Japanese Numbers 1 to 100 (and How Counting Works)
22 June 2026 · Mozhippattru Japanese Language School
Numbers are one of the first things worth memorising — they appear in prices, times, dates and phone numbers every day.
1 to 10
一 (ichi), 二 (ni), 三 (san), 四 (shi/yon), 五 (go), 六 (roku), 七 (shichi/nana), 八 (hachi), 九 (kyū/ku), 十 (jū).
Building bigger numbers
Japanese counting is wonderfully logical. 11 is 十一 (jū-ichi, “ten-one”), 20 is 二十 (ni-jū, “two-ten”), 25 is 二十五 (ni-jū-go). 100 is 百 (hyaku).
Watch the sound changes
- 300 is sanbyaku, 600 is roppyaku, 800 is happyaku — the sounds shift.
- 4, 7 and 9 have two readings; which one is used depends on context and counters.
Practice tip
Say prices and times out loud in Japanese as you go about your day. Numbers become automatic surprisingly quickly with daily use.
Arul Prakash founded and personally teaches at Mozhippattru. He cleared JLPT N1 largely through self-study and spent 4 years as a Japanese interpreter for Fujitsu, Toyota and Sango — and now teaches Japanese in Tamil to beginners across India.
Read his story →Join Mozhippattru Japanese Language School — JLPT N5–N3 with N1-certified teachers. Book a free demo class, no commitment.
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