Master Chinese Numbers

Chinese uses two sets of characters for numbers: simple (小写) for everyday use and complex (大写) for financial documents. The complex characters were developed to prevent fraud — simple characters like 三十 (30) could easily be altered to 五千 (5000) with a few extra strokes, but the complex forms make forgery nearly impossible. The simple characters for 1, 2, and 3 are beautifully intuitive: one, two, and three horizontal strokes.

Watch the videos below, then download the Foreign Numbers app and practice what you've learned!

Chinese Phone Numbers

How phone numbers work in China & how locals say them

Numeral	Simple	Complex	Pronunciation
0	〇	零	líng
1	一	壹	yī
2	二	貳	èr / liǎng
3	三	叁	sān
4	四	肆	sì
5	五	伍	wǔ
6	六	陸	lìu
7	七	柒	qī
8	八	捌	bā
9	九	玖	jiǔ
10	十	拾	shí
11	十一	拾壹	shíyī
12	十二	拾貳	shíèr
13	十三	拾叁	shísān
14	十四	拾肆	shísì
15	十五	拾伍	shíwǔ
16	十六	拾陸	shílìu
17	十七	拾柒	shíqī
18	十八	拾捌	shíbā
19	十九	拾玖	shíjiǔ
20	二十	貳拾 [廿]	èrshí [niàn]
21	二十一	貳拾壹	èrshíyī
22	二十二	貳拾貳	èrshíèr
23	二十三	貳拾叁	èrshísān
24	二十四	貳拾肆	èrshísì
25	二十五	貳拾伍	èrshíwǔ
26	二十六	貳拾陸	èrshílìu
27	二十七	貳拾柒	èrshíqī
28	二十八	貳拾捌	èrshíbā
29	二十九	貳拾玖	èrshíjiǔ
30	三十	叁拾 [卅]	sānshí [sà]
31	三十一	叁拾壹	sānshíyī
32	三十二	叁拾貳	sānshíèr
33	三十三	叁拾叁	sānshísān
34	三十四	叁拾肆	sānshísì
35	三十五	叁拾伍	sānshíwǔ
36	三十六	叁拾陸	sānshílìu
37	三十七	叁拾柒	sānshíqī
38	三十八	叁拾捌	sānshíbā
39	三十九	叁拾玖	sānshíjiǔ
40	四十	肆拾 [卌]	sìshí [xì]
50	五十	伍拾	wǔshí
60	六十	陸拾	lìushí
70	七十	柒拾	qīshí
80	八十	捌拾	bāshí
90	九十	玖拾	jiǔshí
100	一百	壹佰	yībǎi
1,000	一千	壹仟	yīqiān
10,000	一万	壹萬	yīwàn
1 million	一百万	壹佰萬	yībǎiwàn
100 million	一亿	壹億	yīyì
1 billion	十亿	拾億	shíyì
1 trillion	一兆	壹兆	yīzhào

Number data and information courtesy of Omniglot.

What Makes Chinese Numbers Challenging

Chinese numbers are logically structured but tonal — each digit must be said with the correct tone or it becomes a different word entirely. The digit 1 (yī, first tone) is replaced by "yāo" in phone numbers and certain contexts. Larger numbers use a different grouping system: Chinese counts in units of 10,000 (万/wàn) rather than 1,000, so one million is "one hundred ten-thousands" (一百万). Measure words (classifiers) are required when counting objects, and different objects need different classifiers.

Tips for Learning Chinese Numbers

Master the four tones first — they are the foundation of all Chinese number comprehension. Learn 万 (wàn, ten thousand) early, as it is the key to understanding large numbers. Practice with prices and addresses since these are the most common real-world number encounters. Remember that "yāo" replaces "yī" for the digit 1 in phone numbers, room numbers, and other sequences — this is one of the first things textbooks miss.

Practice Chinese Numbers

Reading about numbers is one thing — understanding them spoken at natural speed is another. Test your Chinese number skills with our free listening game.

Play the Number Game