Exchange systems became elaborate in late California prehistory and are understood to have been essential in the evolution of socio-cultural complexity. As yet there has been rellatively little attention to the origins of exchange in earlier stages of prehistory. This paper analyzes published data for exchange from Archaic sites in southern California's coastal region. It shows that systematic exchange existed at least by the beginning of the Middle Archaic, and argues for the functional and social significance of small-scale exchange in the context of Archaic cultures. It also argues for the benefit of increased research into the local availability of raw materials whose local sources have often been assumed without adequate verification.