If you've ever been confused by Indian financial news (reporting in "crores") or international news (reporting in "billions"), this guide is for you. The Indian and international number systems group digits differently, which can make comparisons confusing.
The Two Systems
International Number System
Groups digits in thousands: thousand → million → billion → trillion
Indian Number System
Groups in thousands, then lakhs, then crores: thousand → lakh → crore → arab
Quick Conversion Table
| Indian System | International System | Actual Number |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Thousand | 1 Thousand | 1,000 |
| 1 Lakh | 100 Thousand | 1,00,000 |
| 10 Lakh | 1 Million | 10,00,000 |
| 1 Crore | 10 Million | 1,00,00,000 |
| 100 Crore | 1 Billion | 1,00,00,00,000 |
| 1 Lakh Crore | 1 Trillion | 1,00,00,00,00,00,000 |
Key Conversions to Remember
- 1 Million = 10 Lakh
- 1 Crore = 10 Million
- 1 Billion = 100 Crore
- 1 Trillion = 1 Lakh Crore
Real-World Examples
Company Valuations
When Indian news says a startup is valued at "₹500 crore", that's ₹5 billion in international terms, or ₹5,000 million.
Population
India's population of approximately 1.4 billion people = 140 crore people.
Salary
A salary of "10 lakh per annum" = 1 million per annum in international terms.
How to Write Numbers in Both Systems
The Indian system uses commas differently from the international system:
- International: 10,000,000 (ten million)
- Indian: 1,00,00,000 (one crore)
In the Indian system, after the first three digits from the right, commas appear every two digits instead of every three.