Numbers in Spanish: How to Count From 0 To 100 (2024)

As you may know, learning Spanish can be a bit tricky sometimes, and numbers in Spanish can leave you scratching your head. The good news is that you don’t have to memorize all the Spanish numbers and their pronunciations to understand them.

They are easier to learn than it seems because they follow a predictable pattern after 20, so knowing the tens and numbers one through nine makes them easier to understand.

If you want to learn how to count from 0 to 100 and beyond, use ordinal numbers and pronounce phone numbers and addresses in Spanish, keep reading –or discover online Spanish classeson Preply.

How to count from 0 to 9 in Spanish

Let’s start with numbers from 0 to 9, which you will need to memorize. Remember that pronunciation is just an approximation; you will improve it by listening to Spanish speakers.

In addition, one of the main differences between Latin American and European Spanish is the sound of c or z when it comes before i or e.

Spanish-speaking people from Latin American countries usually pronounce the letter close to the sound s, while those from Spain pronounce it like th. So in Spain “cinco” is pronounced like think-o.

Spanish counting patterns

Counting patterns in Spanish follow a logical structure. Yes, you will need to learn a few numbers by heart, but everything becomes simpler after that.

Keep in mind some of these tips when learning numbers in Spanish:

• Memorize 0 to 15: You will need to memorize numbers 0 (cero) to 15 (quince) since they don’t follow a pattern.
• Know the pattern when counting from 16 to 19: Numbers 16 to 19 follow the pattern diez (ten) + ones. For example, seventeen is diecisiete, diez (ten) y (and) siete (seven).
• Know the pattern when counting in multiples of 10: When counting multiples of ten, with the exception of 20 (veinte), the numbers end in -nta, making it easy to remember the tens, such as treinta (thirty), cuarenta (forty) and cincuenta (fifty).
• Know the pattern when counting from 20 to 99: Numbers 20 to 99 follow the pattern similar to numbers 16 to 19 of tens + ones. For example, venticinco (twenty-five), treinta y tres (thirty-three) and cuarenta y seis (forty-six).

How to count from 10 to 19 in Spanish

Numbers from 10 to 15 are unique, but numbers from 16 to 19 follow a pattern with the tens coming first, followed by the ones. Remember that numbers spelled with the letter c are pronounced more like an /s/ sound in Latin America.

How to count from 20 to 29 in Spanish

Once you reach the number 20, a certain pattern appears, and if you learn the tens and ones and follow this pattern, you’ll be able to count every number from 20 to 100. Just remember that you will use i instead of y when combining numbers between 20 and 29. The pattern here is tens plus the ones. Easy peasy!

How to count from 30 to 39 in Spanish

Counting from 30 onwards, you’ll now begin to introduce y after saying the tens place value and before saying the ones place value.

How to count from 40 to 49 in Spanish

The numbers from 40 to 49 in Spanish follow a logical structure using y between the tens place value and the ones place value.

How to count from 50 to 59 in Spanish

The numbers from 50 to 59 in Spanish are written with y and separated, dividing the tens place value from the ones.

How to count from 60 to 69 in Spanish

Same with numbers from 60 to 69. Write the tens, sesenta in this case, followed by the second digit: “uno, dos, tres . . .” and separate them with y.

How to count from 70 to 79 in Spanish

Count numbers from 70 to 79 the same as the previous 60 and 69. Use y and separate the tens and ones.

How to count from 80 to 89 in Spanish

Keep following the pattern by separating the tens and ones with y.

How to count from 90 to 100 in Spanish

Use y to separate the tens and ones when counting from 90 to 100 in Spanish.

Spanish numbers beyond 100

Counting beyond 100 in Spanish is not a big mystery. Take the number 253, for example. Two hundred is said doscientos because it’s 100 (cien) two times: dos (2) cien (100) + tos, which is a termination you need to add. And 53 is cincuenta y tres. So 253 would be doscientos cincuenta y tres.

You should note that there’s no “and” between hundreds and tens except for 500, 700, and 900, which have small variations, as shown below.

Another example is 4,025, which is cuatro mil veinticinco. In this case, “veinticinco” doesn’t have y because that’s the way numbers are written from 21 to 29 in Spanish.

To write tens of thousands, you need to add diez-, veinte- or treinta- before, depending on the number, and cien- when you are speaking about hundreds of thousands.

How cardinal and ordinal numbers in Spanish change

When learning Spanish, knowing the difference between cardinal and ordinal numbers is vital. In short, cardinal numbers are ordinary numbers that indicate an amount of something, while ordinal numbers describe the order of something (first, second, third, and so on).

Cardinal numbers

Regular numbers, also known as cardinal numbers, determine the amount of something and are used as adjectives, so they don’t change based on the noun’s gender. In contrast, ordinal numbers do. The exception here is “one” (uno), which changes based on gender:

• Tienes un coche (you have one car). You use un because the gender of car (coche) is masculine.

• Jenny compra una planta (Jenny buys one plant). Here, planta is feminine, so you need to use una.

Ordinal numbers

Ordinal numbers are used for describing the order of things. They act as adjectives, adverbs, and pronouns, changing to match the gender and tense based on the sentence. Here are two examples:

• Compré mi segundo libro (I bought my second book). Libro is a masculine noun, so we need to use un.

• Esta es mi tercera sesión (This is my third session). Since sesión is a feminine noun, the ordinal number needs to be tercera and not tercero.

How to pronounce phone numbers and addresses in Spanish

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to pronouncing phone numbers in Spanish. However, most people use one of these:

1. Saying the digits of the phone number one by one with pauses in the gaps (depending on how the source wrote the number). For example, 901 123 45 should be read as nueve cero uno; uno dos tres; cuatro cinco.
2. In case the phone number doesn’t have any separation between digits, you can pronounce the numbers in pairs. For example, 61023456 could be read like sesenta y uno; cero dos; treinta y cuatro; cincuenta y seis.

The numbers of street addresses should be read as written. For example, Avenida Burgos 7, 3º A is Avenida Burgos siete, tercero a. The first number is a cardinal one. In contrast, the symbol after the numeral three, the floor number, must be read as an ordinal number with its respective symbol, which is always the same.

At the same time, if you know the second number is the floor or the apartment number, you could also read it as an cardinal one, which is common in Spain: Avenida Burgos siete, tres a.

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