How do you pronounce 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 in French?

For new learners of French, understanding numbers should be a number-one priority. They’re essential for all manner of everyday topics, from purchasing items at a supermarket to deciding how many days you plan on staying for your next holiday in Paris.

It isn’t enough just to learn the words for the different numbers, however. Learning how to pronounce them is equally important if you want to be understood, or to understand them when spoken by native French speakers. While some numbers are spelt the same in French as they are in English, such as ‘zero’ and ‘six’, the way they are pronounced is quite different.

Below we’ve listed the French words for numbers from zero to ten, and you’ll find an audio guide alongside each one.

While there are, technically speaking, an infinite amount of numbers in the French language, simply by learning how to pronounce the first ten, you’ll have the building blocks necessary to articulate more complex numbers. For 11 to 20 In French, check out Lesson 02 of The Complete French Course, while Lesson 03 covers numbers up to 100. For help with pronouncing numbers up to 100, be sure to check out Alexa's YouTube video on the topic.

As a heads up, numbers can get a bit confusing between 70 (soixante-dix) and ninety-nine (quatre-vingt dix-neuf). Read our blog ‘Why isn’t there a French word for 80?’ to help you get to grips with these numbers, as well as to understand the historical reasons behind this slightly peculiar numbering system.