How Many Zeros in a Nonillion?
A nonillion has 30 zeros: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. In scientific notation, the zeros in a nonillion are expressed as 1030. The prefix noni- means nine, reflecting the ninth group of three zeros in the short-scale system used in the United States and modern British English. One nonillion equals one thousand octillion (1027), and comes directly before decillion (1033) in the number sequence. In the long-scale system still used in some European countries, a nonillion instead represents 1054 — a fundamentally different quantity using the same word. Learn more about how many zeros does a duodecillion have.
A nonillion has
30
zeros
- Written Form
- 1 followed by 30 zeros
- Scientific
- 10³⁰
How Many Zeros Are in Nonillion Compared to Octillion and Decillion?
Nonillion sits between octillion and decillion in the short-scale sequence. Each step adds three more zeros, following the same pattern that runs from million all the way up to centillion: Related: Million zeros.
| Name | Zeros | Scientific Notation |
|---|---|---|
| Octillion | 27 | 1027 |
| Nonillion | 30 | 1030 |
| Decillion | 33 | 1033 |
To count the zeros in a nonillion yourself, write the digit 1 and then count out ten groups of three zeros — you will reach 30 zeros and the number 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. Alternatively, the exponent in 1030 directly gives the zero count.
At this scale, quantities appear in cosmology and quantum physics. The estimated number of atoms in the observable universe is roughly 1080, so a nonillion (1030) represents a relatively small slice of that figure — yet it is still vastly larger than anything countable in everyday life. The total number of grains of sand on Earth (~7 × 1018) falls twelve orders of magnitude short of one nonillion.
How Many Zeros Does the Long-Scale Nonillion Have?
In the long-scale numbering system, a nonillion has 54 zeros (1054), not 30. The long scale defines each "-illion" as one million times the previous, so long-scale nonillion = (106)9 = 1054. That makes the long-scale nonillion 1024 times larger than the short-scale one — a difference of one septillion. Learn more about tredecillion zeros.
This divergence is why modern scientific papers and international financial documents use scientific notation exclusively at these scales. The notation 1030 is unambiguous regardless of which naming convention the reader was taught. When you see "nonillion" in an English-language source from the US or UK published after the 1970s, it reliably refers to 30 zeros and 1030.