MM Million Meaning, Examples, Conversion & Notations

In this context, “MM” serves Legal E-Billing as an abbreviation for “thousand thousands,” signifying a million. Although less common than “M,” “MM” is extensively used in certain industries, particularly in investment banking and specific regions such as Europe and parts of Asia. When plural, as in “millions,” it refers to multiples of 1,000,000.
Styles
- If a financial statement has a lot of large figures, the accountant may simply dispense with abbreviations.
- When an analyst must present various different types of units, it is recommended to add a “units” column so that each item contains a label for easy reference.
- If, say, you use it for both units and dollars in the same document, separate the different categories so your readers don’t get confused.
- It makes the most sense considering that “million” starts with the letter “M.” Most abbreviations follow this standard practice.
- “M” is the official abbreviation used whenever a million units of something are requested.
When it comes to academic and scientific writing, the preference for abbreviating “million” can vary based on the specific style guide or publication. Whether you’re working in corporate finance, investment banking, or financial analysis, using “M” as an abbreviation for “million” will help you communicate efficiently. To save time, space, and enhance readability, professionals have developed standard abbreviations for “million” that convey the same meaning while being concise and visually efficient. “M” is the most common abbreviation for “million.” If you’re going to abbreviate “million,” it would usually turn into this form.
The History and Origin of the Word

A million is equivalent to the product of a thousand times a thousand. One million can be written as the number one followed by six zeros—1,000,000. In internet record keeping, for instance, CPM is the cost per thousand impressions of an internet ad.
- While the letter « k » is the most common abbreviation, there are a few different ways to abbreviate thousand.
- Financial and accounting statements historically used a different approach to abbreviating thousand and million.
- Yes, “M” is widely recognized across international finance and business sectors.
- Abbreviating one million dollars is done using the above abbreviations.
- In finance and accounting, MM (or lowercase “mm”) commonly denotes that the units of figures presented are in millions.
- One theory says the use of M was because Romans measured a mile as a thousand paces.
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- For example, if a company reports a revenue of $10M, it indicates that the company generated $10 million in revenue.
- In finance and business, the abbreviation “M” is the go-to choice for representing “million.” As mentioned earlier, it is prevalent in financial statements, company reports, and investment discussions.
- You might hear something along the lines of “He dropped a couple mil on a new car,” or perhaps “How many mils is that house?
- For the past 52 years, Harold Averkamp (CPA, MBA) hasworked as an accounting supervisor, manager, consultant, university instructor, and innovator in teaching accounting online.
- In the realm of journalism and media, where space is often limited, the abbreviation “M” is prevalent.
By following these guidelines, you can confidently navigate the world of “M” and “MM” and abbreviate millions like a pro. By effectively utilizing abbreviations like “M” and “MM,” you can convey numerical information quickly, concisely, and accurately. Therefore, always consult the relevant style guide to ensure compliance and consistent abbreviation usage.
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1 million pixels in a photo camera will be referred to as 1 Megapixel. At Old Republic Surety we seek to deliver transparency and clarity in our communications. If you see an abbreviation that is confusing or unclear, please reach out to your local underwriter or branch for clarification, even if you are just asking for a friend. If you would like to learn more about Old Republic Surety and some of our services normal balance like Commercial Surety Bonds, and Contract Bonds, or just want more information, don’t hesitate to contact us today. Billion is typically abbreviated as “B”, while million is abbreviated as “M”. It saves space and simplifies large numbers, making them easier to understand.
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If you think there’s any possibility of your use of MM being confusing or being misinterpreted, you’re safer writing out the numbers or using « millions. » The barred M was necessary because the Romans didn’t use zero, and they didn’t like using more than three identical letters in a row. If you can’t go above three M’s in a row, you can’t get mm meaning to 4,000, which would be MMMM. I have worked in equity markets for 20 years and poor abbreviations drive me crazy. Regretfully, until the USA goes metric there’s going to continue to be problem with this.
- You can also use the abbreviation “mil” in casual conversation.
- The word “million” is not a commonly abbreviated word, but its abbreviations still have their place.
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- This guide elucidates the conventions, helping professionals from diverse sectors master the art of using “M” and “MM” effectively.
- Although less common than “M,” “MM” is extensively used in certain industries, particularly in investment banking and specific regions such as Europe and parts of Asia.
The Definition of the Word

“M” is the official abbreviation used whenever a million units of something are requested. Rather than use the barred M, however, accounting went with MM as an abbreviation for a million. For example, 1MM equals 1 million, $34MM equals $34 million and so on. The barred M was necessary because the Romans didn’t use zero, and they didn’t like using more than three identical letters in a row.
Additionally, tech companies often use “M” to denote megabytes, a unit of digital storage capacity. One thing to consider is that when writing about large amounts of money, the words “million” or “billion” are often left out altogether, as are superfluous zeroes. It’s then up to the reader to note the context, with the document stating the place value once at the beginning and not again. Abbreviating one million dollars is done using the above abbreviations. Generally, the abbreviation with two M’s is preferred in finance.

The least ambiguous approach is to simply write them out in words, such as “$ thousands.” This is Corporate Finance Institute’s recommended method, to avoid any potential confusion. The use of two m’s to denote millions is becoming less common. Frequently, in finance and accounting, an analyst will use k to denote thousands and a capitalized M to denote millions. Roman numerals are often used in accounting to help abbreviate and designate numbers.