German Numbers 1 to 100 — Complete Guide with Pronunciation
German numbers follow a logical pattern — once you spot it, you can count to infinity.
Numbers are one of the first things you need in any language — for prices, time, addresses, and phone numbers. The good news: German numbers follow a logical pattern that English speakers find surprisingly easy.
Numbers 1–12: Learn These First
The first twelve are irregular and must be memorized: eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf, sechs, sieben, acht, neun, zehn, elf, zwölf. Notice how similar they are to English: drei/three, vier/four, sechs/six, sieben/seven, acht/eight, neun/nine, zehn/ten. These share the same Proto-Germanic roots.
Numbers 13–19: Add -zehn
From 13 onwards, just add -zehn (ten): dreizehn (13), vierzehn (14), fünfzehn (15), sechzehn (16), siebzehn (17), achtzehn (18), neunzehn (19). Exactly like English adds -teen!
- 1dreizehn = 13 (drei + zehn)
- 2vierzehn = 14
- 3fünfzehn = 15
- 4sechzehn = 16
- 5siebzehn = 17
- 6achtzehn = 18
- 7neunzehn = 19
Numbers 20–90: Add -zig
The tens are formed by adding -zig to the base number: zwanzig (20), dreißig (30), vierzig (40), fünfzig (50), sechzig (60), siebzig (70), achtzig (80), neunzig (90).
Numbers 21–99: Units Before Tens
Here is the famous German quirk: compound numbers are said units-first. 21 is "einundzwanzig" (one-and-twenty), not "twenty-one". English used to work the same way — "four and twenty blackbirds"!