# What comes after a trillion? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 14, 2012, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001 "2012-12-14T04:42:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/1 "2012-12-14T04:42:33Z")
Because I’m a whatever-comes-after-a-trillion-aire. In the mail today I received 10 x 100,000,000,000,000 bank notes, as a result of a little currency purchase on eBay. Sadly they’re in Zimbabwe dollars, so I’m only a whatever-it-is-aire in Zimbabwe. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/2 "2012-12-14T04:51:37Z")
Quadrillion. [But it depends.](http://www.quadrillion.com/number.shtm) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/3 "2012-12-14T04:54:19Z")
[Quadrillion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadrillion) (or maybe a billiard, depending on where you are.) I think you should tell people you’re a billiardare. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/4 "2012-12-14T04:59:22Z")
Another trillion. ---
**Author:** ![Michael63129](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@Michael63129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael63129)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/5 "2012-12-14T05:21:50Z")
These are the multiples-of-a-thousand numbers that I know of off the top of my head: 10^3 = Thousand 10^6 = Million 10^9 = Billion 10^12 = Trillion 10^15 = Quadrillion 10^18 = Quintillion 10^21 = Sextillion 10^24 = Septillon 10^27 = Octillion 10^30 = Nonillion 10^33 = Decillion Plus some others like a googol (10^100), centillion (10^303) and googolplex (10^googol). All of these last numbers are so high that if you had that many dollars (or the equivalent of in other currencies, using the largest denomination), they couldn’t possibly exist physically because the Universe doesn’t have enough matter (estimates are around 10^80 atoms). ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/6 "2012-12-14T05:43:51Z")
> [@chacoguy](#): > > Quadrillion. > > [But it depends.](http://www.quadrillion.com/number.shtm) I am no expert, but aren’t most people in Britain more familiar with the “American” (short) scale for their day-to-day use? I prefer the short system because that’s what I was taught and while I might worry that it comes across as American hegemony, my belief that short is better is strengthened by the fact that the mentioned **centillion** is called **quinquagintilliard** or **a thousand quinquagintillion** in the long scale. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/7 "2012-12-14T05:59:00Z")
You mean the 100 billion in Zimbabwe dollars I bought a while back is now worthless?! I’m going to have to totally rethink my investment portfolio. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/8 "2012-12-14T06:02:35Z")
A trillion and one ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/9 "2012-12-14T06:05:19Z")
Hey, do you want to trade a Zim $50 bill for a 100 Trillion dollar bill? When I was in Zimbabwe in 2002 the exchange rate was $400 Zim to one US dollar. At the end of the week it was $600 Zim to one US dollar. I think I actually have a Zim penny lying around here somewhere! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/10 "2012-12-14T06:06:14Z")
I think Zimbabwe’s reached the point where the strongest sector of their economy are online sales of their hyperinflated currency. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/11 "2012-12-14T13:44:40Z")
**What comes after a trillion?** The tax man. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/12 "2012-12-14T16:17:03Z")
> [@Darryl\_Lict](#): > > I think I actually have a Zim penny lying around here somewhere! What’s that worth, $0.000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 1? (How does that kind of hyperinflation _happen_ anyways? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/13 "2012-12-14T17:03:26Z")
It goes like this: Million Billion Trillion Zillion Bazillion Gazillion Infinity Infinity plus 1 Infinity plus 1 times infinity ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/14 "2012-12-14T18:01:47Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > (How does that kind of hyperinflation _happen_ anyways? The only fundamental physical limit on hyperinflation is how quickly you can redesign the currency to tack more zeroes on, and how long it takes the ink to dry. Although, really, with electronic payments, that’s not even a limit any more. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/15 "2012-12-14T18:09:59Z")
I rather like the legend on the notes: “I promise to pay the bearer on demand ONE HUNDRED TRILLION DOLLARS.” ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/16 "2012-12-14T18:19:21Z")
How many is a a Brazillian? ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/17 "2012-12-14T18:41:27Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Although, really, with electronic payments, that’s not even a limit any more. I’m guessing that countries with inflation levels in the trillions don’t have too many residents who use electronic payments. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/18 "2012-12-14T18:48:06Z")
[QUOTE=Michael63129] 10^3 = Thousand 10^6 = Million 10^9 = Billion 10^12 = Trillion 10^15 = Quadrillion 10^18 = Quintillion 10^21 = Sextillion 10^24 = Septillon 10^27 = Octillion 10^30 = Nonillion 10^33 = Decillion [/quote] [Undecillion Duodecillion Tredecillion etc to Vigintillion Unvigintillion Duovigintillion etc to Trigintillion UnTrigintillion etc to Quadragintillion Unquadragintillion etc to Quinquagintillion etc to Sexagintillion … Septuagintillion … Octogintillion … Nonagintillion … Centillion](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=13472860&postcount=4) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/19 "2012-12-14T18:50:43Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > I rather like the legend on the notes: “I promise to pay the bearer on demand ONE HUNDRED TRILLION DOLLARS.” Or a stick of gum, whichever is worth more. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001/20 "2012-12-14T19:34:03Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > (How does that kind of hyperinflation _happen_ anyways? [Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation_in_Zimbabwe) bad economic policies + extreme government corruption =\> lack of confidence in the government. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-comes-after-a-trillion/644001.md?page=2)