The ruble is the official currency of Russia, like how the dollar is the currency of the United States or the pound is the currency of the United Kingdom. When Russians buy groceries, pay for movie tickets, or save money in a bank, they use rubles.

The ruble has existed for over 500 years, making it one of the world's oldest currencies still in use today. Its symbol is ₽, and one ruble is divided into 100 smaller units called kopeks, similar to how a dollar is divided into 100 cents.

Like other currencies, the ruble's value changes compared to other countries' money. Sometimes one ruble might be worth more or less in dollars depending on Russia's economy and world events. If you traveled to Moscow, you'd need to exchange your dollars for rubles to buy things there. Currency exchange offices and banks handle these transactions, calculating how many rubles you'd get for your dollars based on the current exchange rate.