Guide · 6 min read
Lakh and Crore to Million and Billion: Conversion Guide
Convert lakh and crore to thousands, millions and billions. Includes a comparison table, comma placement (12,50,000 vs 1,250,000) and how to write rupee amounts in words.
Updated
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka count large numbers in lakh and crore rather than millions and billions. Anyone dealing with salaries, property prices or invoices across the two systems needs to move between them quickly. This guide explains how, and every NumWords number page above one hundred thousand shows the Indian form alongside the international one – for example 1,200,000 (twelve lakh).
How the Indian numbering system works
Both systems agree up to 99,999 – ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine. Above that they part ways. The international system keeps adding groups of three digits (thousand, million, billion). The Indian system adds groups of two digits, with a new word every hundred-fold:
- 1 lakh = 100 thousand = 1,00,000 (international 100,000)
- 1 crore = 100 lakh = 1,00,00,000 (international 10,000,000, or ten million)
- 1 arab = 100 crore = 1,00,00,00,000 (international one billion) – in everyday Indian English this is usually just called 100 crore.
Conversion table: lakh and crore to thousands, millions and billions
| Indian | Indian figures | International figures | International words |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 thousand | 1,000 | 1,000 | one thousand |
| 10 thousand | 10,000 | 10,000 | ten thousand |
| 1 lakh | 1,00,000 | 100,000 | one hundred thousand |
| 10 lakh | 10,00,000 | 1,000,000 | one million |
| 12.5 lakh | 12,50,000 | 1,250,000 | one million two hundred and fifty thousand |
| 1 crore | 1,00,00,000 | 10,000,000 | ten million |
| 10 crore | 10,00,00,000 | 100,000,000 | one hundred million |
| 100 crore | 1,00,00,00,000 | 1,000,000,000 | one billion |
| 1,000 crore | 10,00,00,00,000 | 10,000,000,000 | ten billion |
| 1 lakh crore | 1,00,00,00,00,000 | 1,000,000,000,000 | one trillion |
Two conversions cover most situations: 1 million = 10 lakh and 1 billion = 100 crore.
Where the commas go
The digits never change – only the commas. Internationally, commas come every three digits from the right. In the Indian system the first comma also comes after three digits, but every comma after that comes after two.
| Digits | Indian | International |
|---|---|---|
| 250000 | 2,50,000 | 250,000 |
| 1250000 | 12,50,000 | 1,250,000 |
| 45000000 | 4,50,00,000 | 45,000,000 |
Writing rupee amounts in words
Indian cheques and invoices put the currency word first and end with “only”: Rupees twelve lakh fifty thousand only. Within each group the ordinary British rules apply – and after the hundreds, hyphens in compound numbers.
| Figures | On an Indian cheque | International equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| ₹38,000 | Rupees thirty-eight thousand only | thirty-eight thousand |
| ₹2,50,000 | Rupees two lakh fifty thousand only | two hundred and fifty thousand |
| ₹12,50,000 | Rupees twelve lakh fifty thousand only | one million two hundred and fifty thousand |
| ₹2,00,00,000 | Rupees two crore only | twenty million |
Converting quickly
- Lakh to million: divide by 10. 25 lakh = 2.5 million.
- Million to lakh: multiply by 10. 3 million = 30 lakh.
- Crore to million: multiply by 10. 5 crore = 50 million.
- Crore to billion: divide by 100. 250 crore = 2.5 billion.
The NumWords converter accepts “lakh” and “crore” directly – type twelve lakh fifty thousand and it returns 1,250,000.
Frequently asked questions
How many lakhs are in a million?
Ten. One million is 10,00,000 in Indian grouping, which is ten lakh.
How many crores are in a billion?
One hundred. One billion is 1,00,00,00,000, which is one hundred crore.
How do I write 12,50,000 in international format?
1,250,000 – one million two hundred and fifty thousand. The digits are the same; only the comma positions change.
Is it "lakh" or "lac"?
Both spellings are used; "lakh" is the more common and the one used by the Reserve Bank of India. "Lac" appears often on invoices and cheques. The plural is usually "lakh" after a number (five lakh) but "lakhs" is also accepted.