Apple Numbers CURRENCYH Function: Historical Rate Modes and Dates
Request historical currency attributes with explicit dates and validate mode selection, valuation and return arithmetic using a fictional dataset.
Verification status: See the evidence and test scope described in this guide. How formula examples are checked
CURRENCYH retrieves a historical exchange-rate attribute for a specified past date. The result is denominated in the second currency per unit of the first currency. A fixed date makes the request more specific, but it does not turn remotely provided data into a guaranteed immutable observation.
Availability and verification
The official CURRENCYH reference was retrieved October 15, 2026. The original introduction release and last functioning version are unknown from the checked first-party evidence. Current documentation is not a final supported-version endpoint or a test of every older Numbers client.
No native Numbers session was executed. Fixed examples below are independent controls; remotely supplied values are not claimed as current observations. First-party example values, when identified, remain source examples rather than newly retrieved native results.
Syntax and historical modes
CURRENCYH(currency-1, currency-2, close, date)
The currency arguments are quoted ISO currency codes. close is the attribute selector: 0 or the documented omitted mode means close, 1 means open, 2 high and 3 low. The examples supply it explicitly so the trailing date argument stays unambiguous.
date must be a valid past date, supplied by a date cell, date-returning formula or accepted date string. Use DATE expressions in reusable examples to avoid region-dependent slash notation.
The mode numbers differ from CURRENCY’s broader attribute list: for CURRENCYH, 2 means high, not change. Check the function and its selector together when adapting a report.
Source example with an explicit date
=CURRENCYH("USD","GBP",3,DATE(2017,4,18))
Apple illustrates this historical low-rate request as approximately £0.78. That displayed value is a first-party example, not a fresh query made for this guide, and its two-decimal presentation does not establish the provider’s full stored precision.
Another documented example requests the opening GBP-to-BMD rate on December 31, 2015 and illustrates BMD1.48. Keep the requested pair, attribute and date attached to any such value when reproducing it.
Complete fixed historical-data fixture
To test a report independently, create a fictional table with the following columns and values. None of the rates below claims to be actual market data.
| Date | Open | High | Low | Close |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 5, 2026 | 0.80 | 0.82 | 0.79 | 0.81 |
| October 6, 2026 | 0.81 | 0.83 | 0.80 | 0.82 |
| October 7, 2026 | 0.82 | 0.825 | 0.805 | 0.81 |
Treat every rate as GBP per USD. The first row’s mode targets are 0 → 0.81, 1 → 0.80, 2 → 0.82 and 3 → 0.79. These mappings test column selection in the surrounding model, not a native call returning those synthetic rates.
Advanced: value a fixed amount on each date
For 1000 USD, multiplying by each fictional closing rate gives 810, 820 and 810 GBP. The middle-to-first difference is 10 GBP; the last-to-middle difference is -10 GBP.
The corresponding close-to-close percentage changes are (0.82/0.81)-1, approximately 1.23456790%, then (0.81/0.82)-1, approximately -1.21951220%. Equal absolute moves do not have equal percentage magnitudes because their starting denominators differ.
The first row’s high-low range is 0.03, the second is 0.03, and the third is 0.02 GBP per USD. Those ranges answer a different question from the close-to-close changes.
Advanced: choose a fixed date over a moving date
A formula using a fixed DATE value continues to request that date. A relative expression such as TODAY()-2 moves as the calendar changes. Apple’s example demonstrates a relative-date request, but it should not be used when a report must retain one historical observation date.
Keep the requested date visible in a column and record when the result was obtained. A retained date is not proof that a provider will never correct historical data, and a changed value should be investigated rather than automatically classified as a formula error.
Missing dates, internet and errors
Apple documents no value when a formula is entered without internet, followed by an update when connectivity returns. No native outage or recovery was executed here.
The dedicated entry does not establish a universal fallback for weekends, holidays, unsupported currency pairs or dates without provider data. Do not silently assume that a non-trading date uses the preceding close, returns zero or produces a particular error code.
If a result is surprising, inspect the pair direction, the historical selector and the actual date value. CURRENCYH’s explicit past-date request is distinct from a previous-market-close function. These examples are reporting controls, not promises about a tradable rate or a conversion service.