You need numbers from day one: to say a price, the time, an address, your age. Finnish counting is logical, but there's one thing that trips everyone up — after a number, the noun isn't in its plain form. Let's go through counting and that quirk together.
The key rule: after any number except yksi (1), the noun goes in the partitive singular — kaksi euroa, viisi taloa. The number itself doesn't change. For that case, see The Finnish partitive case.
Numbers 0 to 10
| Number | Finnish |
|---|---|
| 0 | nolla |
| 1 | yksi |
| 2 | kaksi |
| 3 | kolme |
| 4 | neljä |
| 5 | viisi |
| 6 | kuusi |
| 7 | seitsemän |
| 8 | kahdeksan |
| 9 | yhdeksän |
| 10 | kymmenen |
Tens, hundreds, thousands
From 11 to 19 you add -toista ("of the second [ten]"): yksitoista (11), kaksitoista (12), kolmetoista (13)… yhdeksäntoista (19). Tens are a number + kymmentä:
| Number | Finnish |
|---|---|
| 20 | kaksikymmentä |
| 21 | kaksikymmentäyksi |
| 30 | kolmekymmentä |
| 50 | viisikymmentä |
| 100 | sata |
| 200 | kaksisataa |
| 1000 | tuhat |
| 1,000,000 | miljoona |
Compound numbers are written as one word: satakaksikymmentäkolme (123). It looks long, but it's built from blocks: sata + kaksikymmentä + kolme.
Why "kaksi euroa", not "kaksi euro"
This is the quirk: after a number greater than one, the noun goes in the partitive. Compare:
| Finnish | English |
|---|---|
| yksi talo | one house (plain form) |
| kaksi taloa | two houses (partitive) |
| viisi euroa | five euros |
| kymmenen minuuttia | ten minutes |
Ordinal numbers
"First, second, third" answer the question mones? (which in order). The first two are irregular; after that comes the suffix -s:
| # | Finnish |
|---|---|
| 1st | ensimmäinen |
| 2nd | toinen |
| 3rd | kolmas |
| 4th | neljäs |
| 5th | viides |
| 10th | kymmenes |
Prices, time and dates
- Price: Se maksaa kaksitoista euroa. — "It costs 12 euros." Cents: kaksi euroa viisikymmentä (€2.50).
- Time: Kello on kaksi. — "It's two o'clock." Puoli kolme — "half past two" (literally "half to three").
- Date: uses the ordinal number: kolmas päivä — "the third (day)".
- Age: Olen kolmekymmentä vuotta. — "I'm thirty years old."
One honest caveat: numbers also inflect in cases (a big topic of its own), but the forms above cover everyday speech. For a from-scratch plan, see How long it takes to learn Finnish, and for how numbers are pronounced, The Finnish alphabet and pronunciation.
Frequently asked questions
How do you count from 1 to 10 in Finnish?
yksi (1), kaksi (2), kolme (3), neljä (4), viisi (5), kuusi (6), seitsemän (7), kahdeksan (8), yhdeksän (9), kymmenen (10). Zero is nolla.
Why does the noun change after a number?
After any number except yksi (1), the noun goes in the partitive singular: kaksi taloa, viisi euroa, kymmenen minuuttia. The number itself doesn't change.
How are the numbers 11 to 19 formed?
You add -toista to the unit: yksitoista (11), kaksitoista (12), kolmetoista (13), and so on up to yhdeksäntoista (19).
How do you say a price in Finnish?
Number + euroa: Se maksaa kaksitoista euroa (it costs 12 euros). Cents go after: kaksi euroa viisikymmentä — €2.50.
What's the difference between cardinal and ordinal numbers?
Cardinals answer "how many" (kaksi, viisi); ordinals answer "which in order" (toinen, viides). The first two ordinals are irregular: ensimmäinen, toinen; then the -s suffix: kolmas, neljäs.