Why amounts are written in words
Figures are easy to change: a 1 can become a 7, a zero can be added. Words are much harder to alter, and they settle any doubt about a figure that is unclear. That is why checks, promissory notes, contracts, invoices in many countries and official forms ask for the amount in words as well as in figures. On a check, if the two do not match, banks generally go by the words, so the words must be exactly right.
The same idea is used outside banking. Receipts for rent or tuition, donation certificates, court documents and notarial deeds often repeat the amount in words, and some countries require it on invoices. When both versions appear, check that they match before you sign or send the document.
Try it here: Amount in Words
Open the full tool pageThe amount line on an American check
On a US check you write the figure in the small box and the amount in words on the long line below the payee. The usual pattern is the whole dollars in words, the word and, the cents as a fraction of 100, and then a line to the end of the space. The word dollars is often already printed at the end of the line.
Hyphenate numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine, start with a capital letter, and do not use and anywhere else in the number, because and marks the start of the cents. Even amounts get 00/100 so that no cents can be added later.
| Figure | Words on the check |
|---|---|
| $25.00 | Twenty-five and 00/100 |
| $150.75 | One hundred fifty and 75/100 |
| $1,250.45 | One thousand two hundred fifty and 45/100 |
| $2,019.05 | Two thousand nineteen and 05/100 |
| $0.99 | Zero and 99/100 |
Invoices and contracts
In invoices, contracts and loan agreements the amount in words usually follows the figure in parentheses or on a separate line, and the cents are often written in words too: one thousand two hundred fifty dollars and forty-five cents. Write the currency name in full and use the singular for one (one dollar, one euro) and the plural otherwise. British English puts and after hundred and before the last part (one hundred and fifty pounds), American English leaves it out (one hundred fifty dollars).
In the converter, choose Amount, type the currency as singular/plural such as dollar/dollars, and pick 45/100 or In words for the cents. Choose First capital or UPPERCASE under Letters to match your document.
Other languages have other rules
If you write amounts for documents in other languages, the rules change more than the words. These examples show 1,250.45 in each language as the converter writes it with cents in words.
| Language | Amount in words |
|---|---|
| English | one thousand two hundred fifty dollars and forty-five cents |
| Spanish | mil doscientos cincuenta pesos con cuarenta y cinco centavos |
| Portuguese | mil duzentos e cinquenta reais e quarenta e cinco centavos |
| German | eintausendzweihundertfünfzig Euro und fünfundvierzig Cent |
| French | mille deux cent cinquante euros et quarante-cinq centimes |
| Turkish | bin iki yüz elli lira kırk beş kuruş |
Language details worth knowing
- Spanish shortens uno before a noun: veintiún pesos, un millón de pesos. With feminine nouns it becomes una: veintiuna libras.
- Spanish, Portuguese and French add de before the currency after round millions: un millón de pesos, um milhão de reais, deux millions d'euros.
- German writes the whole number below a million as one word, and Euro and Cent usually stay the same in the plural.
- French writes vingt and cent with an s only at the end of the number (quatre-vingts euros, deux cents euros) but not before mille (quatre-vingt mille).
- Portuguese joins the last part with e: mil e cem reais, but mil duzentos e trinta reais.
- Turkish checks often write the amount without spaces so nothing can be inserted: BİNİKİYÜZELLİLİRA.
Mistakes to avoid
- Putting and inside the whole number on a US check, which makes it look like the start of the cents.
- Leaving space after the words, where something could be added. Draw a line to the end.
- Forgetting 00/100 for an even amount.
- Mixing figures and words, such as 1 thousand.
- Rounding cents wrongly when an amount has three decimals: round to two decimals first.