In everyday speech the seven core counters つ・個・本・枚・人・匹・台 cover most situations: when unsure, use 個 for physical objects and つ for abstract things and you will be understood. In business email and formal writing, use the precise counter — the table below is organized by category for reference.
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General-purpose, core counters
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| abstract concepts without a fixed shape, or smallish objects (questions, opinions, age, some fruits)The most powerful catch-all counter in modern Japanese. | つ（ひとつ・ふたつ…） |
| concrete objects with a solid three-dimensional shape (apples, stones, boxes, pillows, seals)One of the most versatile counters in modern Japanese, it can replace many traditional specialized counters. | 個（こ） |
| long, slender objects (thread, rope, umbrellas, pens, tree branches, bananas)The go-to counter for long, slender objects; movies, TV shows, and the like also take 本. | 本（ほん） |
| thin, flat objects (paper, towels, plates, CDs, solar panels)The go-to counter for thin, flat objects. | 枚（まい） |
| people (friends, guests, students, etc.)The basic counter for people; 1 and 2 take the special readings ひとり and ふたり. | 人（にん） |
| polite way to count people (service and business settings: 2名, 何名様) | 名（めい） |
| small to medium-sized animals (dogs, cats, fish, insects, snakes)For large animals, use 頭 instead. | 匹（ひき） |
| machines and vehicles (cars, bicycles, TVs, computers, home appliances)The general-purpose counter for modern machines, electronics, and vehicles. | 台（だい） |
Everyday items
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| furniture with stands or legs (chairs, tables) | 脚（きゃく） |
| items used in pairs (gloves) | 双（そう）・組（くみ）・対（つい） |
| footwear (shoes, socks) | 足（そく） |
| items that come in sets (playing cards, tea sets) | 組（くみ） |
| tools with handles (scissors, kitchen knives) | 丁（ちょう）・本（ほん） |
| chopsticks | 膳（ぜん） |
| things tied in bundles (a bouquet, a bunch of green onions, spinach) | 束（たば） |
| items rung up at checkout (register total) | 点（てん） |
Food, medicine
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| liquids served in cups (tea, coffee, soup, water) | 杯（はい） |
| block-shaped foods (tofu, konnyaku) | 丁（ちょう） |
| ball-shaped or clumped foods (udon noodles, soba noodles, cabbage) | 玉（たま） |
| seafood with tentacles (squid, octopus, crab) | 杯（はい） |
| skewered foods (yakitori, dango) | 串（くし）・本（ほん） |
| fruit that grows in clusters or bunches (grapes, bananas) | 房（ふさ） |
| pills, tablets | 錠（じょう） |
| powdered medicine in paper packets | 包（ほう） |
| servings of food (餃子二人前) | 人前（にんまえ） |
Animals and plants
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| large animals (cattle, horses, elephants, whales, wild boars) | 頭（とう） |
| birds, poultry, and rabbits | 羽（わ） |
| plants with roots intact, or seedlings with a ball of soil around their roots (napa cabbage, green onions, seedlings) | 株（かぶ） |
| plants grown in pots (potted plants) | 鉢（はち） |
| flowers in bloom | 輪（りん） |
Buildings, spaces
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| floors of a building | 階（かい） |
| standalone houses and shops | 軒（けん） |
| multi-unit housing, apartment buildings, large buildings | 棟（むね） |
| rooms, households | 戸（こ）・部屋（へや） |
| heavy structures with a base (gravestones, monuments, torii gates) | 基（き） |
| flat areas (fields, swimming pools, tennis courts) | 面（めん） |
| long, thin geographic features that run across the landscape (rivers, roads) | 筋（すじ）・本（ほん） |
Culture, art
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| bound printed matter (books, magazines, notebooks) | 冊（さつ） |
| video content and film/TV productions (movies, TV shows, videos) | 本（ほん） |
| paintings, photos, artworks on display | 枚（まい）・点（てん） |
| statues and figures of people (Buddha statues, models, mannequins) | 体（たい） |
| board game matches (Go, shogi) | 局（きょく）・番（ばん） |
| poems, short pieces of writing, academic papers | 編（へん） |
| episodes of TV dramas and anime (第 3 話, 全 12 話) | 話（わ） |
| songs, pieces of music | 曲（きょく） |
| volumes in a book or manga series (全 10 巻) | 巻（かん） |
Machines and clothing
Abstract concepts
| Thing · use | Counter |
|---|---|
| number of times (went three times, one more time) | 回（かい）・度（ど） |
| age | 歳（さい） |
| incidents, proposals, accidents, lawsuits | 件（けん） |
| places, spots, parts (several places, problem areas, spots to fix) | 箇所（かしょ） |
| test questions, quiz questions (全 10 問) | 問（もん） |
| companies, businesses (applied to 3 社) | 社（しゃ） |
| units of funds or contracts (bank accounts, donations, insurance) | 口（くち） |
| ballots, questionnaires | 票（ひょう） |
| nights of a stay (二泊三日) | 泊（はく） |
| drops of water, eye drops | 滴（てき） |
Counters with sound changes
Use the special native Japanese readings ひとり and ふたり for 1 and 2 people, and よにん for 4 people.
These are native Japanese numerals used for counting all kinds of objects; 10 is read 「とお」, though when actually counting things people usually say 「十個（じゅっこ）」 instead, and from 11 on you always switch to 「個」 and other counters.
Watch for the sokuon (small っ) at 1, 6, 8, and 10: いっ, ろっ, はっ, じゅっ. The traditional reading of 十個 is 「じっこ」 (from the old reading of 十, 「じふ」), long the standard in writing and on tests; today 「じゅっこ」 is what you hear in everyday speech and the media, and the 2010 Jōyō kanji list also accepts the じゅっ reading.
Used for bottles, pens, trees, and the like. Note the sound change: ほん becomes ぼん or ぽん for 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
Used for cats, dogs, fish, insects, and the like. ひき changes to びき or ぴき for 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
Used for paper, plates, shirts, and the like. Every number simply takes まい, with no sound changes.
Counts items purchased at checkout, points or scores, and exhibits. 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon (small っ).
Used for coffee, rice, octopus, and the like. はい becomes ばい or ぱい for 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
Counts books and notebooks. 1, 8, and 10 take a small つ: いっ・はっ・じゅっ.
Counts volumes of book sets and manga. The readings for 1, 6, 8, and 10 have a sokuon (double consonant).
Watch for the sokuon (small っ) at 1, 6, 8, and 10: いっ, ろっ, はっ, じゅっ.
三階 can be read as さんがい; 1, 6, and 10 take the sokuon.
二十歳 has the special reading はたち; 1, 8, and 10 take a sokuon. 才 is a common informal substitute for 歳.
Used for block-shaped foods (tofu, konnyaku) and tools with handles (scissors, kitchen knives). 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon (small っ).
Used for furniture with legs, such as chairs and tables. 1, 6, 8, and 10 take a sokuon (small っ).
Counts houses and shops. Rendaku applies to 3 (さんげん) and the question form (なんげん); 1, 6, 8, and 10 take a sokuon.
Counts large animals such as cows, horses, and elephants. 1, 8, and 10 take a small っ.
Counts birds and rabbits. Readings vary; 3, 6, 8, and 10 often take rendaku (voicing) or handakuon (the p-sound).
Counts shoes, socks, and other things worn in pairs. 3 = さんぞく (rendaku); 1, 8, and 10 take a sokuon (the small っ).
Counts sets of clothing. 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon (っ).
Counts bills, lawsuits, and matters. 3 is さんけん (not voiced, unlike 軒); sokuon for 1, 6, 8, and 10.
Used for small and mid-sized boats and ships. 1, 8, and 10 take a sokuon (small っ).
Used for large ships. 1, 8, and 10 have a sokuon.
局 is the counter for games of Go and shogi, and 曲 is the counter for songs and pieces of music; both are read きょく. The readings for 1, 6, 8, and 10 have a sokuon.
The first counts monuments, towers, lanterns, and machinery; the second counts airplanes and machines. Both read き, with a sokuon at 1, 6, 8, and 10.
Counts letters and documents. 1, 8, and 10 have a sokuon (the small っ).
Counts ballots and questionnaires. ひょう changes to びょう or ぴょう at 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
Counts places, body parts, and key points. 1, 6, 8, and 10 take the sokuon っ.
Counts nights stayed (as in 二泊三日). は→ぱ, changing at 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
300, 600, 800, 3000, and 8000 have sound changes. 10,000 must be said as いち万.
More common counter readings
Counts cars, computers, home appliances, and similar items. The readings are regular, with no sound changes.
Counts people in service and business settings. Readings are regular, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Counts train and tram cars. Readings follow the regular rules, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Used for mirrors, fields, courts, and the like. The readings are regular, with no sound changes.
Counts newspapers, brochures, and photocopies. The readings are regular, with no sound changes.
Readings follow the regular pattern, with no sound changes.
Counter for episodes of TV dramas and anime. The readings are regular, with no sound changes.
Counts pairs of items such as gloves. 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon っ.
Counts items that come in pairs. Use a sokuon (small っ) with 1, 8, and 10.
Companies, firms. 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon っ.
Water drops, eye drops. 1, 8, and 10 take a small っ (sokuon).
Counts Buddha statues, models, and mannequins. 1, 8, and 10 take the sokuon (small っ).
Counts households and homes. The readings for 1, 6, 8, and 10 take a sokuon (the small っ), just like the counter for small objects.
Counts apartment buildings and large buildings (on'yomi とう). Sokuon appears at 1, 8, and 10.
Used for poems, short pieces of writing, and papers. へん changes to ぺん for 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
Paper packets of powdered medicine. The reading changes from ほう to ぽう at 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10.
The amount of food for one person. 4 is よにんまえ.
For udon, soba dough, and the like. Numbers 1 to 3 use native Japanese readings, switching to on'yomi from 4 on.
Counts fruit that grows in clusters or bunches. 1-3 use native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to on'yomi.
Counts bouquets, green onions, and the like. Numbers 1–3 use native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to on'yomi.
Used for yakitori, dango, and the like. Counts 1-3 use the native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to the Sino-Japanese readings.
Used for napa cabbage, green onions, seedlings, and so on. 1–3 take native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to on'yomi (for stocks, use いっかぶ, にかぶ...).
Used for bank accounts, donations, and insurance shares. 1–3 use native Japanese readings; 4 and up use on'yomi.
Counts rivers, roads, and other long, thin things. Use the native Japanese readings for 1-3, then switch to on'yomi from 4 on.
Counts rooms. Numbers 1 to 3 use native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to on'yomi.
Counts sets, teams, and groups. 1 and 2 use native Japanese readings; 10 has a sokuon.
Plants grown in pots. 1-3 use native Japanese readings, and from 4 on they switch to on'yomi.
Pronunciation on this page is AI-synthesized speech (Azure TTS), not a human recording.
