German numbers: from 0 to a million

Learn 0 to 12 by heart. From 13 to 19 you add -zehn (ten) to the unit, like “-teen” in English: dreizehn, vierzehn. Two of them are shortened: sechzehn and siebzehn.

When you count, 1 is eins. Before a noun it becomes ein or eine, like the word for “a”: ein Euro, eine Stunde (one hour). Sound tip: z is always said “ts”, as in “cats”: zehn, zwanzig.

The tens end in -zig, except dreißig (30), which ends in -ßig. Watch the short forms sechzig (not sechszig) and siebzig (not siebenzig).

Between the tens, German says the unit first, then und (and), then the ten, all in one word: 21 is einundzwanzig, literally “one-and-twenty”. English used to do this too, as in the old rhyme “four-and-twenty blackbirds”. So when you hear a number, wait for the end: sechsundfünfzig is 56, not 65.

In these numbers eins loses its -s (einundzwanzig), while sechs and sieben keep their full form (sechsundsechzig, siebenundsiebzig).

100 is hundert or einhundert, 1000 is tausend or eintausend. Everything below a million is written as one word, however long: 2345 is zweitausenddreihundertfünfundvierzig. Read it in chunks: zweitausend | dreihundert | fünfundvierzig. The unit-first rule still applies to the last two digits.

eine Million is a noun, so it is written separately and has a plural: zwei Millionen. A thousand million is eine Milliarde, which is English “a billion”. In figures, German separates thousands with a full stop or a space and uses a comma for decimals: 10.000 or 10 000 is ten thousand, and 2,5 is two point five, said zwei Komma fünf.

Years from 1100 to 1999 are said in hundreds, as in English: 1989 is neunzehnhundertneunundachtzig. From 2000 on, say the thousands: 2026 is zweitausendsechsundzwanzig. Say the year on its own or with im Jahr: 1989 or im Jahr 1989, never in 1989.

Ordinal numbers put things in order. From 2nd to 19th, add -te to the number: zweite, vierte, zehnte. From 20th on, add -ste: zwanzigste, hundertste. Four are different: erste (1st), dritte (3rd), siebte (7th) and achte (8th, only one t).

Ordinals take adjective endings. After der, die or das it's -e: der dritte Tag. After am, im, vom, zum and other dative forms it's -en: am dritten Mai, im ersten Stock (on the first floor). In writing, an ordinal is a figure with a full stop: der 3. Mai, im 1. Stock.

Prices are written with a comma: 4,50 €. Say the euros, then the cents as a plain number: vier Euro fünfzig. Euro and Cent don't change after a number: zwei Euro. Ask the price with Was kostet …? or Wie viel kostet …?

Phone numbers are usually said digit by digit, or in pairs of two-digit numbers. On the phone many people say zwo instead of zwei, so it's easy to tell apart from drei.

Ask Wie spät ist es? (what time is it?) and answer with Uhr: Es ist drei Uhr. At what time is um: um acht Uhr. In everyday speech people use a 12-hour clock with nach (past), vor (to) and Viertel (quarter). Careful: halb means half to the next hour, so halb neun is 8:30. Timetables, the radio and appointments use the 24-hour clock: zwanzig Uhr fünfzehn.

For dates, use the ordinal: Heute ist der dritte Mai, am dritten Mai (on the 3rd of May). Dates are written day first: 3.5. or 03.05.2026 is the 3rd of May.