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How Many Zeros

How Many Zeros in a Padma?

How many zeros in a padma? A padma has 15 zeros in the Indian numbering system: 1,00,00,00,00,00,00,000 — equal to one quadrillion (1,000,000,000,000,000) in the international system, or 1015. The name "padma" comes from Sanskrit, where it referred to the lotus flower and was used symbolically for vast astronomical quantities. Learn more about how many zeros in a crore.

A padma has

15

zeros

Written Form
1 followed by 15 zeros
Scientific
10¹⁵
Western
1,000,000,000,000,000

Padma's Position Between Neel and Shankh

The direct answer: exactly 15 zeros. Each step up the traditional Indian scale adds two zeros, so padma has two more zeros than neel (13) and two fewer than shankh (17). See also: Zeros in a neel.

How many zeros in a Padma? 15 zeros, written as 1 followed by 15 zeros (10¹⁵).
How many zeros in a Padma? — howmanyzeros.org
Neel through shankh on the extended Indian scale.
UnitZerosInternational equivalent
Neel1310 trillion
Padma151 quadrillion
Shankh17100 quadrillion

Coincidentally, a padma has the same number of zeros as a petabyte (1015 bytes) — though the two are unrelated; one is a counting unit, the other a digital storage unit.

What Does Padma Equal in the International System?

One padma equals one quadrillion — numerically an exact match for the SI prefix "peta-" used in petabyte storage. In terms of more common units: 1 padma = 1,000 trillion = 1,000,000 billion.

Why Padma Isn't Used in Modern Finance

  • National budgets and GDP figures use crore or lakh crore instead
  • At one million crore, padma is far too large for everyday reporting
  • The term survives mainly in academic discussions of ancient Indian mathematics

Zeros in a Padma: FAQ

What comes before a padma?
Quick answer

Neel comes right before a padma — it takes 100 neel to make one padma. See also: Zeros in a mahashankh.

What comes after a padma?
Quick answer

Shankh comes next, equal to 100 padma.

How many digits does a padma have?

A padma has 16 digits in total — that's the digit 1 followed by 15 zeros.

What is 100 padma called?

One hundred padma equals one shankh (1017), or 100 quadrillion.

Is a padma the same as a quadrillion?

Yes — a padma and a quadrillion are exactly the same value, 1015.

How many padma are in a shankh?

Exactly 100 padma make one shankh.