# Manage currencies

> Base vs default currency, exchange multipliers, and adding a new currency safely.

Source: CBX documentation, version 4.0 preview (unreleased). Canonical page: https://docs.configbox.at/docs/4.0-preview/admin-guide/commerce/manage-currencies. Last updated 2026-08-01.

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> **Audience:** store admins · **Scope:** the Currencies manager · **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-20

**What this does** — Controls which currencies customers can shop in and how amounts convert.
Two distinct roles matter here, and mixing them up is the classic mistake:

- **Base** — the currency you *author* in. Every price you type anywhere in CBX (products,
  answers, calculations, shipping) is in the base currency.
- **Default** — the currency a visitor *sees first*. Customers can switch between the active
  currencies.

## Steps

1. Open **Settings** → the embedded **Currencies** manager:

   ![The Currencies manager](./img/currencies.jpeg)

2. To add a currency: **Add**, then fill **Title**, **Currency Symbol** (€, $), **Currency Code**
   (ISO, e.g. `EUR`), and the **Multiplier** — the conversion factor *from the base currency*
   (base itself is always `1`). With EUR as base and a rate of 1 € = 1.38 $, USD's multiplier is
   `1.38`.
3. Set **Active** to Yes to offer it to customers.
4. Use the list's action buttons on a ticked row: **Make Default** (what visitors see first) and
   **Make Base** (what prices are authored in).

## What happens next

Every displayed amount — configurator, cart, checkout, order emails — converts through the
multiplier, unless a product/answer carries an explicit **price override** for that currency
(overrides beat conversion; use them for "pretty" round prices in a foreign currency).

## Good to know

- **Multipliers are not live exchange rates.** They stay where you set them — review them on a
  schedule if you sell in multiple currencies seriously.
- **Think twice before changing the base currency** on a running store: every entered price keeps
  its number but changes meaning. Changing the *default* is harmless.
- Orders snapshot the currency and rate at purchase time — old orders don't move when you update
  a multiplier.