American Samoa's Currency: The US Dollar

American Samoa uses the United States Dollar (USD) as its sole legal tender.

Why?

• American Samoa is an unincorporated, unorganized territory of the United States (since 1900 Deed of Cession).
• US Constitution, federal laws, and currency apply fully.
• No local central bank; Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco serves the territory.

Practical Details

• Coins & bills: Identical to US mainland (pennies to $100).
• Banking: Territorial Bank of American Samoa, ANZ, Bank of Hawaii, community credit unions. FDIC insured.
• Electronic payments: Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover, Apple/Google Pay widely accepted.
• No currency exchange needed for US travelers.

Contrast: Independent Samoa

Samoa (formerly Western Samoa) — independent nation since 1962 — uses the Samoan Tālā (WST) (pegged to basket). 1 USD ≈ 2.7 WST.

American Samoa's dollarization eliminates exchange risk, integrates with US financial system, but means no monetary policy autonomy.