Digits only or letters too: the plate-total convention
The same plate can have two different totals, depending on whether you add only its digits or also convert its letters to numbers. Both are in use. Neither is the one true method, so the useful thing is to know which one you are using, and to use it for every plate you compare.
This site's default is digits only, and it shows the working so you can follow either route.
Digits only
This is the common convention for registration plates. You ignore the letters and add the digits.
Plate MH12AB1222. The digits are 1, 2, 1, 2, 2, 2.
1 + 2 + 1 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 10, then 1 + 0 = 1. The total is 1.
The reasons for this default are practical. Letters on a plate are the RTO's series code, not a choice the buyer made. The number you pay a premium for is the digits. And it is quick to do by hand while standing at a counter.
Letters too
Some practitioners convert each letter to a number and add those to the digits. There are two common letter tables.
Pythagorean counts the alphabet in order, wrapping after 9: A, J, S are 1; B, K, T are 2; C, L, U are 3; D, M, V are 4; E, N, W are 5; F, O, X are 6; G, P, Y are 7; H, Q, Z are 8; I, R are 9.
Chaldean is the older table used widely in Indian numerology. It does not use 9 for any letter and groups sounds rather than alphabet order, so letters such as F, O and P take different values.
On MH12AB1222 with the Pythagorean table: M is 4, H is 8, A is 1, B is 2. The letters give 4 + 8 + 1 + 2 = 15. Add the digit sum of 10 and you get 25, then 2 + 5 = 7. The total is 7, not 1.
So the same plate is a 1 on digits only and a 7 with letters. For a mulank 1 owner, that is the difference between a friend (total 1) and a neutral (total 7). For a mulank 8 owner, it is the difference between a clash (total 1) and a friend (total 7).
Where the two give the same answer
They agree only by chance, about one time in nine. A plate whose letters add to a multiple of 9 under your chosen table does not shift the total. Otherwise the answer moves, sometimes by a lot.
That is why mixing conventions is the main mistake. Scoring one plate on digits and another with letters tells you nothing, because the totals are on different scales.
Which should you use
A short rule of thumb:
- Booking a fancy number: digits only. You are choosing digits, and the letters are not yours to choose.
- Checking a plate you already have: digits only first. If you like, add the letters as a second reading.
- Following a specific numerologist: use theirs, and ask which letter table they use. Chaldean and Pythagorean disagree.
If you are unsure, stay with digits only. It is the simplest, the most widely used for plates, and the one that the mulank pages and plate total pages on this site use for their example plates.
What the toggle does
The calculator has a letters toggle. With it off, you get the digits-only total. With it on, the letters are converted using the stated table, and the working shows each letter, its value and the combined sum. You see both totals and which one scored against your mulank, so nothing is hidden.
Other things that change the total
- Spaces and dashes do not count. MH 12 AB 1222 and MH12AB1222 are the same.
- The state code digits count. A plate like DL3CAB1259 starts with 3 as a district digit; include it. Leave out the digits you cannot see on the plate.
- A zero adds nothing. It does not change the total but it is still a digit on the plate.
- Old and new formats do not matter. The method is the same for any number of digits.
Putting it together
- Choose a convention: digits only unless you have a reason not to.
- Add up every plate you are comparing the same way.
- Reduce to one digit from 1 to 9.
- Compare to your mulank using the friendship table.
For the full method, read how to choose a car number as per numerology. When you are ready to reserve a number, see how to book a fancy number online on Parivahan.