Thai Numbers And Counting: #1 Best Guide To Teach You!

Knowing Thai numbers and counting before visiting Thailand will give you an advantage while negotiating with locals. Want to save money with every purchase you make? Keep reading!

Don’t worry if numbers make you nervous; we won’t be teaching you to calculate! Instead, we’ll be delighted to show you how the Thais count. 

Knowing Thai numbers will be handy for any Thai enthusiast, whether trying to buy a bus ticket, find some fruit at the market, or find your way around town. 

For example, if someone tells you to walk for “หนึ่งกิโลเมตร (nʉ̀ng gì-loo-mêet),” you’ll know that they mean “one kilometer.”

Now is the time for some light entertainment. Are you all set? Okay, let’s get moving!

Thai Numbers At A Glance

Let’s get into the most intriguing bit of language first! Do you know Thai uses its unique numeral alphabet, apart from Arabic numerals? Check out the Thai numerals we’ve written in the following table.

Since 1292 (or 1835 B.C.), the Thai numerals on the Ram Khamhaeng inscription were first discovered.

Like its namesake, it was created by Ram Khamhaeng or Pho Khun Ram Khamhaeng Maharat. He ruled the Sukhothai Kingdom from 1279 until 1298 as the third monarch of the Phra Ruang dynasty.

When Do The Locals Use Thai Numbers?

Thai people use Arabic numerals daily, so you might have little chance to see original Thai numbers. But, if you learn Thai to an advanced level, you’ll see Thai numbers and more complex language and sentences, especially in official papers or government documents.  

In addition, you can usually see these numbers on the temple’s whiteboard alongside notices of upcoming religious events or at a rural school and train station. Thais advocate for the widespread use of Arabic numerals to eliminate potential confusion. 

Thai writing might be a manageable challenge, but you should start working on counting and pronouncing them immediately, so read on!

How To Read A Number In Thai?

Here are the basics of Thai numerical digits from 1 to 10.

English	Thai	Transcription	Pronunciation
Zero	ศูนย์	Sǔun	Play
One	หนึ่ง	Nʉ̀ng	Play
Two	สอง	Sɔ̌ɔng	Play
Three	สาม	Sǎam	Play
Four	สี่	Sìi	Play
Five	ห้า	Hâa	Play
Six	หก	Hòk	Play
Seven	เจ็ด	Jèt	Play
Eight	แปด	Bpɛ̀ɛt	Play
Nine	เก้า	Gâao	Play
Ten	สิบ	Sìp	Play

The Rule Of Reading Thai Numerals

Alright, before we begin Thai number counting and reading, we’d like to teach you a new word for “1” that will be used for numbers that come after the number ten, which are 11 to 91.

• One – เอ็ด (èt)

Play

Let’s see the examples below!

English	Thai	Transcription	Pronunciation
1 (one)	หนึ่ง	Nʉ̀ng	Play
11 (eleven)	สิบเอ็ด	Sìp èt	Play
21 (twenty one)	ยี่สิบเอ็ด	Yîi sìp èt	Play
31 (thirty one)	สามสิบเอ็ด	Sǎam sìp èt	Play
41 (forty one)	สี่สิบเอ็ด	Sìi sìp èt	Play
51 (fifty one)	ห้าสิบเอ็ด	Hâa sìp èt	Play
61 (sixty one)	หกสิบเอ็ด	Hòk sìp èt	Play
71 (seventy one)	เจ็ดสิบเอ็ด	Jèt sìp èt	Play
81 (eighty one)	แปดสิบเอ็ด	Bpɛ̀ɛt sìp èt	Play
91 (ninety one)	เก้าสิบเอ็ด	Gâo sìp èt	Play
101 (one hundred and one)	หนึ่งร้อยหนึ่ง	Nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi nʉ̀ng	Play
111 (one hundred eleven)	หนึ่งร้อยสิบเอ็ด	Nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi sìp èt	Play
2,001 (one thousand one)	สองพันหนึ่ง	Sɔ̌ɔng pan nʉ̀ng	Play
2,121 (one thousand one hundred twenty one)	สองพันหนึ่งร้อยยี่สิบเอ็ด	Sɔ̌ɔng pan nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi yîi sìp èt	Play

How To Read A Number That Has Many Digits?

You’re about to see a more extended digit in a number. Are you prepared? If yes, let’s get some practice together!

English	Thai	Pronunciation	Sound
100 (hundred)	หนึ่งร้อย	Nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi	Play
1,000 (thousand)	หนึ่งพัน	Nʉ̀ng pan	Play
10,000 (ten thousand)	หนึ่งหมื่น	Nʉ̀ng mʉ̀ʉn	Play
100,000 (hundred thousand)	หนึ่งแสน	Nʉ̀ng sɛ̌ɛn	Play
1,000,000 (one million)	หนึ่งล้าน	Nʉ̀ng láan	Play
1,000,000,000 (thousand million)	หนึ่งพันล้าน	Nʉ̀ng pan láan	Play
234,560 (two hundred thirty-four thousand, five hundred sixty)	สองแสนสามหมื่นสี่พันห้าร้อยหกสิบ	Sɔ̌ɔng sɛ̌ɛn sǎam mʉ̀ʉn sìi pan hâa rɔ́ɔi hòk sìp	Play
1,234,561 (one million, two hundred thirty-four thousand, five hundred sixty-one)	หนึ่งล้านสองแสนสามหมื่นสี่พันห้าร้อยหกสิบเอ็ด	Nʉ̀ng láan sɔ̌ɔng sɛ̌ɛn sǎam mʉ̀ʉn sìi pan hâa rɔ́ɔi hòk sìp èt	Play

How To Read Decimal Number In Thai

You must remember one word below to be fluent in Thai decimal numbers.

• Dot/point – จุด (jùt)

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Specifically, the numbers preceding and after the point will be interpreted differently. Alright, now it’s time to look at some examples and get some practice!

Arabic Numbers	Thai	Transcription	Pronunciation
1.02	หนึ่งจุดศูนย์สอง	Nʉ̀ng jùt sǔun sɔ̌ɔng	Play
10.22	สิบจุดสองสอง	Nìp jùt sɔ̌ɔng sɔ̌ɔng	Play
100.38	หนึ่งร้อยจุดสามแปด	Nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi jùt sǎam bpɛ̀ɛt	Play
1,000.658	หนึ่งร้อยจุดหกห้าแปด	Nʉ̀ng rɔ́ɔi jùt hòk hâa bpɛ̀ɛt	Play
1,550.20658	หนึ่งพันห้าร้อยห้าสิบจุดสองศูนย์หกห้าแปด	Nʉ̀ng pan hâa rɔ́ɔi hâa sìp jùt sɔ̌ɔng sǔun hòk hâa bpɛ̀ɛt	Play

How To Read Fractions In Thai

In this case, you need only one vocabulary to comprehend how to read fractions in Thai.

• Fraction – เศษส่วน (sèet-sùan)

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The words เศษ (sèet) and ส่วน (sùan) will be used when reading fractions in Thai. Come on, let’s take a look at some examples and practice!

English	Thai	Transcription	Pronunciation
1/2 (one-half)	เศษหนึ่งส่วนสอง	Sèet nʉ̀ng sùan sɔ̌ɔng	Play
1/3 (one-third)	เศษหนึ่งส่วนสาม	Sèet nʉ̀ng sùan sǎam	Play
3/4 (three-fourths)	เศษสามส่วนสี่	Sèet sǎam sùan sìi	Play
6/8 (six-eighths)	เศษหกส่วนแปด	Sà sà hèek sùan bpɛ̀ɛt	Play

How To Read House Numbers In Thai

Without the correct number and postcode, you risk losing your package. In Thai, two important words are used when reading ordinal numbers: 

• Number – เลขที่ (lêek tîi)

Play

• Slash – ทับ (táp)

Play

Address Numbers And Postcodes

Let’s check it out and get some practice with the rules for reading address digits and postcodes.

English	Thai	Transcription	Pronunciation
Address number 123/456	บ้านเลขที่ 123/456	Bâan lêek tîi nʉ̀ng sɔ̌ɔng sǎam táp sìi hâa hòk	Play
Address number 100/300	บ้านเลขที่ 100/300	Bâan lêek tîi nʉ̀ng sǔun sǔun táp sǎam sǔun sǔun	Play
Postcode 10600	หมายเลขไปรษณีย์ 10600	Mǎai lêek bpai rót nii nʉ̀ng sǔun hòk sǔun sǔun	Play
Postcode 123456	หมายเลขไปรษณีย์ 123456	Mǎai lêek bpai rót nii nʉ̀ng sɔ̌ɔng sǎam sìi hâa hòk	Play

In Summary

So, now when you buy fruit at the local market and they say “แตงโม หนึ่ง ลูก หนึ่งร้อย บาท (dtɛɛng moo nʉ̀ng lûuk nueng roi bàat),” you then understand that it means “a watermelon is one hundred baht.”

The ability to converse fluently in Thai numbers will serve you well not just in understanding the natives but also in negotiating down the prices of goods in the local marketplace in Thailand.

The Thai language has so many complicated but exciting words to learn.

So, if you’re motivated to learn more, let’s use the Ling app!

Learn Thai With The Ling App

Using the Ling app in your Thai language study can add a new dimension of fun. We know that people will experience many situations in their everyday lives. 

Therefore we meet their desires by offering diverse vocabulary and topics. Use our sophisticated chatbot, Ling, to practice pronunciation and fill in your lexicon.

Most Thai learners chose the Ling app to help them succeed, so why not join them? Download the Ling app from Google Play Store and Apple App Store now, and prepare to be fluent in Thai soon!