Basic numbers
In most cases, write all numbers as numerals except for ‘one’. There were 3 people on the team. We met 56 new members. Spell out first to ninth, then use numerals - 10th, 15th, 60th.
There are a few exceptions:
- Use ‘1’ if you’re talking about a step
- Use ‘1’ if using our stats component - for example to say ‘Number 1 in the world’
- Common expressions like ‘there were one of two problems’
- If a number starts a sentence, write it out in full. ‘Thirty-four people came to the event’. This doesn’t apply to headings or subheadings
- If using the stats component, use 1st to 9th. ‘5th largest in the world’
Use ‘to’ instead of a dash. ‘300 to 400 people attended the event’.
Large numbers
Numbers over 999 should use a comma for clarity: 6,000.
Millions should be spelt out. 5 million, not 5,000,000. Do not abbreviate to 5m.
Do not use 0.xx million for numbers less than a million. Do not use 0.xx billion for numbers less than 1 billion Say ‘600,000’ not 0.6 million.
Ages
Do not use hyphens in ages unless to avoid confusion, although it’s always best to write in a way that avoids ambiguity. For example, ‘a class of 15 16-year-old students took the A level course’ can be written as ‘15 students aged 16 took the A level course’.
Fractions, percentages and other maths
Spell out common fractions like one-half and one-third.
Use a % sign for percentages: 50%
In tables, use numerals throughout.
Ratios have no space either side of the colon: 5:12
Money
Use the £ symbol: £75.
Use the euro symbol if writing in euros: €56 million.
Other common currencies should use their abbreviations: 500USD, 500AUD.
Less common currencies should be spelled out: 500 South African rand.
Write out pence in full: calls will cost 4 pence per minute from a landline.
Do not use decimals unless pence are included: £75.50 but not £75.00
Currencies are lower case.