Russian Numbers: How to Count in Russian (Complete Guide)
Learning Russian numbers feels manageable at first — until you try to actually use them in a sentence. Russian numbers are not just labels you attach to objects. They interact with Russian's grammatical case system in ways that trip up even intermediate learners, and several numbers behave in completely unexpected ways.
But here is the good news: Russian numbers follow clear patterns once you understand the logic. The first ten numbers unlock the rest of the system. The "tricky" teens follow a single rule. The tens are predictable. And once you grasp how numbers interact with cases, you will be counting, telling your age, and reading prices with confidence.
This guide covers everything: cardinal numbers 1–1000, ordinal numbers, how to say your age, how to express dates and years, and the one grammar rule (numbers + cases) that makes all the difference in real Russian.
- Cardinal numbers 1–1000 with pronunciation guide
- The irregular numbers you need to memorise: 40, 90, 100
- How Russian numbers interact with grammatical cases — the rule most learners miss
- Ordinal numbers: first, second, third…
- How to say your age in Russian (мне X лет)
- How to express dates and years in Russian
Russian Numbers 1–10: The Foundation
The ten cardinal numbers below are the foundation of the entire Russian number system. Notice immediately that 1 and 2 have gender variants — this will matter when you use them with nouns.
| Number | Russian | Transliteration | Gender note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | один / одна / одно | odin / odna / odno | Masculine / Feminine / Neuter |
| 2 | два / две | dva / dve | Masc.–Neuter / Feminine |
| 3 | три | tri | — |
| 4 | четыре | chetyre | — |
| 5 | пять | pyat' | — |
| 6 | шесть | shest' | — |
| 7 | семь | sem' | — |
| 8 | восемь | vosem' | — |
| 9 | девять | devyat' | — |
| 10 | десять | desyat' | — |
- Один (masculine) is used with masculine nouns: один брат (one brother)
- Одна (feminine) is used with feminine nouns: одна книга (one book)
- Одно (neuter) is used with neuter nouns: одно окно (one window)
- Два is used with masculine and neuter nouns; две is used with feminine nouns
- Numbers 3–10 do not change with gender
- Numbers 5–10 end in a soft sign (ь) — an important pattern for the case system
Numbers 11–19: The Russian Teens
The teens in Russian are formed by combining a base number with the suffix -надцать (a form of "on ten"). Once you see the pattern, all eleven teenagers unlock at once.
| Number | Russian | Transliteration | Formation pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | одиннадцать | odinnadtsat' | один + надцать |
| 12 | двенадцать | dvenadtsat' | две + надцать |
| 13 | тринадцать | trinadtsat' | три + надцать |
| 14 | четырнадцать | chetyrnadtsat' | четыре + надцать |
| 15 | пятнадцать | pyatnadtsat' | пять + надцать |
| 16 | шестнадцать | shestnadtsat' | шесть + надцать |
| 17 | семнадцать | semnadtsat' | семь + надцать |
| 18 | восемнадцать | vosemnadtsat' | восемь + надцать |
| 19 | девятнадцать | devyatnadtsat' | девять + надцать |
- All teens end in -надцать — once you hear this suffix, you know it is a teen number
- In speech, the stem often shortens: четыре → четыр- in четырнадцать; пять → пят- in пятнадцать
- Одиннадцать doubles the н — the most commonly misspelled Russian teen
- Unlike 1 and 2, the teens do not vary by gender
Tens and Hundreds: Counting to 1000
The tens (20–90) and hundreds (100–900) follow mostly regular patterns with a few important irregulars. The critical three to memorise: сорок (40), девяносто (90), and сто (100) are all completely irregular.
Tens: 20 to 90
The tens from 20 to 80 follow a compound pattern. Notice that 40 and 90 break entirely from the pattern.
Hundreds: 100 to 1000
The hundreds also follow a pattern — but 100 is irregular (сто), and 200–400 have their own forms before the pattern continues from 500–900.
- Compound numbers are read left to right: 347 = триста сорок семь
- Сорок (40) and девяносто (90) are fully irregular — they must be memorised
- Двести (200) and триста / четыреста (300/400) are also irregular forms
- From 500 upward, hundreds follow the pattern: number + сот (e.g. пять + сот = пятьсот)
- Тысяча (1000) is a feminine noun and declines accordingly
Russian Numbers and Cases: The Grammar Rule That Changes Everything
This is where most learners hit a wall. In Russian, the noun after a number changes its grammatical case depending on the number. This is not optional — it affects every sentence where you count something.
The rule has three tiers:
Tier 1: 1 → Nominative singular. Один стол (one table), одна книга (one book).
Tier 2: 2, 3, 4 → Genitive singular. Два стола (two tables), три книги (three books).
Tier 3: 5 and above → Genitive plural. Пять столов (five tables), десять книг (ten books).
The rule applies to the last digit of a compound number — so 21 behaves like 1, 22 like 2, 25 like 5. But 11–14 always use Tier 3 regardless of their last digit.
| Number type | Case required | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1, 21, 31, 41… | Nominative singular | один стол, двадцать один студент |
| 2, 3, 4 / 22, 23, 24… | Genitive singular | два стола, тридцать четыре книги |
| 5–20 / 25–30 / 11–14… | Genitive plural | пять столов, одиннадцать студентов |
- The rule is based on the last digit for compound numbers (except teens 11–19)
- 11–19 always take the genitive plural — regardless of their last digit
- This rule applies to nouns; adjectives must also agree with the noun's case
- The genitive plural is one of the most irregular noun forms in Russian — practise it early
- Prices follow the same rule: один рубль, два рубля, пять рублей
Ordinal Numbers in Russian: First, Second, Third…
Ordinal numbers (first, second, third…) are adjectives in Russian — they agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they describe. Here are the most essential ordinals:
| Position | Ordinal (Masc.) | Transliteration | Feminine form |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | первый | pervyy | первая |
| 2nd | второй | vtoroy | вторая |
| 3rd | третий | tretiy | третья |
| 4th | четвёртый | chetvyortyy | четвёртая |
| 5th | пятый | pyatyy | пятая |
| 6th | шестой | shestoy | шестая |
| 7th | седьмой | sed'moy | седьмая |
| 8th | восьмой | vos'moy | восьмая |
| 9th | девятый | devyatyy | девятая |
| 10th | десятый | desyatyy | десятая |
- Третий (third) is irregular — it follows the soft adjective pattern (третья, третьего…)
- For compound ordinals, only the last word changes: двадцать первый (twenty-first)
- Ordinals are used in dates: первое января (the first of January)
- Floor numbers: на первом этаже (on the first floor) — ordinal in prepositional case
How to Say Your Age in Russian
Saying your age in Russian uses the dative case and the word лет (years). The structure is: Мне + [number] + лет / года / год.
The noun after the number follows the same three-tier rule:
- год (nominative singular) after 1: Мне двадцать один год (I am 21) - года (genitive singular) after 2, 3, 4: Мне тридцать два года (I am 32) - лет (genitive plural) after 5+: Мне пятьдесят лет (I am 50)
| Age | Russian | Literal meaning |
|---|---|---|
| I am 1 (year old) | Мне один год | To me one year |
| I am 2 (years old) | Мне два года | To me two years |
| I am 5 (years old) | Мне пять лет | To me five years |
| I am 21 (years old) | Мне двадцать один год | To me twenty-one years |
| I am 35 (years old) | Мне тридцать пять лет | To me thirty-five years |
| How old are you? | Сколько вам лет? | How many years to you? |
How to Say the Date and Year in Russian
Dates in Russian use ordinal numbers in the neuter form (neuter because the implied word is число — date/number, a neuter noun) followed by the month in the genitive case.
Today is the 5th of June → Сегодня пятое июня.
For years, Russian uses the ordinal number with the word год (year) in the prepositional case: In 2026 → В две тысячи двадцать шестом году.
| Month | Russian | Genitive (for dates) |
|---|---|---|
| January | январь | января |
| February | февраль | февраля |
| March | март | марта |
| April | апрель | апреля |
| May | май | мая |
| June | июнь | июня |
| July | июль | июля |
| August | август | августа |
| September | сентябрь | сентября |
| October | октябрь | октября |
| November | ноябрь | ноября |
| December | декабрь | декабря |
- Какое сегодня число? = What is today's date? (literally: what number is today?)
- Сегодня первое января = Today is the first of January
- For birthdays: Мой день рождения — второе марта (My birthday is March 2nd)
- Years use long ordinals: в две тысячи двадцать шестом году (in 2026)
- Colloquially, Russians often say the year in short form: в двадцать шестом году for 2026
Common Mistakes with Russian Numbers
Even advanced learners make predictable mistakes with Russian numbers. Here are the four most common:
- Using nominative after all numbers. The most common mistake: saying пять стол instead of пять столов. Remember: 2–4 → genitive singular; 5+ → genitive plural.
- Forgetting gender for 1 and 2. Saying два книга instead of две книги (книга is feminine, so два → две).
- Treating 11–14 like their last digit. 11 looks like it ends in 1, but it takes genitive plural: одиннадцать студентов, not одиннадцать студент.
- Mixing up год / года / лет for ages. The year-noun follows the same three-tier rule: один год, два года, пять лет.
- Mispronouncing сорок (40). It is SO-rok — stress is on the first syllable.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Russian word for "one"?
- The Russian word for "one" has three gender variants: один (masculine — один брат), одна (feminine — одна сестра), and одно (neuter — одно окно). Use the form that matches the gender of the noun it describes.
- How do Russian numbers interact with noun cases?
- Russian nouns change case after numbers. The rule: 1 → nominative singular (один стол); 2, 3, 4 → genitive singular (два стола); 5 and above → genitive plural (пять столов). For compound numbers, the rule depends on the last digit — but 11–14 always take genitive plural.
- What is the difference between два and две?
- Два is used with masculine and neuter nouns: два брата (two brothers), два окна (two windows). Две is used with feminine nouns: две сестры (two sisters), две книги (two books). The distinction matters — using два with a feminine noun is a grammatical error.
- How do you say "I am 25 years old" in Russian?
- Say Мне двадцать пять лет (literally: "to me twenty-five years"). The number 25 ends in 5, so the noun is лет (genitive plural). If you are 21, say Мне двадцать один год (год — nominative singular, because the last digit is 1).
- How do you say "100" in Russian?
- 100 in Russian is сто — an irregular form. 200 is двести, 300 is триста, 400 is четыреста. From 500 upward, hundreds follow a regular pattern: пятьсот, шестьсот, семьсот, восемьсот, девятьсот.
- Numbers 1–10 are the foundation — memorise them with their gender variants
- The teens (11–19) all end in -надцать — learn the pattern once
- Memorise the three irregulars: сорок (40), девяносто (90), сто (100)
- Apply the case rule: 1 → nominative, 2–4 → genitive singular, 5+ → genitive plural
- Ordinal numbers are adjectives and must agree in gender, case, and number
Numbers are your entry point into Russian's grammatical case system — and that case system is where real fluency lives. Every noun, pronoun, and adjective in Russian changes depending on its role in the sentence, and mastering those declensions is what separates functional Russian from true fluency.