The Moroccan dirham
Currency · MAD · 2 countries and territories
Morocco brought the dirham back on 16 October 1960, replacing the franc it had used under the French protectorate, though francs kept circulating at 100 to the dirham until 1974. Bank Al-Maghrib issues it, and since 1987 has printed the notes and struck the coins at its own works, Dar As-Sikkah. The record for Western Sahara lists it too.
No sign of its own
The dirham has no currency sign of its own. Amounts are written DH, the abbreviation of dirham, or with the Arabic word درهم; the Tamazight spelling is ⴷⵔⵀⵎ. The name goes back to the Greek drachma, through the silver dirham struck in Morocco from the eighth century.
- ISO code
- MAD
- ISO number
- 504
- Subunit
- santim, 1/100
An amount, written out
MAD 1,234.50
- MAD 1,234.50English
- 1.234,50 د.م.ArabicMorocco
- 1,234.50 د.م.ArabicWestern Sahara
Where the Moroccan dirham is the official currency
Morocco issues it, and the record for Western Sahara, a territory whose sovereignty is disputed, gives the dirham as its currency as well.
About the Moroccan dirham
Where the dirham had been before
The word comes from the Greek drachma. Under the Idrisid dynasty, from the eighth to the tenth century, Morocco struck a silver coin called the dirham. Until a modern coinage arrived in 1882 the country paid in copper falus, silver dirhams and gold benduqi. From 1882 the dirham sat below the Moroccan rial, ten of them to one rial.
Most of Morocco became a French protectorate in 1912 and moved to the Moroccan franc. The dirham returned as the main unit on 16 October 1960. Francs went on circulating beside it, at 100 to the dirham, until the santim replaced them in 1974. The first dirham notes were old franc notes overprinted: 50 dirhams on the 5,000 franc note, 100 dirhams on the 10,000.
What Bank Al-Maghrib makes at Dar As-Sikkah
Bank Al-Maghrib issues the dirham. Until 1987 it had no works of its own; on 5 March that year it opened Dar As-Sikkah, its own works for printing banknotes and minting coins, and gave it the national passport to produce from the start. A second banknote line followed in 1992. Since 1995 the works have printed banknotes for other countries as well.
For the twenty-fifth anniversary of note printing there, the bank issued a 25 dirham note in December 2012 on Durasafe, a substrate of paper, polymer and paper again, with windows die-cut through the outer layers. A commemorative 20 dirham note on polymer followed in 2019.
How the notes turned into coins
New notes of 5, 10 and 50 dirhams came out in 1965, a 100 in 1970, a 200 in 1991 and a 20 in 1996. Two notes became coins: the 5 dirham in 1980 and the 10 dirham in 1995. The 5 dirham coin turned bimetallic in 1987 and carries two dates, 1987 in the Gregorian calendar and 1407 in the Islamic one. Dar As-Sikkah released a series of six coins in 2011, the first two on 28 July for Throne Day and the rest on 6 November. That series left out the 2 dirham coin, which was too easily confused with the 1 dirham. On 24 November 2023 Bank Al-Maghrib put a new 100 dirham note and a new set of coins into circulation.
Why shoppers still count in rials
Spoken Moroccan money keeps units the state does not recognise. A rial is 5 santimat. A franc is 1 santim. In Arabic, prices below a dirham are given in rials; in French, the same prices are given in centimes. The price of a car is often quoted in santimat.
What sets the dirham's value
Bank Al-Maghrib fixes a central rate against a basket of the euro and the US dollar, and the dirham may move 5% either side of it. In 2015 it changed the weights to 60% euro and 40% dollar, from 80 and 20 before, to match the shape of Morocco's foreign trade. As of 2025 the dirham was not freely convertible on world markets.
Why the Western Sahara record lists it
The record for Western Sahara, a territory whose sovereignty is disputed, gives the dirham as its currency. Bank Al-Maghrib's 5 dirham coin of 2023 shows Place Mechouar in Laayoune. This catalogue records that use and takes no position on the dispute.
Common questions
Questions about the Moroccan dirham
How much is a rial in Morocco?
The rial is a spoken unit that the state does not treat as official. One rial is 5 santimat, so twenty make a dirham. Speakers of Moroccan Arabic count small prices in rials, while French speakers use centimes for the same amounts, and a franc in everyday speech means a single santim. In Arabic the rial also stretches to large sums: a price of 5,000 dirhams can be quoted as 100,000 rials.
When did Morocco switch from francs to dirhams?
The dirham became the main unit on 16 October 1960, replacing the Moroccan franc of the protectorate period. The change was gradual. Francs stayed in circulation at 100 to the dirham until 1974, when the santim took their place, and the first dirham notes were franc notes overprinted with the new value.
Can the Moroccan dirham be exchanged abroad?
As of 2025 the dirham was not freely convertible on world markets. Bank Al-Maghrib sets a central rate from a basket of the euro and the US dollar and lets the dirham move within a band of 5% either side. The basket weights have been 60% euro and 40% dollar since 2015.
Why is there no 2 dirham coin any more?
The coin series Dar As-Sikkah announced in July 2011 dropped the 2 dirham piece because people confused it with the 1 dirham coin. The same series also left out the 5 santimat coin. Cupro-nickel 2 dirham coins had been in circulation since 2002.
What currency does Western Sahara use?
The catalogue's record for Western Sahara, whose sovereignty is disputed, lists the Moroccan dirham. The sources read for this page go no further than that, and the page takes no position on the territory's status. Bank Al-Maghrib's 5 dirham coin of 2023 shows Place Mechouar in Laayoune.