Do 100 pence make a pound?

The short answer is yes, 100 pence do make up one British pound. The pound sterling is the official currency of the United Kingdom and is subdivided into 100 equal units called pence. Let’s take a closer look at the relationship between pounds and pence.

Table of Contents

What are pence?

Pence is the plural of penny, which is the subunit of the pound currency. One penny represents 1/100th of a pound. Here are some key facts about pence:

The penny was the original unit of currency in England, with 240 pence equaling one pound sterling from the 8th century until 1971.

Since decimalization in 1971, there have been 100 pence to the pound.
Pence are denoted with the “p” symbol, while pounds use the “£” symbol. For example: £5.99 or 599p.
Coins exist for 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p denominations.

Pence are often referred to as “change” when discussing cash transactions. For example: “That will be £5.78 please, do you have 22p change?”

So in the modern decimalized monetary system, 100 individual pence when grouped together are equivalent to £1. This straightforward ratio allows for easy conversions between pounds and pence in calculations and transactions.

Where does the term “pence” come from?

The term pence has origins in the Roman monetary system. The Latin word “pensa” referred to a pound in weight, and eventually became adopted as “pensa” or “pensa” in Old English to refer to coins of a pound’s weight. Over time this evolved into the modern plural “pence.”

The first English silver penny coins were introduced around the year 785 AD and were physically weighed to equal 1/240th of a pound. So 240 pennies would literally contain one pound of silver. This relationship held for centuries until the rise of the decimalized currency system.

When did the pound adopt 100 pence?

The United Kingdom decimalized its currency and adopted 100 pence to the pound on February 15, 1971. This replaced the former system of 240 pence = £1 which had been used for over 1100 years. The change was implemented due to the convenience of decimal calculations compared to the more complex divisions of £1 into 240 pence.

Decimalization made transactions easier, reduced errors, streamlined accounting, and brought the UK in line with the decimal currency systems being adopted around the world. The new decimal pence retained the same value as the old pence – the purchasing power remained unchanged.

The path to decimalization

The UK considered decimalizing pounds and pence for decades before finally making the change in 1971:

In 1824, a committee recommended decimalization to simplify computations.
In 1855, another parliamentary committee proposed dividing the pound into 1000 mills. This idea gained little traction.

The 1960s saw renewed interest in decimalization, with the UK falling behind other countries in retaining pounds, shillings, and pence.
In 1966 the Labour government announced the decimalization plan for 1971.
The Coinage Act of 1969 laid the framework to decimalize the currency.

So while 240 pence per pound worked for over a millennium, by 1971 most saw decimalization as an overdue and necessary reform for the modern age.

How to convert between decimal and pre-decimal pence

For historical calculations, it is sometimes necessary to convert between modern decimal pence and the pre-decimal “old pence” system. Here is how to interconvert between new and old pence:

To convert new pence to old: multiply the number of new pence by 2.4

To convert old pence to new: divide the number of old pence by 2.4

For example:

100 decimal pence x 2.4 = 240 old pence, equaling £1

240 old pence / 2.4 = 100 decimal pence, or £1

This handy conversion allows seamless calculations between the two pence systems.

What coins are available for pence?

Circulating UK coins exist for several penny denominations, from the small 1p “penny” to the large 50p “fifty pence” coin. Here are the penny coins in current circulation:

Penny value	Nickname	Diameter	Color
1p	Penny	20.3 mm	Copper
2p	Two pence	25.9 mm	Bronze
5p	Five pence	18.0 mm	Silver
10p	Ten pence	24.5 mm	Silver
20p	Twenty pence	21.4 mm	Silver
50p	Fifty pence	27.3 mm	Silver

These cover the full range of modern decimal pence denominations for the pound. The “heads” or obverse side of the coins depicts the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.

What are some key features of pence?

Here are some of the essential features that characterize British pence currency:

Subunit of the pound – Pence represent fractional denominations of the pound sterling, with 100 pence equal to 1 pound.

Decimalized – Since 1971, there have been 100 decimal pence to the pound for easier calculations.
Symbol p – The standard symbol for pence is “p” after the numeric amount, as in “50p.”
Circulation – Pence coins circulate alongside Bank of England pound banknotes in the UK.

British territory – Pence are the official coins for the pound sterling in the UK and its territories.

These qualities make the pence essential to representing fractional British currency and facilitating cash transactions.

What are some key milestones for pence?

Some notable events and milestones in the history of British pence include:

c. 785 AD – First English penny introduced under King Offa of Mercia weighing 1/240 lb of silver.
975 AD – Uniform penny authorized by King Edgar weighing 1/240 lb.
1485 – First dated penny minted under King Henry VII, allowing identification of coinage date.

1672 – Penny no longer required to contain its value in silver as coinage was degraded.
1707 – With the Act of Union, a standard UK penny was struck for circulation in England and Scotland.
1967 – The first 5p and 10p decimal coins were introduced ahead of decimalization.

1968 – The first 50p coin issued as plans progressed for decimalization.
1971 – Full decimalization takes effect, with 100 new pence to the pound.
2008 – Revised penny coins are minted from plated steel rather than solid bronze.

The humble penny has evolved significantly from the days of King Offa to the modern decimal coins, while always representing 1/100th of a pound.

What are some penny facts and figures?

Here are some interesting facts and statistics about British pence:

11% – The current 1p coin has an 11% copper composition.

£47.0 million – The value of 1p coins minted in the UK in 2018-19.
£13.4 million – The face value of UK 2p coins minted in 2018-19.
Approx. 2.5 billion – The number of 1p coins currently in circulation in the UK.

6,000 – The number of 1p coins that can be created from just one ton of copper.
£5.5 million – The value of 5p coins issued by the Royal Mint in 2018-19.
500 million – The approximate number of £2 coins in current circulation.

Penny coins continue to play a major role in UK currency, despite their low individual value and the rise of alternative payment methods.

What are some examples of purchasing power in pence?

To understand the actual value and purchasing power of pence, here are some common costs typically priced in pence amounts:

25p – Cost of a basic letter stamp for posting mail within the UK.

50p – The price of a standard short local bus journey in most cities.
£1.39 – Average cost of a 500ml bottled water from a shop or vending machine.
£1.59 – Typical price of a single mass market paperback novel.

£2.50 – Cost of an hour’s street parking or train platform ticket in towns and cities.
£3.50 – Approximate price of a takeaway coffee from outlets like Costa.
£7.99 – Average cost of a large cheese pizza from takeaway chains.

These examples provide an idea of how many pence are needed to purchase common retail goods and public services around the UK.

How are pence used in cash transactions?

In cash transactions, pence facilitate convenient payments by representing the subunit fractions of pound sterling amounts. Here are some common ways pence are utilized in cash payments:

Purchasing low-cost items typically priced below one pound, like candy bars or newspapers.

Representing change from transactions, like 18p in change from a £2 item bought with a £2.20 note.
Allowing payments in exact cash amounts by rounding up or down to the nearest pence.
Donations to charities or buskers dropping coins directly into buckets or cases.

Dividing payments between groups by quickly splitting pounds into pence denominations.
Teaching children arithmetic and money concepts using penny coins for counting.

In these examples, pence coins allow efficient divisibility and flexibility when making cash transactions.

How do you add or convert mixed pounds and pence values?

Adding or otherwise combining amounts of mixed pounds and pence values is straightforward:

To combine amounts, add up the pounds figures and add up the pence figures separately.
If the pence total exceeds 100p, convert the excess into pounds.

Add the pounds totals together, then add the remaining pence amount.

For example, to add £5.53, £2.75, and £3.22:

Pounds: £5.53 + £2.75 + £3.22 = £11.50

Pence: 53p + 75p + 22p = 150p. Since this exceeds 100p, convert 50p to £0.50 pounds.
Final total = £11.50 + £0.50p = £12.00

This quick conversion between pounds and pence allows diverse values to be effortlessly summed.

How are pence used in digital transactions?

While less prominent than in cash payments, pence are still utilized in certain digital transactions and data:

Online prices and invoices often display pence digits, even if final payment is rounded.
Bank account balances still track pounds down to the penny digits.

Payroll systems calculate salary figures out to exact pence, even if paying in round pounds.
Accounting software handles pence data when tracking invoices, budgets, taxes, etc.
Pence are visible when sending money electronically between UK bank accounts.

Cryptocurrency values display long decimal figures comparable to decimalized pence.

So while pence are not actively involved in most digital payments, they still populate the underlying data used in computerized transactions.

What are some non-currency uses of “pence”?

Outside of pence coinage, the term “pence” is sometimes used in other contexts, including:

Postage rates – Postal services often set letter rates in pence. For example, “First Class mail 60p”.
Mobile charges – Mobile phone minutes or texts may cost a set number of pence.
Electricity metering – Some prepaid electricity meters accept insertion of pence coins to add credit.

Penny sweets – Candy priced at 1 penny piece, although no longer actually costing 1p today.
Charity donations – Fundraisers seek “penny donations”, although modern pence coins are used.

In these cases, the term “pence” has endured even when the coins themselves are not involved in the transaction.

Conclusion

In conclusion, 100 pence do indeed equal one full British pound today. This decimal system makes working with modern British currency much simpler compared to the previous pounds, shillings, pence model. Penny coins continue to circulate for low-value transactions, while the “pence” designation carries forward in many aspects of British finance and commerce. So remembering that 100p = £1 is key to fluently using the pound sterling.