---
title: "What is on Zimbabwe's banknotes?"
description: "The Zimbabwean dollar: who is on each denomination, what was withdrawn and why, what the notes are printed on, and whether the sizes differ."
url: https://atoneplace.net/banknote/zimbabwe/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What is on the money in Zimbabwe?

**The money in Zimbabwe: Zimbabwean dollar (ZWL)**

1 denominations in issue · Paper

The 100,000,000,000,000-dollar note issued in 2008 is the highest-denomination banknote ever printed by a functioning central bank, and at the point of issue it bought roughly a loaf of bread. Prices doubled about every 24 hours at the peak. The notes are now worth considerably more as collectibles than they ever were as money, which is the only case where that has happened at scale.

## Who and what is on each note

| Note | Who or what is on it |
| --- | --- |
| Varies | The Chiremba balancing rocks appear on most series |

## The unusual part

The largest number ever printed on a banknote. It was worth about forty US cents.

## Notes that were withdrawn

| Note | When | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The 100 trillion dollar note | 2009 | The currency was abandoned entirely after hyperinflation reached an estimated 89.7 sextillion per cent a month. The country used US dollars and South African rand for the following decade. |

## The practical facts

- **Currency:** Zimbabwean dollar — ISO code ZWL
- **Printed on:** Paper
- **Survives a wash?:** Not reliably. Paper notes disintegrate when soaked.
- **Can a blind person tell them apart?:** Yes — the denominations differ in size, which is the simplest and most reliable tactile cue there is.
- **Highest note in issue:** Varies — The Chiremba balancing rocks appear on most series

> This page describes the notes rather than showing them. Reproducing a banknote image is restricted in most jurisdictions, and the restrictions differ between them.

## Common questions

### Who is on the money in Zimbabwe?

Varies: The Chiremba balancing rocks appear on most series.

### Are Zimbabwe's banknotes polymer or paper?

Paper.

### Why was the The 100 trillion dollar note withdrawn?

The currency was abandoned entirely after hyperinflation reached an estimated 89.7 sextillion per cent a month. The country used US dollars and South African rand for the following decade. (2009.)

## Related pages

- [Zimbabwe](https://atoneplace.net/country/zimbabwe/)
- [The money in United States](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/united-states/)
- [The money in Eurozone](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/eurozone/)
- [The money in United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/united-kingdom/)
- [The money in India](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/india/)
- [The money in Japan](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/japan/)
- [The money in Australia](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/australia/)
- [The money in Canada](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/canada/)
- [The money in China](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/china/)
- [The money in Switzerland](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/switzerland/)
- [The money in South Africa](https://atoneplace.net/banknote/south-africa/)

## Sources

- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (https://www.wikidata.org/) [CC0 1.0]