How Do You Say Dollar Amounts? (Full Explanation)

Saying dollar amounts and writing them is a little bit different. There’s more to it than you might imagine. This article will look at how to say money amounts in English. You should know how to say them in spoken English (or write them in the long form), just in case.

How Do You Say Dollar Amounts?

When saying dollar amounts, you should always say “dollar” after the specified number. If there are cents involved, you should include that after saying “dollar.” For example, “three thousand dollars and twenty-two cents” is a common way to say a dollar amount.

Knowing how to pronounce money amounts is simple enough once you get down to it. The conventions stay the same no matter which English-speaking country you might be referring to.

Obviously, things can get a little bit difficult when you are using really long numbers. For example, you might have to say:

Twenty-three thousand two hundred and sixty-five dollars and thirty cents.

While this might seem a bit unrealistic, this is the correct way to say $23,265.30.

Thankfully, you will only ever need to pronounce it aloud rather than write it down. The only time you might need to write something like that in the long form is if you’re writing it on a check.

It’s also fairly common for people to use “only” when there are no cents involved in the amount. For example, $16,550.00 would sound like this:

Sixteen thousand, five hundred and fifty dollars only.

Here, “only” (or “exactly”) is used to show that it is an exact amount that does not have any “cents” in the value.

How Do You Read Dollar Amounts?

Reading dollar amounts is simple enough. If you are looking at them on a page and reading them aloud, it’s best to say “dollars” after the number, even if the dollar sign might come before the number in the passage that you are reading.

It might seem strange, but it’s common for the sign to come before the dollar while you say “dollars” after the number.

For example:

$20.50 is pronounced “twenty dollars and fifty cents.”
$100 is pronounced “one hundred dollars exactly.”

It might take a bit of getting used to, but it’s worth learning. Many native speakers will think it sounds quite strange if you decide to include the dollar before the listed number.

How Do You Say Dollar Amounts in Canada?

Dollar amounts are pronounced with the number first and “Canadian dollars” after the number. If you are within Canada, there’s no need to say “Canadian” unless someone is confused about whether you mean American. Outside of Canada, you should keep with “Canadian dollars.”

To a Canadian speaker, you could say something like this:

That’ll be three hundred dollars only, please.

The only time when you might need to use “Canadian dollars” to a Canadian speaker is if they ask you to specify.

For non-Canadian speakers, it’s best to make sure you let them know that you mean Canadian dollars. Since the values of American and Canadian dollars are different, it’s helpful to let someone know which one you’re referring to.

I’m going to have to ask for fifty-three Canadian dollars and six cents from you.
That’ll be forty-two thousand six hundred and twenty Canadian dollars exactly, please.

How Do You Say Dollar Amounts in Australia?

You can say “dollars” or “Australian dollars” when saying dollar amounts in Australia. It’s much more common to just hear “dollars” used because there should be no confusion between Australian dollars and American or Canadian dollars.

The only reason why Canada and America can get their dollars confused is because of how close they are geographically. Since Austalia is on another continent, you can usually just say dollars.

I need it to come to fifty-three dollars exactly. Can you do that for me?

The only time when “Australian dollars” might come in handy is when you’re speaking to a non-native speaker.

It should only be ten thousand Australian dollars, mate.

Final Thoughts

You should include the word “dollars” after the specified amount. Once you have said “dollars,” you can then say “and cents” if there is a specific amount or “only” if you do not need to mention any cents. These rules apply to the US, Canada, and Australia.

Martin Lassen

Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.