AED UAE Dirham
Buy and sell UAE Dirhams in Sydney
Dirham notes for Dubai, Abu Dhabi or a stopover on the way to Europe, from our counter at Suite 202A, Level 2, 60 York Street, NSW 2000 - sold and bought back at live rates with 0% commission, weekdays 9:30am to 5pm.
How to get your dirhams
Three quick steps between today's rate and dirhams in your wallet.
Check today's AED exchange rate
Use the calculator to see how many dirhams your Australian dollars buy right now, and what we pay in A$ for dirhams you bring back from the Gulf.
Visit our store
Find us upstairs at Suite 202A, Level 2, 60 York Street, NSW 2000, four minutes' walk from Wynyard station, or call (02) 8014 4222 first and we will hold your dirhams for collection.
Get your cash
Notes are counted where you can watch and settled there and then, and dirhams you carry home sell back across the same counter.
Key information about the UAE dirham
What the dirham is, the notes you will handle, and where it spends.
The dirham has been the money of all seven emirates since 1973, when it replaced the Bahraini dinar in Abu Dhabi and the Qatar and Dubai riyal everywhere else. The Central Bank of the UAE issues it, one dirham splits into 100 fils, and since November 1997 it has been fixed to the US dollar at AED 3.6725.
Eight notes circulate: AED 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,000. Since 2021 the 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 have been reissued on polymer, the AED 100 arriving in March 2025, while the 20 and 200 stay paper; older paper notes remain valid alongside them. For daily spending, 50s and 100s are the practical sizes.
Flights to Europe make Dubai a stopover for many Sydney travellers, and buying UAE dirhams in Sydney beforehand means the taxi and the first coffee are covered before you land. The dirham is one of the 22 currencies at our York Street counter: bring photo ID, or ring ahead to reserve, and unspent dirhams sell back at the live buy-back rate.
UAE Dirham details
- Currency
- UAE Dirham
- Code
- AED
- Symbol
- AED
- Subunit
- 100 fils
- Central bank
- Central Bank of the UAE
UAE Dirham in use
- Banknotes
- AED 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,000 (the 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 are now polymer, issued 2021 to 2025; paper versions of all eight remain valid)
- Coins
- 25 fils, 50 fils and AED 1 in everyday use; the 1, 5 and 10 fils exist but prices round to 25 fils
- Used in
- The United Arab Emirates - Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah
- Also used
- Nowhere else as everyday money - Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain keep their own currencies; the dirham is pegged to the US dollar at AED 3.6725, unchanged since 1997
Break AED 500 and 1,000 notes at a hotel or a large store rather than in a taxi or at a souk stall. Carry mostly 50s and 100s, with a few 5s, 10s and 20s for tips and small buys.
Today's dirham exchange rate in Sydney
Below is our York Street counter's live AUD to AED rate in both directions - the dirhams your Australian dollars buy, and the A$ we pay for dirhams you bring home. Every figure is worked from the rate the calculator shows at this moment.
Buying dirhams in Sydney
A$1 = AED 2.4784
Australian dollars across the counter, dirham notes back.
- No commission at all - the AED rate you agree is the full cost of the notes
- Bring Australian dollars in cash, as the counter accepts cash only at present
- Ask for AED 50s and 100s for the bulk, plus a few small notes - Dubai taxis and souk stalls seldom have change for a 500
Selling dirhams back in Sydney
AED 1 = A$0.3810
Dirhams from the trip, Australian dollars in hand.
- Agree the count, and the Australian dollars are paid to you then and there
- Dirhams need to be clean and whole - a note that is torn, taped or badly marked may be refused
- Both the polymer and the older paper dirhams remain legal tender in the UAE, so either series can come back with you
These are counter rates and they shift as the market moves through the day. The time shown on the calculator is the time this table was set, and the rate confirmed at the counter when you exchange is the figure that counts.
What things cost in the UAE
Dubai prices, roughly - Abu Dhabi is similar, Sharjah and the northern emirates cheaper, and hotel and attraction prices climb between November and March when the weather is kind.
UAE travel money tips
The habit that matters most in the Emirates, plus three details worth knowing.
Pay by card, tip and haggle in cash
The Emirates run on contactless: hotels, malls, restaurants and Dubai's taxis all take a tapped card or phone, and the metro runs on a Nol travel card. Where cash still matters is the margin of the day - an AED 10 or 20 tip for the porter, bargaining in the Gold Souk, a karak tea, the abra ride across Dubai Creek. A modest float of small dirham notes covers all of it.
Things to see in the UAE
Seven emirates within a few hours' drive of each other - and a handful of dirhams smooths the abra, the souk and the desert camp along the way.
Why exchange dirhams with us
Stocking up before the Gulf stopover or turning leftover dirhams back into A$ - a registered CBD counter does both at live rates, with nothing added to the number.
0% commission, no fees on top
Dirhams carry 0% commission here, with no service or handling fee tucked behind the AUD to AED rate. Whatever the calculator says your A$ will buy is exactly what is counted out at the counter.
Live, timestamped counter rates
The two dirham rates on this page - our selling rate and our buy-back rate - come straight from the counter, are refreshed through the trading day, and each shows the time it was last set.
Registered, reviewed, guaranteed
An AUSTRAC registered exchange, ABN 18 675 798 302, with a public Google rating of from 59 reviews - and a written Best Price Guarantee behind every transaction.
Rated on Google by 59 customers
Every one of these was left on our Google profile by someone who came up to Level 2. We cannot edit them or take them down.
"Nice attention, customer service and good rate"
"Great people. Great rates. Great location. Sunil is the best."
"Thanks sunil. Great service and great rates"
"Pretty good rates, the place is clean and comfortable to wait in."
See what customers across Sydney say about our rates and service.
Read them all on Googlearrow_forwardCommon questions about UAE dirhams
Something we have not covered? Call (02) 8014 4222 on a weekday and ask.
The calculator at the top of this page carries today's live rate in both directions - what you pay for dirham notes and what we pay when you sell them back. Because the dirham is pegged to the US dollar, the AUD to AED rate follows the Australian dollar's own movement against the US dollar through the day, and the rate confirmed at the counter is the one applied.
At Currency Wise Exchange, Suite 202A, Level 2, 60 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000 - upstairs, about four minutes on foot from Wynyard station. Come in any weekday between 9:30am and 5pm with photo ID; there is no appointment to make. If you would rather have the dirhams waiting, phone (02) 8014 4222 before you set out.
Scroll to the conversion table on this page: it prices A$1,000 and several other common amounts at the counter's live rate, updating with the calculator during the day. Since the dirham tracks the US dollar, the figure drifts as the Australian dollar does, so treat the table as today's guide and the rate confirmed at the counter as the final number.
No. Dirhams are exchanged at 0% commission in both directions, with no service fee or handling charge added afterwards. The rate you agree at the counter is the whole price, and nothing is deducted from the dirhams counted out to you.
Dirhams are a regular request among the 22 currencies at our counter, given how many Sydney travellers pass through Dubai, so on a normal weekday the answer is yes. For a large amount, or if you want particular denominations, phone (02) 8014 4222 first and we will confirm it and hold it for you.
Mostly AED 50s and 100s, with a handful of 5s, 10s and 20s for tips, taxis and small purchases. The AED 500 and AED 1,000 are legal tender but awkward to break outside hotels and large stores, so keep them to a minimum unless you are paying a big bill. Polymer and paper versions of the same note are both valid - the polymer ones have been replacing paper since 2021.
Yes. Bring them to the same counter and they are bought at the live buy-back rate shown in the calculator, paid in Australian dollars on the spot. The notes should be in good, resaleable condition - anything torn, taped, heavily marked or water-damaged may be declined, because each note we buy goes on to another traveller or back to the Emirates.
For a few hours inside the airport, no - every shop and cafe there takes cards. Once you leave the terminal, a little cash earns its place: taxi drivers appreciate a rounded-up fare, souk stallholders bargain in cash, and porters and drivers are tipped in notes. For a one or two night stopover, a few hundred dirhams in small notes covers those moments without leaving much to sell back.
Yes - bring current photo identification. Exchanging currency is a regulated designated service under Australia's AML/CTF legislation, and identification is required for certain transactions in either direction, buying dirhams or selling them back. Having it ready at the counter keeps the visit quick.
Need a different currency?
Dirhams are one of 22 currencies on our board - the full rate board shows today's buying and selling rate for each.
