When translating financial documents like balance sheets or cash and flow reports, we always check if we should adjust the numbers as well since there may be differences in how to indicate multi-digit numbers in different countries.

In the course of our work, we’ve developed a short checklist for localizing numbers. Feel free to use it if you’re up to writing some multi-digit numbers according to the Russian tradition.

Use Groups of Three

Just like in Europe and the US, multi-digit numbers are united in groups of three digits.

Any small thing may become tricky when observed closer. Texts show it best as they are made of the tiniest elements. And that’s totally okay - taking a closer look at texts is our job. Dates are a good example of that tiny detail that gets overlooked often. The traditions of writing dates and their abbreviated versions vary from culture to culture but this is not common knowledge. Well, in case it comes in handy, let’s look at how to write abbreviated dates in Russian.

No one knows where life will lead you. Maybe you’ll have to send a letter to Russia one day. Maybe the day has already come.

The task is more complicated than expected as the world’s largest and most mysterious country is not that helpful when it comes to understanding its rules. All you should know about Russia that there are rules but abiding by them is not always a necessity.