Writing numbers in numerals or words?
There are no official rules for writing numbers, but a general rule of thumb, however, is to spell out small numbers ranging from one to ten and use numerals for larger numbers (i.e. above ten). But there are a few exceptions:
- Consistency
When mixing small and large numbers, you should use numerals.
The company has 29 employees, of which14 are production workers, 10 are vendors and 5 are administrative staff.
- Two numbers next to each other
When writing a sentence that has two numbers side by side, it is best to write one number as a word and the other as a numeral
He was to translate two 8-page documents by the end of the week.
- Numbers starting a sentence
You should never begin a sentence with a numeral. Spell out the number or try to reword the sentence.
- Many numbers
When using numbers frequently in a document, it is appropriate that you write all numbers as numerals.