diff --git a/src/material/legacy-table/table-data-source.spec.ts b/src/material/legacy-table/table-data-source.spec.ts
index 3ebe1af4cb46..eca05ba77a7c 100644
--- a/src/material/legacy-table/table-data-source.spec.ts
+++ b/src/material/legacy-table/table-data-source.spec.ts
@@ -53,6 +53,20 @@ describe('MatTableDataSource', () => {
       testSortWithValues([3, 'apples', 'bananas', 'cherries', 'lemons', 'strawberries']);
     });
 
+    it('should be able to correctly sort an array of strings and numbers with left zero', () => {
+      testSortWithValues([
+        3,
+        '001',
+        '2',
+        4,
+        'apples',
+        'bananas',
+        'cherries',
+        'lemons',
+        'strawberries',
+      ]);
+    });
+
     it('should unsubscribe from the re-render stream when disconnected', () => {
       const spy = spyOn(dataSource._renderChangesSubscription!, 'unsubscribe');
       dataSource.disconnect();
diff --git a/src/material/table/table-data-source.ts b/src/material/table/table-data-source.ts
index 318eaa83b76b..5fbf3e6fbefe 100644
--- a/src/material/table/table-data-source.ts
+++ b/src/material/table/table-data-source.ts
@@ -197,16 +197,17 @@ export class _MatTableDataSource<
 
       // If there are data in the column that can be converted to a number,
       // it must be ensured that the rest of the data
-      // is of the same type so as not to order incorrectly.
+      // is of the same type so as not to order incorrectly
+      // return default value to not lose leading zeros.
       const valueAType = typeof valueA;
       const valueBType = typeof valueB;
 
       if (valueAType !== valueBType) {
         if (valueAType === 'number') {
-          valueA += '';
+          valueA = (a as unknown as Record<string, any>)[active];
         }
         if (valueBType === 'number') {
-          valueB += '';
+          valueB = (b as unknown as Record<string, any>)[active];
         }
       }