Numbers are a big part of our daily lives. Numbers help us sort things into groups, count them, and measure them. Things can be put in order from the least to the most important. A lot of countries use the International Number System, which is also known as the "international system of numeration." The first way to count was with stones, blocks, and sticks. To make the process easier, the numeral system was created. There are two types of number systems: the International Number System and the Indian Number System. People in India use the Indian number system or Hindu-Arabic numerals, while people everywhere else use the International number system.
The international number system differs significantly from the format used in India, and understanding both helps avoid confusion when reading or writing large values. When comparing the Indian and international number systems, it becomes clear that digit grouping, place values, and naming conventions vary widely. Referring to an international number system chart often helps visualize how numbers progress from thousands to millions and billions. For example, 1 million in lakhs equals 10 lakhs, highlighting one of the most common conversions students encounter. Below is a quick comparison of the two systems:
- Base grouping: The International system groups digits in sets of three; the Indian system groups as 3, then 2-digit pairs.
- First comma: International: after 3 digits (1,000); Indian: after 3 digits, then every 2 digits (1,00,000).
- Large number terms: International uses thousand, million, billion; Indian uses thousand, lakh, crore.
- Place values: International: ones → thousands → millions → billions; Indian: ones → thousands → lakhs → crores.
- Expression of numbers: 1,000,000 = 1 million (international) but 10 lakh (Indian).
- Higher denominations: International has trillion, quadrillion; Indian often uses arab, kharab at higher levels.
- Usage areas: The international system is used globally; the Indian system is mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal.
- Reading style: International: “one million two hundred thousand”; Indian: “twelve lakh”.
- Numeric formatting: International uses 1,234,567; Indian uses 12,34,567 for the same number.
What is the International Number System?
The international number system is a way to write numbers that make groups of numbers or spaces between them. When we read big numbers, these groups or periods help us do it right. In the world number system, groups or periods are put in the same way, but commas are put in different places. In the worldwide number system, the ones, thousands, millions, and other numbers are called periods. Each of these periods is further broken down into groups.
Each of these times is further broken up into groups based on how many places a number has. The periods are:
- One Period: The one period is further broken down into three groups: ones, tens, and hundreds. This means that the first three digits of the number are in this range.
- Thousand Period: One thousand is broken up into three groups: thousands, tens of thousands, and one hundred thousand. So, this period includes the three numbers that come after the first period of any number.
- Million Period: There are three groups of millions: the million, the ten-million, and the hundred million. Because of this, this time includes the three digits that come after the thousand mark in any number.
- Billion Period: There are three types of billion years: billion, ten-billion, and one hundred-billion. So, this period includes the three digits that come after the million mark in any number.
A comma is used between each period when writing numbers in the international number system and when writing numbers in their normal digit form. When you read, on the other hand, the numbers in the same period are read together with the name of the period (except for the ones).
Indian and International Number Systems
As used in mathematics, a numeral system is a set of rules for writing numbers that are always the same. The Hindu-Arabic number system is the one that most people use. The word comes from India and is now used all over the world. It is known as a fixed base 10 scheme. On a place value map, you can see what each character in a number means in terms of its position.
| Number | Number Name | Roman Numeral |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | One | I |
| 2 | Two | II |
| 3 | Three | III |
| 4 | Four | IV |
| 5 | Five | V |
| 6 | Six | VI |
| 7 | Seven | VII |
| 8 | Eight | VIII |
| 9 | Nine | IX |
| 10 | Ten | X |
| 40 | Forty | XL |
| 50 | Fifty | L |
| 60 | Sixty | LX |
| 70 | Seventy | LXX |
| 80 | Eighty | LXXX |
| 90 | Ninety | XC |
| 100 | One Hundred | C |
Take a look at a number, say 355. You'll notice that the number 5 is used twice. They are both worth different amounts. We can tell them apart by giving them a place value, which is the number value of a digit based on where it is in a number. The two on the left are worth hundreds, while the one in the middle is worth tens.
When we look at the Indian number system again, the place values of the digits are Ones, Tens, Hundreds, Thousands, Ten Thousand, Lakhs, Ten Lakhs, Crores, and so on. In the international number system, ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, tens of millions, and so on are the place values of digits.
Now you know of the Indian and International Number Systems. There is a third, albeit much less popular, number system, that is, the Roman numbers. You can, of course, convert Roman numerals to numbers in the international system.
We see the following when we compare the two number systems:
- 100 thousand = 1 lakh
- 1 million = 10 lakhs
- 10 millions = 1 crore
- 100 million = 10 crores
Where to Put the Comma
There are a lot of commas around to make it easier to read and write them. The commas are put in different places in Indian and foreign systems. Based on the Indian number system, the first comma goes after the hundreds place. After that, they go after every two digits. For example, 1,23,45,67,890. As per the worldwide number system, the first comma goes after the hundredth place. After that, they go after every third figure. For example, 1,234,567,890
| Periods | Crores | Lakhs | Thousands | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Places | Ten Crores | Crores | Ten Lakhs | Lakhs |
| Value | 10,00,00,000 | 1,00,00,000 | 10,00,000 | 1,00,000 |
Understanding the Indian Place Value Chart
| Period | Place | Place Value | Example Digit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crores | Ten Crores | 10,00,00,000 | 7 |
| Crores | 1,00,00,000 | ||
| Lakhs | Ten Lakhs | 10,00,000 | 2 |
| Lakhs | 1,00,000 | 3 | |
| Thousands | Ten Thousands | 10,000 | 4 |
| Thousands | 1,000 | 5 | |
| Units | Hundreds | 100 | 6 |
| Tens | 10 | 7 | |
| Units | 1 | 8 |
Translations For The Words Lakh And Crore In other languages
Here are the translations of the words lakh and crore in various languages spoken in the Indian subcontinent:
Assamese: A lakh is also known as লক্ষ lokhyo or লাখ lakh, and a crore is called কৌটি বা কোটি kouti.
Bengali: A lakh is referred to as লাখ lākh or লক্ষ lokkho, while a crore is called কোটি kōṭi.
Burmese: Crore is called ကုဋေ [ɡədè], and lakh is used in Burmese English.
Gujarati: A lakh is called લાખ lākh and a crore is called કરોડ karoḍ. A hundred crore is called અબજ abaj.
Hindi: A lakh is called लाख lākh and a crore is called करोड karoḍ. A hundred crore is called अरब arab.
Malayalam: A lakh is called ലക്ഷം laksham, and a crore is called കോടി kodi.
Marathi: A lakh is called लाख/लक्ष lākh, and a crore is called कोटी koṭi or करोड karoḍ, and an arab (10 9) is called अब्ज abja.
Nepali: A lakh is called लाख lākh, and a crore is called करोड karoḍ.
Odia: A lakh is called ଲକ୍ଷ lôkhyô and a crore is called କୋଟି koṭi.
Punjabi: A lakh is called lakkh (Shahmukhi: لکھ, Gurmukhi: ਲੱਖ) and a crore is called karoṛ (Shahmukhi: کروڑ, Gurmukhi: ਕਰੋੜ).
Tamil: a lakh is called இலட்சம் ilaṭcam, and a crore is called கோடி kōṭi.
Telugu: A lakh is called లక్ష lakṣha, and a crore is called కోటి kōṭi.
Urdu: A lakh is called لاکھ lākh, and a crore is called کروڑ karoṛ. A billion is called arab (ارب), and one hundred billion/arab is called a kharab (کھرب)
Kannada: a lakh is called ಲಕ್ಷ lakṣha and a crore is called ಕೋಟಿ kōṭi
International Place Value Chart
In math, the international place value chart is a table that uses the international number system to show how much each point in a number is worth based on where it is in the number. Where a figure is in a number tells you how much it's worth. This is called its place value. Place value tells you how much a point is worth based on where it is in a number.
The place value chart helps you find the place values and lines up each digit with its correct place in a number. In reading, writing, and making sense of big numbers, it is very helpful. We split the numbers into groups with a comma and a division to make reading very big numbers easier.
Interesting Facts about the International Place Value Chart
- There are 6 zeroes in 1 million.
1 million = 1,000,000 - The fourth period in the international place value chart is billions.
- 1 billion has 9 zeros.
1 billion = 1,000,000,000 - The key difference between the Indian and international place value charts is the placement of separators (commas) that define the periods.
- 1 million = 10 lakhs
10 millions = 1 crore
1 billion = 100 crores
Rules of the International Number System
There is no plural form for periods. For example, 456,876 is read as "four hundred fifty-six thousand eight hundred seventy-six," with no "s" added to the middle of the thousand or hundred. Before tens and ones, you don't use the word "and." For example, 3535 is read as "three thousand five hundred thirty-five," not "three thousand and five hundred thirty-five." When putting the number in expanded form, there are no commas. Three thousand five hundred thirty-five is written as 3535, not three thousand, five hundred thirty-five.
Writing Number Names
Number names in the International Number System are made up of tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, tens of millions, one million, ten million, hundred million, and so on. The Indian number system, on the other hand, uses ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousand, lakhs, ten lakhs, and crores to show numbers. The two methods are different from each other because they use different words for these numbers. Follow these steps to write numbers using the international system of numeration.
- Step 1: To make groups, start on the right side and put a comma after every three numbers.
- Step 2: Assign each group a certain period, starting on the right. The ones, thousands, millions, billions, and so on between the numbers show their place value.
- Step 3: Figure out what each number is worth in terms of its place value.
- Step 4: Add up all the amounts in the same period. One group in the number 27,000 has a place value of 2 and stands for twenty thousand. Another group has a place value of 7 and stands for seven thousand. Twenty-five plus seven equals twenty-seven thousand.
One important thing to remember is that in the International Number System, place values can be moved to the left to include numbers with more than 9 digits. The 100,000s period comes before the billions period, which is where these place numbers belong. There are a thousand million, or one billion, places after the hundred million places. In the Indian system, this is equal to one hundred crores.
Difference Between Indian and International Number Systems
In Indian English, the terms "lakh" or 1,00,000 (equivalent to one hundred thousand, written as 100,000 in Pakistan and outside the Indian subcontinent) and "crore" or 1,00,00,000 (equivalent to ten million, written as 10,000,000 outside the subcontinent) are widely used to express large numbers in this system.
The first five numbers from the right are named and written in a similar way in both the Indian and International Number Systems. But the point where they differ is in how they name numbers with more than 10,000 places. Numbers greater than 10,000 are called Lakhs, Ten lakhs, Crores, and so on in the Indian script. In this case, "1,00,000," the smallest six-digit number, is read as "one lakh."
In the International Number System, on the other hand, numbers greater than 10,000 are called 100,000, 500,000, ten million, and so on. This means that in the International Number System, the six-digit number "1,00,000" is read as "100,000." This difference between the two systems shows how the terms used to talk about big numbers are different, and it is important to keep this in mind when figuring out what numbers mean in either system.
Finally, the international counting system, which is sometimes called the Western numeral system, is now the most common way to write numbers around the world, including Roman numerals. Its constant use of commas to group digits in sets of three, starting on the right, makes it easier to understand big numbers. Because this idea is so simple, it has become an important part of our daily lives, making it easier to communicate and understand people from different countries and languages.
The majority of institutions and individuals in India typically utilize the Indian number system. However, in 2015, the Reserve Bank of India was recognized as an uncommon case where the Western number system was used. Fast forward to 2025, and the Indian number system was adopted for amounts in rupees, while the Western system was utilized for foreign currencies across the Reserve Bank's website.
So, do tell us how different is the Indian Numeral system is in your state/language.
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