RandomBasis

Currency to draw

Random Currency Generator

Draw a random world currency with its ISO code and where it is used.

Runs locally in your browser. Nothing you generate is ever sent to a server.

Press "Generate Currency" to see a result here.

Region

About this random currency generator

Press Generate and a currency comes up with its ISO code and where it is used. It is a reference and quiz tool rather than a converter - no exchange rates appear anywhere, for a reason worth explaining.

Why no exchange rates

Rates move continuously, and a figure baked into a page is wrong within moments of being written. A tool that showed a rate would be actively misleading rather than merely incomplete, so this one names the currency and leaves the number to a live converter. Test data does not need a rate, and neither does a quiz.

Reading the codes

The three-letter codes are ISO 4217, and they follow a pattern once you notice it: the first two letters are the country code and the third is usually the currency's first letter. US plus Dollar gives USD, Japan plus Yen gives JPY, Great Britain plus Pound gives GBP. The euro breaks the rule as EUR, because it belongs to no single country.

Currencies for test data

Building a system that handles money means testing more than dollars. Currencies differ in how many decimal places they use, how large typical amounts are, and how the symbol is placed. Drawing currencies at random for fixtures surfaces formatting bugs that a single-currency test never will.

Common uses

How the randomness works

The list is filtered to the region you chose, then a currency is drawn using your browser's cryptographic random source with rejection sampling, so nothing is favoured. Batches without repeats use a Fisher-Yates shuffle driven by the same source.

How do I get a random currency?

Press Generate and one comes up with its three-letter code and where it is used.

What are the three-letter codes?

ISO 4217 codes. The first two letters are usually the country code and the third the currency's initial, so US Dollar becomes USD and Japanese Yen becomes JPY.

Are exchange rates included?

No, deliberately. Rates change by the second, so any number shown here would be wrong within moments. Use a live converter for that.

Why do several countries share a currency?

The euro is used across the eurozone, and several other currencies are shared or pegged regionally. This list names the main user of each.

Can I get a list for a project?

Yes. Set the quantity and press once, then Copy All to take the list with codes and regions.

Is the pick actually random?

Yes. Each currency is drawn with your browser's cryptographic random source, so every one in the chosen region has an equal chance.