restricts access to foreign exchange. Those tell you far more than units-per-dollar.

Notable positions

The Tunisian dinar and Libyan dinar sit at the top because both follow the Arab dinar tradition of dividing into 1,000 subunits rather than 100, which set them at a higher starting value. Both are also closed currencies you cannot buy abroad.

At the other end, currencies with many units per dollar — the Sierra Leonean leone, Guinean franc, Ugandan shilling and Malagasy ariary among them — mostly reflect long inflationary histories rather than present-day weakness.

The two CFA francs sit identically because both are fixed to the euro at 655.957, so their dollar rate moves only when EUR/USD moves.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the strongest currency in Africa?

By nominal exchange rate the Tunisian dinar needs the fewest units per US dollar, followed by the Libyan dinar. Both divide into 1,000 subunits rather than 100, which is largely why they start from a higher value. Nominal rate is not a measure of economic strength.

Does a strong exchange rate mean a strong economy?

No. The Japanese yen trades around 150 per dollar and the Kuwaiti dinar around 0.31, yet both economies are strong. Units-per-dollar mainly reflects a currency's historical starting value and any redenominations.

Why do the two CFA francs have the same rate?

The West African CFA franc (XOF) and Central African CFA franc (XAF) are both fixed to the euro at 655.957. They share that rate but are separate currencies issued by different central banks and are not interchangeable.

Which African currency has the most units per dollar?

Currencies such as the Sierra Leonean leone, Guinean franc, Ugandan shilling and Malagasy ariary sit at the high-units end of the table, reflecting long histories of inflation rather than current economic conditions.