How to use the Roman numeral tattoo generator
- Pick the date: a birthday, wedding, anniversary, a child’s birth date or a date in memory of someone.
- Choose the order: US month-day-year, UK/European day-month-year, year-first, year only, or a two-digit year.
- Choose a separator: middle dot, period, bullet, dash, bar, space, slash, none, or stacked lines for a vertical design.
- Compare fonts in the preview cards on light, medium or deep skin tones, and toggle letter spacing.
- Copy the numerals and read them back: the line under the result shows the date in digits so you can confirm it.
Already have a design? Paste it into Check a numeral to confirm it is valid and what number it represents.
The rules of Roman numerals
| Symbol | I | V | X | L | C | D | M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | 1 | 5 | 10 | 50 | 100 | 500 | 1000 |
- Add from largest to smallest: MDCLXVI = 1000 + 500 + 100 + 50 + 10 + 5 + 1 = 1666.
- Subtract with six pairs only: IV (4), IX (9), XL (40), XC (90), CD (400), CM (900). IC for 99 and IM for 999 are wrong; the correct forms are XCIX and CMXCIX.
- No more than three in a row: 4 is IV, not IIII, and 40 is XL, not XXXX.
- V, L and D never repeat: 10 is X, not VV.
- No zero, and standard notation stops at 3999.
Common years in Roman numerals
| Year | Numerals | Year | Numerals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | MCMLXV | 2007 | MMVII |
| 1970 | MCMLXX | 2009 | MMIX |
| 1975 | MCMLXXV | 2010 | MMX |
| 1980 | MCMLXXX | 2012 | MMXII |
| 1985 | MCMLXXXV | 2014 | MMXIV |
| 1988 | MCMLXXXVIII | 2015 | MMXV |
| 1990 | MCMXC | 2016 | MMXVI |
| 1992 | MCMXCII | 2018 | MMXVIII |
| 1994 | MCMXCIV | 2019 | MMXIX |
| 1995 | MCMXCV | 2020 | MMXX |
| 1996 | MCMXCVI | 2021 | MMXXI |
| 1997 | MCMXCVII | 2022 | MMXXII |
| 1998 | MCMXCVIII | 2023 | MMXXIII |
| 1999 | MCMXCIX | 2024 | MMXXIV |
| 2000 | MM | 2025 | MMXXV |
| 2001 | MMI | 2026 | MMXXVI |
| 2004 | MMIV | 2027 | MMXXVII |
Popular Roman numeral tattoo dates
| Date | US (MM·DD·YYYY) | UK/EU (DD·MM·YYYY) |
|---|---|---|
| July 4, 1776 | VII·IV·MDCCLXXVI | IV·VII·MDCCLXXVI |
| January 1, 2000 | I·I·MM | I·I·MM |
| February 14, 2020 | II·XIV·MMXX | XIV·II·MMXX |
| December 25, 1995 | XII·XXV·MCMXCV | XXV·XII·MCMXCV |
| August 28, 1988 | VIII·XXVIII·MCMLXXXVIII | XXVIII·VIII·MCMLXXXVIII |
| September 9, 2019 | IX·IX·MMXIX | IX·IX·MMXIX |
| June 21, 2024 | VI·XXI·MMXXIV | XXI·VI·MMXXIV |
Months 1 to 12 are I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI and XII. Days reach XXXI (31). The longest day number is XXVIII (28); the longest month is VIII (August). The longest year of the 1900s is MCMLXXXVIII (1988), and the longest before 2050 is MMXXXVIII (2038).
Before you get inked: a checklist
- Confirm the order. Decide on month-first or day-first and tell your artist, because both look equally valid in numerals.
- Read it back. Convert each group back to digits (the checker does this) and compare with a document such as a birth certificate.
- Count the characters. Long dates like VIII·XXVIII·MCMLXXXVIII need space. Wrists and collarbones suit year-only or stacked designs.
- Mind thin lines. Very fine lettering and tight spacing can blur over time; I and l shapes may merge. Ask your artist about minimum sizes.
- Separators matter. Dots and bullets are easy to read; with no separator, VIIXIV could be read several ways.
- Get the stencil checked. Have your artist and a second person review the stencil, not just a screenshot.
The previews use fonts installed on your device (Trajan-style, serif, thin, bold, typewriter, blackletter and more), so they are a guide to proportions rather than final artwork. Your tattoo artist will draw the lettering to suit placement and size. For lettering in Old English style, try the Old English font generator.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write a date in Roman numerals for a tattoo?
Convert the month, day and year separately and join them with a separator. July 14, 2019 in US order is VII·XIV·MMXIX. Pick your date above, choose US (month first) or UK/European (day first) order and a separator, and copy the result.
Should I use MM.DD.YYYY or DD.MM.YYYY?
Use the order people around you read dates in, because a Roman numeral date is ambiguous otherwise: VII·XII could be 7 December or 12 July. Americans usually choose month first; most of the UK, Europe, Latin America, India and Australia use day first. Many people write the year only to avoid the issue.
How do you write 2000s years in Roman numerals?
2000 is MM, and you add the rest: 2001 is MMI, 2010 is MMX, 2019 is MMXIX, 2024 is MMXXIV and 2026 is MMXXVI. 1990s years start with MCM: 1990 is MCMXC and 1999 is MCMXCIX, not MIM.
Is IIII correct for 4?
Not in standard notation. 4 is IV and 9 is IX. IIII appears on many clock faces for visual balance, but on a tattoo it will look like a mistake to most readers. The Check a numeral tab flags IIII, VV, IC and other non-standard forms.
How do I write zero or the year 0 in Roman numerals?
You cannot. Roman numerals have no zero, so dates are written without leading zeros: 07 becomes VII. Two-digit years like 00, as in 2000 shortened to 00, cannot be written, so use the full year MM.
What is the largest number I can write?
3,999, written MMMCMXCIX, in standard notation. Larger numbers use a bar over a numeral to multiply it by 1,000, which rarely matters for dates.
Can I trust the generator for my tattoo?
The conversion follows standard rules and is checked against all numbers from 1 to 3999, but always read the date back in digits, confirm the order with someone else, and have your artist check the stencil before inking. A missing I changes the date.