VIII is the Roman numeral for 8 — 5 + 1 + 1 + 1.

How do you write 8 in Roman numerals?

Take the largest value that fits and repeat until nothing is left: V (5), then I (1), then I (1), then I (1). That gives VIII.

8 in Roman numerals

VIII

Number (1–3,999 for numerals)

Roman numeral

8 is written VIII in Roman numerals. That is 4 symbol groups added together, reading left to right from the largest value down.

How it breaks down

VIII = 5 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 8
Group	Value	Subtraction	Running total
V	5	—	5
I	1	—	6
I	1	—	7
I	1	—	8

No subtraction needed

VIII is purely additive — every symbol is simply added to the one before it, with no subtractive pairs like IV or IX. Numbers avoid subtraction when none of their digits is a 4 or a 9.

The symbols

Symbol	Value	Used here
I	1	yes — 3×
V	5	yes — 1×
X	10	no
L	50	no
C	100	no
D	500	no
M	1,000	no

The same number, other ways

In words: Eight
Roman numeral: VIII
Symbol count: 4 characters
Binary: 1000
Hexadecimal: 8

The numbers either side

Number	Roman numeral
6	VI
7	VII
8	VIII ←
9	IX
10	X

Common questions

What is 8 in Roman numerals?: 8 is VIII.
What does VIII mean?: VIII is the Roman numeral for 8 — 5 + 1 + 1 + 1.
How do you write 8 in Roman numerals?: Take the largest value that fits and repeat until nothing is left: V (5), then I (1), then I (1), then I (1). That gives VIII.

Sources

Calculated on this page — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked