German Numbers: 0-20, Tens, Hundreds and Rules

FreeNo sign-upHear any number

Quick answer

German numbers are built from a small core: the words for 0 to 20, the tens (zwanzig, dreißig…) and hundert and tausend. From 21 to 99 the unit comes first: 21 is einundzwanzig, “one-and-twenty”. Numbers under one million are written as a single word.

German numbers 0 to 20

German numbers follow a small set of rules, and once you know the words for 0 to 20 and the tens, you can build every number up to 999,999 yourself. The first twenty are the part to memorize. After that, it is mostly assembly.

Each row below has a hear-it button. Listen for the vowel in zwölf (12): it is an ö sound, which English does not have.

Number	German	IPA
0	null	[nʊl]
1	eins	[aɪ̯ns]
2	zwei	[tsvaɪ̯]
3	drei	[dʁaɪ̯]
4	vier	[fiːɐ̯]
5	fünf	[fʏnf]
6	sechs	[zɛks]
7	sieben	[ˈziːbn̩]
8	acht	[axt]
9	neun	[nɔɪ̯n]
10	zehn	[tseːn]
11	elf	[ɛlf]
12	zwölf	[tsvœlf]
13	dreizehn	[ˈdʁaɪ̯tseːn]
14	vierzehn	[ˈfɪʁtseːn]
15	fünfzehn	[ˈfʏnftseːn]
16	sechzehn	[ˈzɛçtseːn]
17	siebzehn	[ˈziːptseːn]
18	achtzehn	[ˈaxtseːn]
19	neunzehn	[ˈnɔɪ̯ntseːn]
20	zwanzig	[ˈtsvantsɪç]

Three of these trip up almost every learner. Sechzehn (16) loses the s of sechs, and siebzehn (17) loses the -en of sieben. Elf and zwölf are standalone words, just like English “eleven” and “twelve”.

Eins, ein and the final s

When you count, say, or read out a phone number, 1 is eins. Inside a larger number it shrinks to ein-: einundzwanzig (21), einhundert (100). Before a noun it behaves like the article: ein Euro, eine Stunde. The only time “eins” survives at the end of a compound is when it really is the last digit, as in hunderteins (101).

German numbers from 21 to 99: the “backwards” order

The tens mostly add -zig to the unit. Two of them are irregular, and one changes its vowel length.

Number	German	IPA	Watch out
30	dreißig	[ˈdʁaɪ̯sɪç]	-ßig, not -zig
40	vierzig	[ˈfɪʁtsɪç]	short i, unlike vier
50	fünfzig	[ˈfʏnftsɪç]	regular
60	sechzig	[ˈzɛçtsɪç]	drops the s of sechs
70	siebzig	[ˈziːptsɪç]	drops -en of sieben
80	achtzig	[ˈaxtsɪç]	regular
90	neunzig	[ˈnɔɪ̯ntsɪç]	regular

The pattern that surprises English speakers is the order between 21 and 99. German says the unit first, then “and”, then the ten. So 21 is einundzwanzig, literally “one-and-twenty”. 47 is siebenundvierzig, “seven-and-forty”. English used this order too (“four and twenty blackbirds”), but German kept it.

When you hear a German number, write the last digit first. Hearing achtundfünfzig, jot down the 8, then put the 5 in front of it. Learners who try to translate the whole word in their head usually reverse the digits. Our German numbers 1-100 table lists every one of them with audio.

Hundreds, thousands and one long word

Above 99 the order becomes logical again: hundreds, then the rest. 365 is dreihundertfünfundsechzig (three-hundred-five-and-sixty). Thousands work the same way: 2026 is zweitausendsechsundzwanzig.

Number	German	Hear
100	(ein)hundert
101	hunderteins
200	zweihundert
365	dreihundertfünfundsechzig
1.000	(ein)tausend
1.984	eintausendneunhundertvierundachtzig
2.026	zweitausendsechsundzwanzig
10.000	zehntausend
100.000	hunderttausend
1.000.000	eine Million

Notice that German numbers under one million are written as a single word. Duden’s capitalization rules put it plainly: cardinal numbers under a million are lowercase words such as zwanzig or achtzig (Duden, rule D 78). The result can be long. 777,777 is siebenhundertsiebenundsiebzigtausendsiebenhundertsiebenundsiebzig, 65 letters with no spaces. That is one reason numbers come up when people talk about the longest German word.

Both hundert and einhundert are correct for 100, and Duden also accepts an optional “und” in forms like hundertundeins. A million breaks the one-word habit. Million is a feminine noun, so you write eine Million, zwei Millionen, with a space and a capital M.

Zwo, phones and saying numbers clearly

Over the phone, on the radio or in a noisy train station, you will often hear zwo instead of zwei. Duden labels it colloquial and explains why it exists: to avoid mixing up zwei and drei, which sound alike when the line is bad (Duden: zwo). It is perfectly normal to use it yourself when you read out a number.

Phone numbers are usually read in pairs or single digits: 30 45 12 might be dreißig, fünfundvierzig, zwölf or drei null, vier fünf, eins zwo. If you need to spell the name that goes with the number, see how to spell in German.

Commas, points and years

Germany swaps the English separators. A comma marks decimals (3,5 is drei Komma fünf) and a point or a thin space groups thousands (1.000 or 1 000). Years from 1100 to 1999 are read in hundreds, not thousands: 1989 is neunzehnhundertneunundachtzig. From 2000 on, Germans say zweitausend…, so 2026 is zweitausendsechsundzwanzig.

Numbers as nouns

When a number names the digit itself, it becomes a feminine noun with a capital letter: die Eins, eine Sieben, die Null. You hear this for school grades (eine Eins is the top grade) and for bus or tram lines (Ich nehme die Zwölf). For “first”, “second” and dates, you need a different set of words, covered in German ordinal numbers.

Common mistakes with German numbers

Writing sechszehn or siebenzehn. The standard forms are sechzehn and siebzehn, and likewise sechzig and siebzig.
Writing dreizig. Thirty is the one ten spelled with ß: dreißig. See the Eszett if you cannot type it.
Saying einsundzwanzig. Inside a compound, 1 is always ein-.
Reversing digits when listening. In zweiundsiebzig the 2 comes first in speech but last on paper: 72.
Splitting numbers into separate words, such as zwei hundert. Below a million, it is one word: zweihundert.
Using a decimal point. A German reader sees 2.500 as two thousand five hundred, so write 2,5 for two and a half.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say German numbers from 1 to 10?

Eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf, sechs, sieben, acht, neun, zehn. Zero is null.

Why do Germans say numbers backwards?

From 21 to 99 German puts the unit before the ten, so 21 is einundzwanzig (“one-and-twenty”). Older English did the same, as in “four and twenty”.

What is the difference between eins and ein?

Eins is the counting form and the final digit of a number. Inside a compound or before a noun it becomes ein, as in einundzwanzig or ein Euro.

Why do Germans say zwo instead of zwei?

Zwo is a colloquial form used for clarity, mainly so zwei is not confused with drei on the phone or over a loudspeaker.

Are German numbers written as one word?

Yes. Every number below one million is a single word, such as dreihundertfünfundsechzig (365). Million and Milliarde are separate nouns.

German Numbers: Count From 0 to 999,999 With Audio