Inverse Exchange Rate

An exchange rate quoted as A/B tells you how much of currency B you get for 1 unit of currency A. If you want the rate the other way round, B/A, you must invert the fraction because the same value is being described from the opposite viewpoint. This works because multiplying a rate by its inverse gives 1, so the two quotes are reciprocal representations of the same currency relationship.

Use this when a rate is quoted in one direction but you need to convert prices, profits, or exchange amounts in the opposite direction. It is especially useful in trading, travel budgeting, finance homework, and checking currency pairs on forex platforms.

• Dividing the wrong way round and getting the same number instead of its reciprocal
• Forgetting to swap the currency labels when reversing the quote
• Rounding too early and losing accuracy in later calculations