Use FX (Foreign Exchange) Currency fields as an alternative to the standard (default) currency fields found in most applications. They are highly configurable, support use of custom rate tables, report aggregations, and provide for improved visibility into conversion calculations.

Note: You don't have to install a plugin to use FX Currency functionality. It's activated by default.

Use considerations

Use the FX Currency field type in place of the standard currency fields when you must:
  • Support values expressed in multiple currencies, for example, EUR 100, JPY 200, USD 30, as values in a field. FX Currency fields provide better support for multi-currency applications than do standard currency fields.
  • Control how the FX Currency field is configured, including specifying its internal behavior and currency value formatting.

    To learn more about currency configuration, see Configuring FX Currency field behavior.

  • Create custom conversion rate tables.

    To learn more about custom table rates, see Add conversion rates using a custom rate table.

  • Have more control over when the actual currency conversion occurs. FX Currency values convert on demand only, making the conversion results much more transparent.

    To learn more about currency conversions, see Understanding how FX Currency field conversions work.

  • Provide greater transparency into currency conversion calculations. You can view and configure the calculation components, including conversion dates, reference currency, and number of displayed decimals.
  • Build query conditions using FX Currency field values. For available query conditions, see Operators available for filters and queries.
  • Access FX Currency fields through richer scriptable APIs.
  • Aggregate currency values as entered by users, or aggregate them in selected reference currencies, for reporting purposes.
Important: You can add FX Currency fields to base and custom applications, and they work independently of existing standard currency fields. However, you can't convert or change a standard currency field to an FX Currency type field. No functions are available to convert standard currency fields to FX Currency fields, then migrate the data from one to the other.