The Iran government doesn’t publicly announce the real Iran currency exchange rate. Instead, while traveling in Iran, I found the local currency exchange businesses to be the real trustworthy sources.
My first experience with the tricky exchange rate happened while I booked my tour to Iran. The rates that I saw online didn’t match the rate my travel agent gave me. In fact, the rates weren’t even close.
I had heard about the discrepancy before, but I fully realized the truth in that moment. There’s a big variation between the authentic, real Iran currency exchange rate and the numbers that the Iranian government posts.
It’s easy to find the wrong Iran currency exchange rate
While it’s common knowledge that all governments lie about at least some things, only a handful are as bold as the Iranian government. Currently, their bureaucrats are telling the world that the Iran Rial to US Dollar (IRR to USD) exchange rate is ~42,000. Even though the world knows that’s not true, unfortunately many websites still post the wrong exchange rate.
This screenshot shows how XE.com posts the incorrect rate (click to enlarge).
If you want to find the incorrect exchange rate online, don’t worry, it’s not hard to find! For example, look at XE, one of the leading sources for currency exchange rates. As of this writing, their website shows the wrong rate – that of the Iranian government.
Furthermore, if you have a currency converter app on your phone, it’s probably also showing the wrong rate.
What I saw inside Iran
After learning all of this, I became very interested in what I’d see once I got in the country. On September 8th, 2019, the first day of my trip to Iran, I saw the real, free market exchange rate at a currency exchange business in Tehran. The featured image at the top of this post is from that business (those prices are in Toman). They were buying USD for 115,000 IRR.
Iran Rial currency. The coins are rarely circulated (click to enlarge).
To be honest, I was a bit surprised that the police allowed a business to show a rate that conflicted with the Iranian government’s publicly announced rates. But as our tour progressed, I continued to notice rates that were very different from the government’s rates.
On September 17th, I saw a currency exchange business in Tabriz that was buying USD for 113,000 IRR. Although they wouldn’t let me take a picture of their board, it publicly displayed the free market prices.
On September 27th, my tour guide and I met some budding entrepreneurs on the sidewalk in a small town near Shiraz. They were buying USD for 112,000 IRR.
The next day, I realized that I’d been carrying around another source in my pocket the whole time. When I checked my Daric Pay account on my phone, it displayed a rate of 113,000 IRR to USD.
The government can’t hide the real rate, even at…
Yet I found the most surprising currency exchange rates on October 7th, my last day in Iran. The only exchange place in the airport displayed a rate of 112,000 IRR to USD. While the rate itself was in line with what I’d seen throughout Iran, what fascinated me the most were the rates at that particular currency exchange business.
That aforementioned business is located inside the Imam Khomeini International Airport. Khomeini took over the leadership of Iran following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Further adding to the full picture, Khomeini’s face is on the front of every Iran Rial paper currency, except the 500,000 Rial note.
The board at the currency exchange business located inside the Khomeini airport. Notice it’s showing the free market rates, not the government’s rates (click to enlarge).
With that in mind, I assumed that if any currency exchange business in the whole country would have the government-endorsed rate, it’d be that one. Nope! The truth is: the Iran government tells the world one story, but the free market exchanges say another – even at the Khomeini airport.
Before I visited Iran, I thought I’d have trouble exchanging money at the free market rate. I’m glad I was wrong about that. In fact, currency exchange businesses in Iran are definitely allowed to openly contradict the government’s publicly announced exchange rate.
How to find the honest Iran currency exchange rate online
Of course, when my plane took off from the Khomeini airport, I couldn’t visit those currency exchange businesses anymore. However, I can visit trustworthy websites that post the current, free market rates for the Iran Rial. With that in mind, in an effort to help spread the truth, I’ll share two honest sources:
- Bonbast.com
- FriendlyIran.com (the tour company I used)
You can trust Friendly Iran, especially to give you the correct exchange rate.
We should all applaud these sites for the service they provide to the people of the world – both inside and outside of Iran.
Having a basic understanding of a country’s currency is one of the first steps towards a successful visit.
Now that you know more about the currency of Iran and where to find accurate exchange rates online, I sincerely hope I’ve helped pique your interest in visiting Iran.
If you’re considering a trip to Iran, don’t wait! Start your research today, but make sure you find a travel agency that you can trust. I hired Friendly Iran to help me plan my visit and I can 100% endorse them as a travel agency.
After you accomplish your own epic visit to Iran, I’m sure your stories will interest me. So, post your pictures online, then send me a link to them. Happy trails!
The Iran government doesn’t publicly announce the real Iran currency exchange rate. Instead, while traveling in Iran, I found the local currency exchange businesses to be the real trustworthy sources.
My first experience with the tricky exchange rate happened while I booked my tour to Iran. The rate that I saw online didn’t match the rate my travel agent gave me. In fact, the rates weren’t even close.
I had heard about the discrepancy before, but I fully realized the truth in that moment. There’s a big variation between the authentic, real Iran currency exchange rate and the numbers that the Iranian government posts.
It’s easy to find the wrong Iran currency exchange rate
While it’s common knowledge that all governments lie about at least some things, only a handful are as bold as the Iranian government. Currently, their bureaucrats are telling the world that the Iran Rial to US Dollar (IRR to USD) exchange rate is ~42,000. Even though the world knows that’s not true, unfortunately many websites still post the wrong exchange rate.
This screenshot shows how XE.com posts the incorrect rate (click to enlarge).
If you want to find the incorrect exchange rate online, don’t worry, it’s not hard to find! For example, look at XE, one of the leading sources for currency exchange rates. As of this writing, their website shows the wrong rate – that of the Iranian government.
Furthermore, if you have a currency converter app on your phone, it’s probably also showing the wrong rate.
What I saw inside Iran
After learning all of this, I became very interested in what I’d see once I got in the country. On September 8th, 2019, the first day of my trip to Iran, I saw the real, free market exchange rate at a currency exchange business in Tehran. The featured image at the top of this post is from that business (those prices are in Toman). They were buying USD for 115,000 IRR.
To be honest, I was a bit surprised that the police allowed a business to show a rate that conflicted with the Iranian government’s publicly announced rates. But as our tour progressed, I continued to notice rates that were very different from the government’s rates.
Iran Rial currency. The coins are rarely circulated (click to enlarge).
On September 17th, I saw a currency exchange business in Tabriz that was buying USD for 113,000 IRR. Although they wouldn’t let me take a picture of their board, it publicly displayed the free market prices.
On September 27th, my tour guide and I met some budding entrepreneurs on the sidewalk in a small town near Shiraz. They were buying USD for 112,000 IRR.
The next day, I realized that I’d been carrying around another source in my pocket the whole time. When I checked my Daric Pay account on my phone, it displayed a rate of 113,000 IRR to USD.
The government can’t hide the real rate, even at…
Yet I found the most surprising currency exchange rates on October 7th, my last day in Iran. The only exchange place in the airport displayed a rate of 112,000 IRR to USD. While the rate itself was in line with what I’d seen throughout Iran, what fascinated me the most were the rates at that particular currency exchange business.
That aforementioned business is located inside the Imam Khomeini International Airport. Khomeini took over the leadership of Iran following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Further adding to the full picture, Khomeini’s face is on the front of every Iran Rial paper currency, except the 500,000 Rial note.
The board at the currency exchange business located inside the Khomeini airport. Notice it’s showing the free market rates, not the government’s rates (click to enlarge).
With that in mind, I assumed that if any currency exchange business in the whole country would have the government-endorsed rate, it’d be that one. Nope! The truth is: the Iran government tells the world one story, but the free market exchanges say another – even at the Khomeini airport.
Before I visited Iran, I thought I’d have trouble exchanging money at the free market rate. I’m glad I was wrong about that. In fact, currency exchange businesses in Iran are definitely allowed to openly contradict the government’s publicly announced exchange rate.
How to find the honest Iran currency exchange rate online
Of course, when my plane took off from the Khomeini airport, I couldn’t visit those currency exchange businesses anymore. However, I can visit trustworthy websites that post the current, free market rates for the Iran Rial. With that in mind, in an effort to help spread the truth, I’ll share two honest sources:
- Bonbast.com
- FriendlyIran.com (the tour company I used)
We should all applaud these sites for the service they provide to the people of the world – both inside and outside of Iran.
You can trust Friendly Iran, especially to give you the correct Iran currency exchange rate.
Having a basic understanding of a country’s currency is one of the first steps towards a successful visit.
Now that you know more about the currency of Iran and where to find accurate exchange rates online, I sincerely hope I’ve helped pique your interest in visiting Iran.
If you’re considering a trip to Iran, don’t wait! Start your research today, but make sure you find a travel agency that you can trust. I hired Friendly Iran to help me plan my visit and I can 100% endorse them as a travel agency.
After you accomplish your own epic visit to Iran, I’m sure your stories will interest me. So, post your pictures online, then send me a link to them. Happy trails!
