Not every country labels the highest numbers in the same way. Depending on the country, they use either the short scale or the long scale. The short scale is taught in American school systems, thus it is thought to be used exclusively in the United States. Other countries, including most of continental Europe, use the long scale. And several countries, including China, have large number naming systems that are even different than the long and short scales.

For example, in the American system, denominations above 1,000 million (or the American billion) are 1,000 times the preceding one (for example, one trillion is 1,000 billion; one quadrillion is 1,000 trillion). In the British system, the first denomination above 1,000 milliards (the British billion) is 1,000,000 times the preceding one (for example, one trillion is 1,000,000 billion; one quadrillion is 1,000,000 trillion). The American system is based on the French system, which the French ironically no longer follow. Their larger number names now correspond to the British system, as do those of many other countries in Europe.