Numbers in Spanish from 1-1000

Learning numbers in any language is a fun exercise. It’s interesting and illuminating to see how people comprehend numbers in a language you aren’t native in because it actually aids us in our thinking and problem solving. Knowing different ways to write and read numbers also can be helpful across disciplines, especially as our world becomes more and more interconnected.

This class Communicating in Spanish will arm you with the knowledge (including counting) you need to get started in the second most spoken language in the world.

It’s not too difficult to pick up counting in Spanish, and if you’ve seen any Sesame Street or Dora the Explorer at any length, you’ve probably picked up some already.

But we aren’t children anymore (sadly), and Muppets or singing backpacks are probably a bit too distracting or annoying for our needs. We need a bit more meat when it comes to learning a language besides simple hear-and-repeat exercises. There’s a great write up on our own blog covering some of the best ways to learn Spanish if you need a few pointers on what can aid your language acquisition.

If you want to dive in to the numbers and counting, then read on.

From 1 to 20

Here are the numbers from 1 up to 20

1 – uno

2 – dos

3 – tres

4 – cuatro

5 – cinco

6 – seis

7 – siete

8 – ocho

9 – nueve

10 – diez

11 – once

12 – doce

13 – trece

14 – catorce

15 – quince

After 15 it sounds a lot like 10 plus a number

16 – dieciséis

17 – diecisiete

18 – dieciocho

19 – diecinueve

20 to 29

20 is a new number, veinte

After that, it’s veinti- and another number

21 – veintiuno

22 – veintidós

23 – veintitres

24 – veinticuatro

and so on…

30 to 99

For the multiples of 10, the rule changes just a bit. Lets cover those numbers first.

30 – treinta

40 – cuarenta

50 – cincuenta

60 – sesenta

70 – setenta

80 – ochenta

90 – noventa

To say these numbers that fall between those multiples of 10, you add ‘y’ (and)

For example:

31 treinta y uno

Basically ‘thirty and one’. All the numbers after 30 that don’t fall on a multiple of ten follow this rule.

44 – cuarenta y cuatro

67 – sesenta y siete

52 – cincuenta y dos

Here’s 81-89 to cement the idea.

ochenta y uno

ochenta y dos

ochenta y tres

ochenta y cuatro

ochenta y cinco

ochenta y seis

ochenta y siete

ochenta y ocho

ochenta y nueve

You’re 10% of the way to 1000! If you feel like you got this, Learning Spanish with Ana is a good place to get some more practice and mastery of the language.

100 and beyond

When we reach 100 we say ciento. Following that, it’s just one hundred and the next number.

101 ciento uno

102 ciento dos

103 ciento tres

104 ciento cuatro

and so on…

and just like the numbers 31 to 99 using ‘y’ (and) between them and the smaller number (e.g. 31 treinta y uno), you still follow that rule throughout the hundreds.

143 – ciento cuarenta y tres

179 – ciento setenta y nueve

196 – ciento noventa y seis

155 – ciento cincuenta y cinco

Here are the other hundreds. Notice most sound like the number of hundreds it’s counting, with just a couple of exceptions.

200 – doscientos

300 – trescientos

400 – cuatrocientos

500 – quinientos (doesn’t sound like 5 but does sound like quince)

600 – seiscientos

700 – setecientos (like setenta)

800 – ochocientos

900 – novecientos (like noventa)

Knowing this, you can say any number between 101 and 999

365 – trescientos sesenta y cinco

501 – quinientos uno

824 – ochocientos veinte y cuatro

999 – novecientos noventa y nueve

A few more things

For 1000 the number is mil. Zero is cero.

When you use the number 100 for counting, like 100 pens, you use the word cien. So 100 pens is cien plumas.

cien libros

cien zapatas

Also, hundreds from 200 on will take the masculine or feminine ending to match the word it is measuring, like the number 1 (uno) does.

Doscientas plumas

Trescientos articulos

There you have the numbers you need to count from 0 to 1000. Whether or not you’ll actually count straight through is another matter, but it is useful, especially when talking about quantities and understanding them.

For a simple class that serves as a very basic foundation to learning Spanish so you can travel with confidence there’s Spanish for surfers, students, housewives and secret agents. Of course, you don’t have to be one of those to benefit, but it certainly would be cool to know it’s that specific!

Another class that has a similar scope, but is a bit more intensive, is Conversational Spanish I: Spanish basic sentence patterns. This can bolster your knowledge of counting acquired reading this article and push it forward to quick fluency through practice and repetition.

Whatever you do, learn those numbers and how to count or if you decide to sign up and take a class, buena suerte!