Convert numbers between Arabic numerals and Japanese. Enter a number like "42" to see it in kanji (四十二), kana (よんじゅうに), and romaji — or enter kanji to convert back. Below, find a reference guide for Japanese counters used with different types of objects.
Supports numbers 0–999,999,999
Japanese uses special counter words when counting objects. The counter changes based on what you are counting. Here are the most common ones:
General-purpose counter for things
ひとつ (1), ふたつ (2), みっつ (3), よっつ (4), いつつ (5)
Counting people
ひとり (1), ふたり (2), さんにん (3), よにん (4)
Pens, bottles, umbrellas, trees
いっぽん (1), にほん (2), さんぼん (3)
Paper, shirts, plates, tickets
いちまい (1), にまい (2), さんまい (3)
Cats, dogs, fish, insects
いっぴき (1), にひき (2), さんびき (3)
Horses, cows, elephants
いっとう (1), にとう (2), さんとう (3)
Cars, computers, TVs
いちだい (1), にだい (2), さんだい (3)
Books, notebooks, magazines
いっさつ (1), にさつ (2), さんさつ (3)
Number of times/occasions
いっかい (1), にかい (2), さんかい (3)
Building floors/stories
いっかい (1F), にかい (2F), さんがい (3F)
Japanese groups numbers by 10,000 (万 man) rather than 1,000 like English. So 100,000 is 十万 (juuman, "ten ten-thousands"). Numbers 1–10 each have kanji: 一 二 三 四 五 六 七 八 九 十.
When counting things in Japanese, you need a "counter word" that matches the type of object. 本 (hon) for long things, 枚 (mai) for flat things, 匹 (hiki) for small animals. There are dozens of counters, but learning 10-15 common ones covers most situations.
Yes, kanji numbers are part of JLPT N5. Understanding counters becomes increasingly important at N4 and above.