Spanish numbers 1 to 1000: the full list and the rules
You only need to memorize about thirty words. Everything else is assembled with four rules. This page gives you the complete list from cero to un millón, the rules for joining the pieces, and the details that catch learners: cien vs ciento, veintiún, doscientas, and the year 2025.
0 to 30: the words you memorize
These are the building blocks. 0 to 15 are irregular, 16 to 29 are regular compounds written as one word, and 30 starts the tens.
| Number | Spanish | Number | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | cero | 16 | dieciséis |
| 1 | uno | 17 | diecisiete |
| 2 | dos | 18 | dieciocho |
| 3 | tres | 19 | diecinueve |
| 4 | cuatro | 20 | veinte |
| 5 | cinco | 21 | veintiuno |
| 6 | seis | 22 | veintidós |
| 7 | siete | 23 | veintitrés |
| 8 | ocho | 24 | veinticuatro |
| 9 | nueve | 25 | veinticinco |
| 10 | diez | 26 | veintiséis |
| 11 | once | 27 | veintisiete |
| 12 | doce | 28 | veintiocho |
| 13 | trece | 29 | veintinueve |
| 14 | catorce | 30 | treinta |
| 15 | quince |
Watch the accents: dieciséis, veintidós, veintitrés, veintiséis. The older three-word spellings (diez y seis, veinte y uno) are still accepted by the Real Academia but are rare in modern writing.
31 to 99: tens + y + units
| Number | Spanish |
|---|---|
| 30 | treinta |
| 40 | cuarenta |
| 50 | cincuenta |
| 60 | sesenta |
| 70 | setenta |
| 80 | ochenta |
| 90 | noventa |
From 31 upward, write three words with y in the middle: treinta y uno, cuarenta y dos, sesenta y cinco, noventa y nueve. This is the only place y ever appears in a number. 47 is cuarenta y siete; 147 is ciento cuarenta y siete; 1.047 is mil cuarenta y siete.
100 to 999: cien, ciento and the hundreds
| Number | Spanish |
|---|---|
| 100 | cien |
| 101 | ciento uno |
| 110 | ciento diez |
| 150 | ciento cincuenta |
| 200 | doscientos |
| 300 | trescientos |
| 400 | cuatrocientos |
| 500 | quinientos |
| 600 | seiscientos |
| 700 | setecientos |
| 800 | ochocientos |
| 900 | novecientos |
| 999 | novecientos noventa y nueve |
Cien or ciento? Cien is exactly one hundred, on its own or before a noun or a bigger number: cien personas, cien mil, cien millones. The moment a smaller number follows, it becomes ciento: ciento uno, ciento veinte. There is no y after ciento: ciento dos, never ciento y dos.
Three irregular hundreds: quinientos (500), setecientos (700) and novecientos (900). Learners who say cincocientos, sietecientos or nuevecientos are understood, but they are wrong.
1000 and beyond
| Number | Spanish |
|---|---|
| 1.000 | mil |
| 1.001 | mil uno |
| 1.500 | mil quinientos |
| 2.000 | dos mil |
| 2.025 | dos mil veinticinco |
| 10.000 | diez mil |
| 100.000 | cien mil |
| 250.000 | doscientos cincuenta mil |
| 1.000.000 | un millón |
| 2.000.000 | dos millones |
| 1.000.000.000 | mil millones (a billion in US English) |
Mil never takes un and does not become plural for the number itself: mil, dos mil, cien mil. (Miles de personas, thousands of people, is a different, vague use.) Millón is a noun: it takes un, becomes millones, and needs de before what it counts: un millón de habitantes, tres millones de euros. When a smaller number follows, the de disappears: un millón doscientos mil habitantes.
A US billion (1,000,000,000) is mil millones. Spanish un billón is a million million.
Gender and the short forms
Uno becomes un before a masculine noun and una before a feminine one, including inside bigger numbers: un libro, veintiún libros, treinta y una personas, ciento un años. Counting out loud with no noun, say uno.
The hundreds agree with a feminine noun: doscientas páginas, quinientas personas, setecientas mil mujeres. Cien, mil and everything else is invariable.
Years, prices, phone numbers
Years are read as full numbers, never in pairs: 1998 is mil novecientos noventa y ocho, 2025 is dos mil veinticinco. “In 2025” is usually en 2025; en el 2025 is also correct and common, especially in Latin America. Years before 2000 take no article: en 1998.
Prices and decimals use a comma in Spain and most of South America: 2,50 € is dos euros con cincuenta or dos cincuenta. Mexico and much of Central America use the English point. Thousands take the opposite symbol: 1.500 in Spain, 1,500 in Mexico.
Phone numbers are usually read in pairs or triples: 612 34 56 78 is seis-doce, treinta y cuatro, cincuenta y seis, setenta y ocho.
Ordinals: first to tenth
| Ordinal | Spanish |
|---|---|
| 1º | primero (primer before a masculine noun) |
| 2º | segundo |
| 3º | tercero (tercer before a masculine noun) |
| 4º | cuarto |
| 5º | quinto |
| 6º | sexto |
| 7º | séptimo |
| 8º | octavo |
| 9º | noveno |
| 10º | décimo |
Above tenth, everyday Spanish usually switches to cardinals: el siglo veinte, el piso quince, Alfonso trece.
Pronunciation tips
- Cinco, cien, ciento, cincuenta: the c before i or e is “th” in most of Spain and “s” everywhere else. Both are correct.
- Veinte and treinta both have the ei sound; learners often spell them viente and trienta.
- Seis, dieciséis: one syllable for seis, with the stress on séis in the compound, which is why it needs the accent.
- Quinientos has three syllables, qui-nien-tos: the ie is a single diphthong, not two separate vowels.
Make it automatic
Reading a list builds recognition; producing numbers under time pressure builds recall. The free Spanish numbers drill asks you to type 44 numbers from uno to dos millones in 60 seconds, with the rule shown for every miss.
Quick answers
How do you count from 1 to 10 in Spanish?
Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez.
How do you say 100 in Spanish?
Cien when it is exactly one hundred (cien euros, cien mil). Ciento when a smaller number follows: ciento uno, ciento cincuenta. There is no y after ciento.
What are the irregular hundreds in Spanish?
Quinientos (500), setecientos (700) and novecientos (900). The others are regular: doscientos, trescientos, cuatrocientos, seiscientos, ochocientos.
How do you say 1000 in Spanish?
Mil, with no un. Two thousand is dos mil, ten thousand is diez mil, and the year 2025 is dos mil veinticinco.
How do you say a million in Spanish?
Un millón. It is a noun, so it becomes millones in the plural and takes de before what it counts: dos millones de personas. A US billion is mil millones.
Do Spanish numbers have gender?
Uno and the hundreds do: un libro, una casa, veintiún años, treinta y una personas, doscientas páginas. All the other numbers are invariable.