How to Count in German

Learn to Count With German Numbers

If you’re a native English speaker, learning German will be relatively easy to do. And you’ll see this when you’re learning German numbers. Learning how to count in German won’t be difficult, because the numbers will look very familiar. But, there are a few differences in the construction of numbers. Here’s everything you need to know about German numbers, so you can count to 100 or above easily.

German Numbers 1-10

Numeral	German number
0	null
1	eins
2	zwei
3	drei
4	vier
5	fünf
6	sechs
7	sieben
8	acht
9	neun
10	zehn

As you can see, quite a few numbers in German look or sound similar to English numbers. “Vier” is very close to “four”, and there’s almost no difference between “neun” and “nine” in pronunciation. Knowing how to count to 10 in German is very important to master. You’ll hear these numbers often, and you’ll see them again when you’re counting higher numbers.

Counting From 10 to 20 in German

Numeral	German number
10	zehn
11	elf
12	zwölf
13	dreizehn
14	vierzehn
15	fünfzehn
16	sechzehn
17	siebzehn
18	achtzehn
19	neunzehn
20	zwanzig

Numbers 10-20 in German are very similar, if not even easier than in English. After ten, eleven, and twelve are unique. But from 13 onwards, you can discover a pattern. Much like the “teens” in English numbers, you construct German numbers 13-19 by adding “zehn” after the numbers. And since “zehn” means ten, it’s even more straightforward than the English “teen”.

The only two exceptions are 16 and 17 in German. The “s” and the “en” disappear from “sechs” and “sieben” respectively.

Constructing German Numbers to 100

After 20, there’s a slight change in the logic of numbers in German. Here’s how you can count in German from 20 to 100:

Numeral	German number
20	zwanzig
21	einundzwanzig
22	zweiundzwanzig
23	dreiundzwanzig
24	vierundzwanzig
25	fünfundzwanzig
26	sechsundzwanzig
27	siebenundzwanzig
28	achtundzwanzig
29	neunundzwanzig
30	dreißig

Numbers 21-29 you need to construct in German. While the logic is easy to understand, you’ll need a bit of time to get used to it. If you look at 26 for example, you can see how you put it together: sechs-und-zwanzig. Literally 6 and 20. Unlike 26, where the tens come first and the ones come after, German switches it around.

You start with the ones, then add the tens, adding “und” (and) in between. No hyphens or spaces either. Just all in one word. By this logic, the following numbers look like this:

• 33 – dreiunddreißig
• 84 – vierundachtzig
• 75 – fünfundsiebzig

Tens in German Numbers

To make sure you can count from 1 to 100 in German easily, here are all the tens in the German number system:

Numeral	German number
10	zehn
20	zwanzig
30	dreißig
40	vierzig
50	fünfzig
60	sechzig
70	siebzig
80	achtzig
90	neunzig
100	hundert

Count to a Million in German

Well, we’re not going to show you every single German number until a million. But, we’ll show you how you can say any number even above 100.

Numeral	German number
100	einhundert
200	zweihundert
300	dreihundert
1,000	tausend
2,000	zweitausend
3,000	dreitausend
1,000,000	million
1,000,000,000	milliarde
1,000,000,000,000	billion
45,738	fünfundvierzigtausendsiebenhundertachtunddreißig (5+40,000 700 8+30)
2020	zweitausendzwanzig

For the big numbers after 100, you say them just like you would in English. First, you need to look at the first number. You say that, and you add one of the following endings depending on how many zeros are behind it:

• hundert – hundred
• tausend – thousand
• hunderttausend – hundred thousand
• million – million

The only thing you have to keep in mind is “45” for example stays the same: 5+40. So, if you want to say 45,000, you need to say (5+40,000). 

German Ordinal Numbers

Now you know every German cardinal number. But how do you count in German with ordinal numbers? These are the numbers for ranking and putting things in order.

Ordinal numbers	German number
1st	erster
2nd	zweiter
3rd	dreiter
4th	viertel
5th	fünfter
6th	sechster
7th	siebter
8th	achter
9th	neunter
10th	zehnter
20th	zwantigster
30th	dreißigster
40th	vierzigster
50th	fünfzigster
60th	sechzigster
70th	siebzigster
80th	achtzigster
90th	neunzigster
100th	hunderster

To form other cardinal numbers, you simply need to add “-(s)ter” to the end of the number.

• 11^th: elfter
• 24^th: vierundzwanzigster
• 45^th: fünfundvierzigster
• 99^th: neunundneunzigster

 

Why Do You Need to Learn How to Count in German?

Numbers are a huge part of everyday life. If you talk about them in German, you need to know how what German numbers are. So, learning to count in German is a necessary skill. These are just a few of the everyday activities that you do that involve counting or numbers:

• counting money
• telling the time
• saying how old you are

How to Learn German Numbers

While the numbers do seem and sound similar to English, learning them is still something you have to do. Here are a few tricks you can use to make your German number lesson even more successful:

• Use spaced repetition: Spaced repetition is the key to language learning. It’s the hack to make your brain remember your lessons effectively. Once you read through all the German numbers, make sure you come back to review it in a few days. Periodically rereading your lessons makes them stick.
• Make up numbers: German numbers get more complicated the higher they get. Make up some random numbers and try to write them down with letters. That ought to perfect your understanding of the German counting logic.
• Say them out loud: The only way you’ll reach fluency is if you talk. So, practice saying German numbers out loud to get used to how they sound. Your German fluency won’t be far behind.

Count On Us to Learn German

Of course, to reach German fluency you need more than just knowing how to count. You need to learn common words and phrases, understand grammar, and practice speaking a lot. Luckily, you can find that all on OptiLingo.

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