Fewer vs. Less: Which Is Correct?

If you spotted four grammatical mistakes in one document and three in another, are there less errors or fewer?

“Fewer” and “less” have been tripping up writers and editors alike since their introduction. But these two adjectives aren’t as indistinguishable as they might first seem.

Read on to discover the difference between “fewer” and “less”, and how to tell which is correct.

What Is the Difference Between Fewer and Less?

“Fewer” and “less” are both quantifiers used to describe amounts. Specifically, they describe an amount that is comparatively lower than something else – in other words, the opposite of “more”.

But this doesn’t mean that “less” and “fewer” are interchangeable. Each word should only be used in specific contexts, depending on the noun it describes.

Read on to find out when it is correct to use “fewer” and when to use “less” instead.

When to Use “Fewer”

“Fewer” should be used when describing countable nouns. As the name suggests, these are nouns that can be physically counted.

One dog, two dogs, three dogs…✔

Generally speaking, countable nouns have both a singular and a plural form:

Dog ➜ Dogs

Child ➜ Children

Book ➜ Books

So if the noun being described has a plural form, you would usually need to use the adjective “fewer”:

I wish the park had fewer dogs.

Fewer children are attending school.

If you hate reading so much, why don’t you buy fewer books?

It can help to think of “fewer” as meaning “not as many.” If you can replace “fewer” with “not as many” without making the sentence sound awkward or unnatural, then “fewer” is the correct word to use.

There are fewer visitors today.

There are not as many visitors today.

Today, they got through fewer questions.

Today, they didn’t get through as many questions.

When to Use “Less”

“Less,” on the other hand, is most often used with uncountable nouns (or mass nouns). These are nouns that cannot be split into discrete components and are instead treated as a single unit.

One food, two food, three food…✘

Uncountable nouns are always singular and do not have plural forms, so if the noun used is singular, the adjective to describe it should be “less.”

He has less food in his pantry.

We have less rice than yesterday.

Despite his obvious advantage, the lion had less courage than the mouse.

While “fewer” means the same thing as “not as many,” “less” can be substituted with “not as much.”

There’s less homework to do next week.

There’s not as much homework to do next week.

Although uncountable nouns cannot typically be counted, e.g., oil, wine, tea, etc., some do become countable if “of” is introduced. In these cases, “less” would no longer be the correct adjective, and “fewer” should be used instead.

The refinery produced one million less barrels of oil today compared to yesterday. ✘

The refinery produced one million fewer barrels of oil today compared to yesterday. ✔

Exceptions to the Rule

Of course, not everything falls so easily into the typical “less” and “fewer” rule. We explain some common exceptions below.

Time and Money

Things can get confusing when it comes to time and money.

The words themselves are uncountable nouns, meaning we would use “less” when describing them.

I always have less money than I think I do.

She would like to spend less time getting ready.

However, both concepts can be split into smaller, specific units:

• Dollars, cents, pounds, euros, etc.
• Seconds, minutes, hours, days, etc.

Even though units of time and money are individual, countable nouns, we still use the adjective “less” for them.

He spent less than two dollars.

Yesterday, toilet paper cost 50 cents less.

It must have happened less than two years ago.

However, in limited circumstances, “fewer” can be used depending on how general or specific the reference to time is.

UK Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned after fewer than seven weeks in office.

Weight and Measurements

Weights and measurements can also be split into countable nouns:

• Grams, pounds, ounces, etc.
• Miles, kilometers, centimeters, inches, etc.

But we only use “less”, not “fewer,” when describing them.

After stirring, add no less than 200g of flour. ✔

After stirring, add no fewer than 200g of flour. ✘

In less than 30 yards, turn right. ✔

In fewer than 30 yards, turn right. ✘

Percentages

While a percentage itself is a single quantity, and thus an uncountable noun, this doesn’t automatically mean that “less” is the correct adjective to use.

Instead, you’ll need to pay attention to what the percentage is referring to.

Fewer than 50% of all cats in the US are pets.

In that example, the percentage refers to the countable noun “cats,” so the adjective “fewer” is correct.

Stressed cows produce 30–50% less milk.

In that example, “less” is appropriate because the percentage refers to the uncountable mass noun, “milk.”

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