Words or numerals
In words from one to nine and in numerals from 10 onwards. Exceptions:
- Chapter 1
- Grade 2
- Fractions: 3.4 or 8½
- Age groups: 2-3 years old
- Dialogue: “I turned twenty-three.”
- In fiction: She was twenty-three when…
- Numbers next to each other: 50 ten-metre poles
- At the beginning of sentences: Two hundred and twenty people attended the event.
Thousand separators
- In South Africa, except for the accounting profession, we write thousands with a space before the last three digits: 10 000
- For a global audience (websites etc) use commas as thousand separators: 10,000
Hyphens in numbers
- Twenty-one (21)
- Two hundred and fifty-four (254)
- Three thousand four hundred and fifty-seven (3,457)
- Twenty-five thousand seven hundred and eighty-two (25,782)
- Fifty-two million two hundred and ninety-seven thousand three hundred and fifty-two (52,297,352)
Percentages and fractions with a full stop
13.4% (use either % sign or write out percent – be consistent)
Amounts have no space after the denomination
- ZAR100 or €100 or US$100
- If your website or documents are for a South African audience use R, and ZAR for international use
- In continuous text use the word “rand” – all lower case
- Only write R10 000.50 if there are cents; don’t write R10 000.00 – too much clutter
Measurements
- Add a space before km, kg, or pm: 5 km, 2 kg, 6 pm
- No plurals: 200 km not kms
Time
Choose one option and stick with it throughout a document:
- 9.30 am and 6 pm
- 9h30 and 18h00
- 9:00 and 18:00
Telephone and fax numbers
- Locally: 011 888 1234
- Internationally: +27 11 888 1234
Dates
- Contemporary style: 30 September 2019
- Don’t use, it’s old-fashioned: the 30th of September 2019
- American: September 30, 2019
© Andrea Paulsen Communications