Knowing how to read money in Chinese is essential for smooth communication when shopping, working, or traveling in China. If you’re unsure how to say money amounts in Chinese, don’t worry! This guide from Ni Hao Ma will teach you an easy and accurate way to read and pronounce money amounts, helping you gain confidence in real-life Chinese conversations.
Chinese Currency Units
The official currency of China is the Renminbi (人民币 – rénmínbì, abbreviated as RMB), issued by the People’s Bank of China. On the international market, the Renminbi has the ISO 4217 code CNY and is represented by the symbol ¥.
The Renminbi was first issued in 1948 by the People’s Bank of China. Before that, China used various currencies. Today, due to China’s economic growth, the Renminbi has become increasingly important in global trade and finance.
In China’s monetary system, the Renminbi is divided into smaller units to facilitate transactions and exchanges:
- 元 (Yuán) – Yuan: The primary unit of Chinese currency.
- 角 (Jiǎo) – Jiao: 1 Yuan (元) = 10 Jiao (角).
- 分 (Fēn) – Fen: 1 Jiao (角) = 10 Fen (分), meaning 1 Yuan = 100 Fen.
In spoken and written Chinese, currency units have different names:
| Unit | Written Form (书面语) | Spoken Form (口语) |
|---|---|---|
| Yuan (CNY) | 元 (Yuán) | 块 (Kuài) |
| Jiao (0.1 CNY) | 角 (Jiǎo) | 毛 (Máo) |
| Fen (0.01 CNY) | 分 (Fēn) | 分 (Fēn) |
Currently, China circulates two main types of currency: paper money (纸币 – zhǐbì) and coins (硬币 – yìngbì), available in various denominations. While coins are still in use, they are less common than paper money. The current denominations of money in Chinese include:
| Chinese | Pinyin | English Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| 1 角 | Yī jiǎo | 1 hào (0.1 yuan) |
| 2 角 | Èr jiǎo | 2 hào (0.2 yuan) |
| 5 角 | Wǔ jiǎo | 5 hào (0.5 yuan) |
| 1 元 | Yī yuán | 1 yuan |
| 2 元 | Èr yuán | 2 yuan |
| 5 元 | Wǔ yuán | 5 yuan |
| 10 元 | Shí yuán | 10 yuan |
| 20 元 | Èrshí yuán | 20 yuan |
| 50 元 | Wǔshí yuán | 50 yuan |
| 100 元 | Yībǎi yuán | 100 yuan |
How to express the amount of money in Chinese
Now that you understand the basics of Chinese currency, let’s move on to a more detailed look at how to express the amount of money in Chinese. This will help you confidently use the language in real-life financial situations.
Understanding Numbers in Chinese
In Chinese, expressing the amount of money is not just about stating the currency units like 元 (yuán), 角 (jiǎo), or 分 (fēn). You must also know how to read basic numbers correctly. When saying a money amount, numbers must be combined with the appropriate currency units. It won’t be easy to express the exact amount you mean without understanding how to read numbers.
Below is a table with some numbers in Chinese:
| Number | Chinese Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 零 | líng |
| 1 | 一 | yī |
| 2 | 二 / 两 | èr / liǎng |
| 3 | 三 | sān |
| 4 | 四 | sì |
| 5 | 五 | wǔ |
| 6 | 六 | liù |
| 7 | 七 | qī |
| 8 | 八 | bā |
| 9 | 九 | jiǔ |
| 10 | 十 | shí |
| 11 | 十一 | shí yī |
| 12 | 十二 | shí èr |
| 20 | 二十 | èr shí |
| 35 | 三十五 | sān shí wǔ |
| 100 | 一百 | yì bǎi |
| 101 | 一百零一 | yì bǎi líng yī |
| 150 | 一百五十 | yì bǎi wǔ shí |
| 200 | 二百 / 两百 | èr bǎi / liǎng bǎi |
| 1,000 | 一千 | yì qiān |
| 9,999 | 九千九百九十九 | jiǔ qiān jiǔ bǎi jiǔ shí jiǔ |
| 10,000 | 一万 | yí wàn |
| 1,000,000 | 一百万 | yì bǎi wàn |
| 100,000,000 | 一亿 | yí yì |
When reading large monetary values, such as thousands, millions, or billions, it is essential to follow the correct numerical structure. In money in Chinese, large numbers have specific naming conventions that differ from English.
📌 Learn More: Counting Numbers in Chinese Mandarin
Money amounts with 1 to 4 digits
Expressing the amount of money in Chinese from 1-4 digits is straightforward once you understand basic number rules. The general structure follows this pattern:
Number + 元 (yuán) / 块 (kuài)
| Amount | Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5元 | 五元 | wǔ yuán | 5 yuan |
| 25元 | 二十五元 | èr shí wǔ yuán | 25 yuan |
| 250元 | 两百五十元 | liǎng bǎi wǔ shí yuán | 250 yuan |
| 6,090元 | 六千零九十元 | liù qiān líng jiǔ shí yuán | 6,090 yuan |
Money amounts with more than 4 digits
When reading money in Chinese with amounts from 1,000 (one thousand) and above, it’s essential to understand large number units in Chinese such as 千 (qiān – thousand), 万 (wàn – ten thousand), 亿 (yì – 100 million). For numbers larger than 10,000, we divide them into groups of four digits from right to left and read from left to right.
For example: For the number 12,345, we read it as follows:
- Split into two groups: 1 and 2345.
- Read the first group: 一万 (yī wàn) – ten thousand.
- Read the second group: 两千三百四十五 (liǎng qiān sān bǎi sì shí wǔ) – two thousand three hundred forty-five.
- Combine them: 一万两千三百四十五 (yī wàn liǎng qiān sān bǎi sì shí wǔ) + 元 (yuán) / 块 (kuài)
We apply the same method for other numbers:
| Money Amount | How to Read | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| ¥678,901 | 六十七万八千九百零一块 | liù shí qī wàn bā qiān jiǔ bǎi líng yī kuài |
| ¥1,234,567,890 | 一亿两千三百四十五万六万七千八百九十块 | yī yì liǎng qiān sān bǎi sì shí wǔ wàn liù wàn qī qiān bā bǎi jiǔ shí kuài |
💡 Note: 二 (èr) and 两 (liǎng)
When reading large amounts of money in Chinese, the Chinese group numbers are based on 万 (wàn – ten thousand) rather than thousands like in Vietnamese. For numbers from the thousand range and above, the Chinese use 两 (liǎng) instead of 二 (èr).
For example: 25,500元 – liǎng wàn wǔ qiān wǔ bǎi yuán – 两万五千五百元.
Expressing money in Chinese with decimal points
When reading money in Chinese with decimal points, first, read the part before the comma, then proceed to read the decimal numbers from left to right.
| Amount | How to Read | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| ¥0.6 | 六角 | liù jiǎo |
| ¥5.6 | 五块六 | wǔ kuài liù |
| ¥10.8 | 十块八 | shí kuài bā |
| ¥2450.60 | 两千四百五十元六角 | liǎng qiān sì bǎi wǔ shí yuán liù jiǎo |
Expressing money in Chinese with multiple 0
The way to read money in Chinese with multiple zeros can change depending on the number of zeros and their positions:
- Zero in the middle: If there is one or more zeros in the middle of other digits, read “零” (líng) once. For example, 10,001 is read as 一万零一 (yī wàn líng yī).
- Zero at the end: Zeros at the end of a group of four digits are not read as “零” (líng). For example, 10,000 is read as 一万 (yī wàn), not 一万零零零零 (yī wàn líng líng líng líng).
- Multiple consecutive zeros: If there are many zeros in the middle or at the end of a group of four digits, only one “零” (líng) is read. For example, 500,007 yuan is read as 五十万零七元 (wǔ shí wàn líng qī yuán).
Common Phrases About Money in Chinese
When communicating, knowing how to talk about money in Chinese is very important, especially in buying, selling, or payment situations. Here are some common questions and answers about money in Chinese that you can familiarize yourself with:
✔ How much is this?
👉 这个多少钱？(Zhège duōshǎo qián?)
✔ How much do I need to pay?
👉 我需要付多少钱？(Wǒ xūyào fù duōshǎo qián?)
✔ The total is 500 yuan.
👉 总共是500元。(Zǒnggòng shì 500 yuán.)
✔ Can you give a discount?
👉 可以便宜一点吗？(Kěyǐ piányi yīdiǎn ma?)
✔ Can I pay in cash?
👉 可以用现金支付吗？(Kěyǐ yòng xiànjīn zhīfù ma?)
✔ You can pay by WeChat Pay or Alipay.
👉 微信支付或者支付宝都可以。(Wēixìn zhīfù huòzhě zhīfùbǎo dōu kěyǐ.)
✔ I will give you 10 yuan as a change.
👉 找您10元。(Zhǎo nín shí yuán.)
Conclusion
Mastering how to express money in Chinese will help you feel more confident when participating in shopping, payment, or business transactions with Chinese speakers. We hope that the guidelines and examples in this article from Ni Hao Ma will assist you in improving your Chinese communication skills.
If you want to quickly and effectively improve your Chinese communication abilities, check out our Chinese speaking courses at Ni Hao Ma. With a team of experienced native-speaking instructors, creative teaching methods, and a friendly learning environment, we will help you rapidly improve your language skills. Contact our hotline for more information!
