It was first issued on 14 May 1984[4] to replace the one-dollar note which was then in circulation, although plans to introduce a dollar coin had existed since the mid-1970s.

[4] Four portraits of Queen Elizabeth II have featured on the obverse, the 1984 head of Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin; between 1985 and 1998, the head by Raphael Maklouf; between 1999 and 2009, the head by Ian Rank-Broadley; and since 2019, the effigy of Elizabeth II by artist Jody Clark has been released into circulation.

The coin features an inscription on its obverse of AUSTRALIA on the right-hand side and ELIZABETH II on the left-hand side.

One-dollar coins bearing the portrait of King Charles III entered circulation in December 2023.

The one-dollar denomination was only issued in coin sets in 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and finally 2012.