Ryan and Aylah
Grade 6-9
Parent and child

Question:
How many billions equal one trillion?
We believe that the answer is one thousand times one billion equals one trillion. Please help us with the answer to this question.

Thank you,

Ryan and Aylah

Hi,

I responded to this question in 2002 and to a related questions in 1997 and 2003 using information from the Webster's Third New International Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Co., Springfield, Mass. 1967. I was unaware that in 1974 the government of the UK switched to the American system. A further explanation and related links can be found in More on Millions and Billions.

The system described below as the British system is no longer in use in the UK.

Penny

It depends where you live.

In the American system one billion is 1,000,000,000 and a trillion is 1,000,000,000,000 so one trillion is one thousand times one billion.

In the British system one billion is 1,000,000,000,000 and one trillion is 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 so one trillion is one million times one billion.

There is a table of the differences in these systems at Billions and more!, the answer to a previous question.