500 euro note

The five-hundred-euro note (€500) is the highest-value euro banknote; it was produced from the introduction of the euro (in its cash form) in 2002 to 2019. Since 27 April 2019, the banknote has no longer been issued by central banks in the euro area, but it continues to be legal tender and can be used as a means of payment.

It is one of the highest-value circulating banknotes in the world, worth very roughly 600 USD, 85,000 JPY, 400 GBP, or 500 CHF (however less worth than a 1000 CHF note). The note is used in the 26 countries that have it as their sole currency (with 25 legally adopting it, excluding Montenegro), of which countries have a total population of about 350 million currently.

Initially, the high denomination notes were introduced very rapidly, so that in the first seven years (up to December 2008) there were 530 million five-hundred-euro banknotes in circulation. Subsequently, the rate of increase was radically slowed. In July 2023, there were approximately 281 million banknotes in circulation (decreased from 614 million in 2015). It is the least widely circulated denomination, accounting for 0.9% of the total number of banknotes.

It is the largest note, measuring 160 × 82 mm, and has a purple colour scheme. The note depicts bridges and arches/doorways in modern architecture. The €500 note contains several complex security features such as watermarks, invisible ink, holograms and microprinting that make counterfeiting very difficult.

The note is being phased out due to concerns of widespread use for illegal purposes. Printing of new €500 notes ceased in 2019, although existing notes will remain legal tender until further notice.

The euro was founded on 1 January 1999, when it became the currency of over 300 million people in Europe. For the first three years of its existence it was an invisible currency, only used in accountancy. Euro cash was not introduced until 1 January 2002, when it replaced the national banknotes and coins of the 12 initial eurozone countries.

Slovenia joined the Eurozone in 2007, Cyprus and Malta in 2008, Slovakia in 2009, Estonia in 2011, Latvia in 2014, Lithuania on 1 January 2015 and Croatia on 1 January 2023.

The changeover period during which the former currencies' notes and coins were exchanged for those of the euro lasted about two months, going from 1 January 2002 until 28 February 2002. The official date on which the national currencies ceased to be legal tender varied from member state to member state. The earliest date was in Germany, where the mark officially ceased to be legal tender on 31 December 2001,^{[citation needed]} though the exchange period lasted for two months more. Even after the old currencies ceased to be legal tender, they continued to be accepted by national central banks for periods ranging from ten years to forever.