Arithmetic Operations

Addition Tricks

• Rounding-Up Compensation: To add numbers quickly, round them to the nearest tens and adjust the excess or
deficit. For example, to add 48 + 77:

1. Round 48 to 50 and 77 to 80, then add: 50 + 80 = 130.

2. Adjust by subtracting the extra amounts added: we added 2 (to get 50) and 3 (to get 80), total 5.

3. Subtract the excess: 130 – 5 = 125.

Example 2: Add 646 + 237 – Round to 650 + 240 = 890. The extra added is 4 (to 646) plus 3 (to 237) = 7.
Subtract 7: 890 – 7 = 883.

• Breakdown Method (Left-to-Right Addition): Break one addend into place values to simplify addition. Example
1: 68 + 43 – Add tens: 60 + 40 = 100, add ones: 8 + 3 = 11, then sum results: 100 + 11 = 111. Example 2: 456 + 378
– Add hundreds: 400 + 300 = 700; tens: 50 + 70 = 120; ones: 6 + 8 = 14. Now add 700 + 120 + 14 = 834. This
method reduces mental load by handling one place value at a time.

Subtraction Tricks

• Round and Adjust (Compensation Method): When subtracting, add a small amount to make the subtraction
easier, then adjust back.
Example 1: 1900 – 1847 – Add 3 to 1847 to make it 1850, then do 1900 – 1850 = 50. Subtract the 3 (added earlier)
from 50 to get 47.
Example 2: 435 – 178 – Increase 178 by 2 to 180, then 435 – 180 = 255. Now subtract the 2: 255 – 2 = 253. This
trick avoids difficult borrowing by turning the subtrahend into a round number.

• Subtracting from Base Numbers (All from 9 and Last from 10): For subtractions like 1000 – N, subtract each
digit of N from 9 and the last digit from 10.
Example 1: 1000 – 773 – Compute 9−7 = 2, 9−7 = 2, and 10−3 = 7. The result is 227.
Example 2: 10,000 – 3625 – Do 9−3 = 6, 9−6 = 3, 9−2 = 7, and 10−5 = 5, yielding 6375. This Vedic technique
instantly gives the answer without conventional borrowing.

Multiplication Tricks

• Multiply by 5 (Half then ×10): To multiply any number by 5, simply take half of it and then append a zero
(multiply by 10).
Example 1: 64 × 5 – Half of 64 is 32, then ×10 gives 320.
Example 2: 142 × 5 – Half of 142 is 71, then ×10 gives 710. (For odd numbers, you can halve after multiplying by
10: e.g. 35 × 5 = 350 ÷ 2 = 175.)

• Multiply by 9 or 99 (Use 10ⁿ − 1): Multiplying by 9 is the same as multiplying by 10 and subtracting the number
once.
Example 1: 7 × 9 – Compute 7×10 – 7 = 70 – 7 = 63.
Example 2: 45 × 99 – Treat 99 as 100 – 1: do 45×100 – 45 = 4500 – 45 = 4455. This uses the fact that 9 = 10–1 and
99 = 100–1 to simplify the calculation.

• Multiply by 11 (Eleven’s Trick): To multiply a two-digit number by 11, write the sum of its digits in between the
digits.
Example 1: 54 × 11 – Add 5+4 = 9 and place it between 5 and 4 to get 594. (Since no carry is needed, 54×11 =
594.)
Example 2: 47 × 11 – Add 4+7 = 11; put the 1 (ones place) between the digits and carry the 1 (tens place) to the
first digit: 4+1 | 1 | 7, giving 517. This matches the standard result (47×11=517). For larger numbers, add adjacent
digit pairs (carrying as needed) in a similar way.

Division Tricks

• Divide by 5: To divide by 5 quickly, multiply the number by 2 and then place a decimal point one position from
the right (essentially dividing by 10).
Example 1: 3456 ÷ 5 – Double 3456 to get 6912, then divide by 10 (move decimal one place left): 691.2, so
 3456/5 = 691.2.
Example 2: 237 ÷ 5 – Double 237 → 474, then 474 ÷ 10 = 47.4.

• Divide by 25: Dividing by 25 is equivalent to multiplying by 4 and then dividing by 100 (since 25 = 100/4).
Example 1: 144 ÷ 25 – Multiply 144 by 4 = 576, then divide by 100: 5.76.
Example 2: 80 ÷ 25 – 80 × 4 = 320; now 320/100 = 3.2. This works because 1/25 = 4/100 = 0.04, so you are
effectively finding 4% of the number.

Algebra Simplifications

• Using Difference of Squares: Recognize expressions of the form a² – b² or products near a midpoint to simplify
calculations. The identity a² – b² = (a–b)(a+b) can speed up multiplication of numbers that are equally spaced
around a convenient base.
Example 1: 997 × 1003 – These numbers are 1000−3 and 1000+3. Use the identity: result = 1000² – 3² = 1,000,000
– 9 = 999,991 (in one step, no long multiplication).
Example 2: 53 × 47 – Here 53 = 50+3 and 47 = 50–3, centered around 50. Their product = 50² – 3² = 2500 – 9 =
2491. This trick leverages symmetry to avoid the full multiplication.

• Quick Simplification with Factorization: Many algebraic expressions can be simplified using factoring or
standard identities. For instance, to simplify a fraction like a2−b2a−b\frac{a^2 - b^2}{a - b}, note that
a2−b2=(a−b)(a+b)a^2 - b^2 = (a-b)(a+b).
Example 1: (1052−952)/(105−95)(105^2 - 95^2) / (105 - 95) – Apply the identity in numerator:
(105−95)∗(105+95)(105-95)*(105+95) divided by (105-95) cancels out, leaving 200 as the result (since 105+95 =
200). No tedious squaring needed.
Example 2: 9972−9962997^2 - 996^2 – Recognize this as (997−996)∗(997+996)=1∗1993=∗∗1993∗∗(997-
996)*(997+996) = 1 * 1993 = **1993**. This approach turns what seems like a heavy calculation into a quick
mental step.

Percentage Calculations

• Fraction Equivalents for Common Percentages: Convert percentages to convenient fractions to simplify
calculations.
Example 1: 25% of 360 – 25% is 1/4, so just take one-quarter of 360. 360 ÷ 4 = 90.
Example 2: 12.5% of 96 – 12.5% is 1/8, so find one-eighth of 96. 96 ÷ 8 = 12.
Using fraction equivalents (e.g., 50% = 1/2, 20% = 1/5, 33⅓% = 1/3, 75% = 3/4, etc.) makes percentage
calculations faster and reduces errors.

• Using 10% as a Base & Percent Decomposition: Break complex percentages into sums of 10% and 5% (and so
on).
Example 1: 15% of 220 – 10% of 220 is 22, and 5% is half of that (11). Add them: 22 + 11 = 33.
Example 2: 18% of 50 – Note that 18% of 50 = 50% of 18 (because x% of y = y% of x). 50% of 18 is 9, so 18% of 50
= 9. This property can simplify calculations when one pairing is easier than the other.

• Successive Percentage Changes: When a value is increased or decreased by successive percentages, use the
formula for net change: a% then b%=a+b+ab100a\% \text{ then } b\% = a + b + \frac{ab}{100}%.
Example 1: An item’s price rises 20% then 10%. Net increase = 20 + 10 + (2010)/100 = 32% increase overall.
Example 2: A salary is first increased by 15%, then cut by 15%. Net change = 15 + (−15) + (15–15)/100 = 0 – 2.25 =
−2.25% (a 2.25% overall decrease). This shortcut is faster than applying each change step-by-step.

Profit and Loss Calculations

• Direct Profit/Loss Calculations: Convert profit or loss percentages into multiplication factors for quick results.
Remember:
– Selling Price (SP) = Cost Price (CP) × (1 + Profit%/100)
– SP = CP × (1 – Loss%/100).
Example 1: CP = 250, Profit = 20%. SP = 250 × 1.20 = 300. (20% of 250 is 50; add to get 300.)
Example 2: CP = 400, Loss = 25%. SP = 400 × 0.75 = 300. (25% of 400 is 100; subtract to get 300.)
This way, you compute the result in one step by using the percentage as a factor.
 • Finding Cost or Profit Reverse Calculation: To find CP or SP given the other, use inverse factors.
Example 1: SP = 660, and a loss of 40%. Here 60% of CP = 660 (because 100%–40% = 60% remains as SP). Thus,
CP = 660 ÷ 0.60 = 1100.
Example 2: SP = 880, Profit = 10%. Here SP is 110% of CP. So CP = 880 ÷ 1.10 = 800. (Alternatively, 10% of CP =
80, so CP = 800, and indeed 10% of 800 added gives 880.)
Using the ratio 100100±p\frac{100}{100 \pm p} (where p is profit or loss percent) as a multiplier finds the
unknown directly.

• Quick Profit/Loss Insights: If successive changes involve profit/loss or discount, you can reuse the percentage-
change shortcut. For instance, a 20% profit followed by a 20% discount is not no change – it results in a 4% loss
overall (using the formula above). Mental math with these formulas can save time on exam questions.

Time and Work

• LCM Method for Combined Work: When multiple entities work together, treat the total work as a unit (often
using the LCM of individual times). This converts work rates into easy integers.
Example 1: A can do a job in 5 days, B in 8 days. LCM(5,8)=40 units (take total work = 40 units). A’s rate = 40/5 = 8
units/day, B’s = 40/8 = 5 units/day. Together they work at 8+5 = 13 units/day, so they finish in 40/13 days ≈ 3.08
days.
Example 2: Three workers Ajit, Sumit, Ramesh take 10, 8, and 20 days respectively for a task. Total work = 40
units (LCM of 10,8,20). Their rates: 4, 5, and 2 units/day. Combined rate = 11 units/day, so together they finish in
40/11 = 3.64 days. Using LCM to assign a “total work” value makes calculations with multiple people
straightforward.

• “One-Day Work” Trick: Alternatively, compute each person’s one-day work and add them.
Example: If A does 1/5 of the job per day and B does 1/8 per day, together they do 1/5+1/8=13/401/5 + 1/8 =
13/40 of the job in one day, which agrees with 13 units/day above. The combined time = reciprocal = 40/13 days.
For problems asking “who did how much of the work,” these one-day work fractions can be converted to
percentages easily (e.g., A did 8/13 of the work ≈ 61.5%). This method is essentially the same as the LCM
method but expressed in fractional form.

Speed, Time, and Distance

• Unit Conversion (km/h ↔ m/s): Convert speeds between kilometers/hour and meters/second using the factor
5/18.
Example 1: 90 km/h in m/s – Multiply by 5/18: 90×518=5×5=∗∗25m/s∗∗90 \times \frac{5}{18} = 5 \times 5 = **25
m/s**.
Example 2: 15 m/s in km/h – Multiply by 18/5: 15×185=3×18=∗∗54km/h∗∗15 \times \frac{18}{5} = 3 \times 18 =
**54 km/h**.
Remember: ×(5/18) to go from km/h to m/s, ×(18/5) to go from m/s to km/h. This conversion is handy for many
problems.

• Average Speed for Equal Distances: When a journey covers the same distance at two different speeds, the
average speed is the harmonic mean: Avg=2aba+b \text{Avg} = \frac{2ab}{a+b} (which is a quick formula).
Example 1: Driving to a location at 60 km/h and returning at 40 km/h (equal distance each way), average speed =
2×60×4060+40=4800100=∗∗48km/h∗∗\frac{2 \times 60 \times 40}{60 + 40} = \frac{4800}{100} = **48 km/h**.
Example 2: If a cyclist goes outward at 30 km/h and comes back at 45 km/h for the same route, average speed =
2×30×4530+45=270075=∗∗36km/h∗∗\frac{2 \times 30 \times 45}{30 + 45} = \frac{2700}{75} = **36 km/h**. This
shortcut bypasses computing total distance and time stepwise.

• Relative Speed (Closing or Gap Speed): In scenarios with moving objects, add speeds if moving toward each
other, subtract if moving in the same direction.
Example 1: Two trains moving in opposite directions at 50 km/h and 70 km/h have a relative speed of 120 km/h
(so they cover 120 km of distance between them each hour).
Example 2: If a car B is 30 km ahead of car A and A is chasing B, with A going 20 m/s and B 15 m/s, convert to a
common unit (20–15 = 5 m/s closing speed). The gap (30000 m) will close in 30000/5 = 6000 seconds (i.e. 1 hour
40 min). Using relative speed simplifies moving-object problems by reducing them to a single effective speed.

Squares and Square Roots

 • Squaring Numbers Ending in 5: There’s a quick pattern for numbers ending in 5. The result always ends in 25,
and the preceding part is the first digits multiplied by one greater.
Example 1: 35² – Take the tens digit 3, multiply by (3+1)=4 → 3×4 = 12. Attach 25 → 1225.
Example 2: 105² – Take 10, multiply by 11 → 10×11 = 110; attach 25 → 11025.
Even for larger numbers: 65² = 6×7 & 25 = 4225. This Vedic trick is fast and reliable for any number ending in 5.

• Squaring Numbers Near 100 (Base Method): Use the formula (100±x)2=10000±200x+x2(100 \pm x)² = 10000
\pm 200x + x^2 to square numbers close to 100 mentally.
Example 1: 97² – Here x = –3 (since 97 = 100–3). Compute 10000 + 2*(100)(–3) + (–3)² = 10000 – 600 + 9 = 9409.
(Or simply: 97 is 3 less than 100, so subtract 300 and add 9.)
Example 2: 104² – Here x = +4. Compute 10000 + 2100*4 + 4² = 10000 + 800 + 16 = 10816.
This method generalizes: e.g. for near 50, use 50² = 2500 as base (47 = 50−3 → 2500 – 300 + 9 = 2209, confirming
47² = 2209). Adjust the base formula depending on which round number is convenient.

• Two-Digit Squaring Trick: Another quick method for squaring two-digit numbers is using a mix of multiplication
and addition.
Example: 47² – Add the number and its units digit: 47 + 7 = 54. Multiply this by the tens digit: 54 × 4 = 216. Then
append the square of the units digit: 7² = 49. Combine 216 (treated as 2160) and 49 to get 2209.
Example: 86² – 86 + 6 = 92; 92 × 8 = 736; 6² = 36. Combine 7360 + 36 = 7396. This works because it’s effectively
doing (10a+b)2=10a(10a+b)+b2(10a + b)² = 10a(10a+b) + b². Practice helps in doing these steps mentally.

• Finding Square Roots (Perfect Squares): To mentally find the square root of a perfect square, use the place-
value method:

1. Unit’s digit: Look at the last digit of the number to figure out the possible unit digits of the root. For
instance, if a number ends in 9, the root’s unit digit is either 3 or 7 (since 32=93^2=9 and 72=497^2=49
end in 9). If it ends in 6, the root ends in 4 or 6, etc.

2. Ten’s digit: Find the nearest lower perfect square to the first part of the number (omit the last two digits
for a number up to 5 digits, or last three digits for larger). This gives the ten’s (or higher place) digit of the
root.

3. Choose the correct unit digit: Multiply the tentative ten’s digit by the next higher integer and compare
with the first part. If the product is less than the truncated part of the number, choose the larger of the
two possible unit digits; if it’s more, choose the smaller.
Example 1: √4489 – Last digit 9 ⇒ unit digit 3 or 7. The first two digits 44 lie between 36 (6²) and 49 (7²), so
ten’s digit is 6. Test 6×7=42, which is less than 44, so pick the larger option for units. Thus √4489 = 67.
Example 2: √2116 – Last digit 6 ⇒ unit 4 or 6. First two digits 21 are between 16 (4²) and 25 (5²), so ten’s
digit 4. Test 4×5=20, compare to 21 – since 20 is just below 21, choose the larger unit digit (6). √2116 =
46. This method allows you to find square roots of perfect squares like 3249 = 57 or 9801 = 99 quickly in
your head.

Cubes and Cube Roots

• Quickly Cubing Two-Digit Numbers: Use the binomial expansion (a+b)3=a3+3a2b+3ab2+b3(a + b)^3 = a^3 +
3a^2b + 3ab^2 + b^3 to break the calculation into manageable chunks.
Example 1: 12³ – Treat as (10 + 2)³. Calculate: 10³ = 1000; 3*(10²2) = 31002 = 600; 3(102²) = 3104 = 120; 2³ = 8.
Sum: 1000 + 600 + 120 + 8 = 1728.
Example 2: 18³ – (10 + 8)³: 10³ = 1000; 31008 = 2400; 310*64 = 1920; 8³ = 512. Sum: 1000 + 2400 + 1920 + 512 =
5832. Breaking it down like this is faster than doing 18×18×18 sequentially. With practice, you can cube numbers
mentally by computing each term and adding. (Note: Knowing common cubes 1³–10³ by memory also helps
speed up cube calculations.)

• Cube Numbers Ending in 0 or 5: These have simple patterns. If a number ends in 0, cube the non-zero part and
append three zeros. For example, 20³ = 8 (since 2³=8) with three zeros = 8000. If it ends in 5, the cube will end in
125 (since 5³=125). Example: 15³ – quince (15) cubed is 15×15×1515×15×15. You can compute 15² = 225, then
225×15. Doing 225×10 + 225×5 = 2250 + 1125 gives 3375. (This is a specific case; general binomial expansion
works too.)
 • Finding Cube Roots (Perfect Cubes): There is a neat mental trick to find the cube root of a perfect cube,
especially for up to 6-digit numbers. It relies on knowing the cubes of 1–9 and their last digits:

o Memorize last digits: 1³ ends in 1, 2³ ends in 8, 3³ ends in 7, 4³ ends in 4, 5³ ends in 5, 6³ ends in 6, 7³

ends in 3, 8³ ends in 2, 9³ ends in 9, 10³ ends in 0. This mapping (e.g., 8 ↦ 2 and 2 ↦ 8, 7 ↦ 3 and 3 ↦ 7)
tells you the unit digit of the cube root from the last digit of the number.

o Determine the leading digit(s): Omit the last three digits of the cube (since 103=100010^3 = 1000), and
look at the remaining leading part. Find the largest cube smaller than that part – its cube root gives the
starting digit(s) of the answer.
Example 1: ∛9261 – Last digit is 1, so the cube root ends in 1 (only 1³ ends in 1). Remove last three digits:
leading part = 9. The largest cube ≤9 is 8 (2³), so the tens digit is 2. Thus ∛9261 = 21.
Example 2: ∛32768 – Last digit 8, so root ends in 2 (since 2³=8). Leading part = 32. Largest cube ≤32 is 27
(3³), so tens digit = 3. Hence ∛32768 = 32. (Check: 32×32×32 = 32768.)
With practice, you can crack any perfect cube under 1,000,000 using this method. Just remember the
last-digit patterns and the cubes of 1–9.

Common Vedic Math Techniques

• “All from 9 and Last from 10” (Base Complement Subtraction): A classic Vedic sutra for quick subtraction
from base numbers like 10, 100, 1000, etc. Subtract every digit from 9 and the last digit from 10. This is
essentially the technique we discussed in subtraction tricks.
Example 1: 1000 – 357 – Compute: 9−3=6, 9−5=4, 10−7=3, giving 643 (since 357 + 643 = 1000).
Example 2: 10000 – 6789 – Do: 9−6=3, 9−7=2, 9−8=1, 10−9=1, result 3211. You can perform these in one line
mentally. This method is fast because it avoids borrowing – particularly useful when subtracting large numbers
from round figures.

• Vertically and Crosswise Multiplication: This Vedic method (Urdhva Tiryak Sutra) allows single-line
multiplication of numbers by using cross-multiplication of digits. For two-digit numbers AB × CD:

o Units place = B×D.

o Tens place = A×D + B×C (cross-multiply and add).

o Hundreds place = A×C (and include any carry from tens).

Example 1: 43 × 12 – Units: 3×2 = 6. Tens: 4×2 + 3×1 = 8 + 3 = 11 (write 1, carry 1). Hundreds: 4×1 + carry1
= 4 + 1 = 5. Result = 516.
Example 2: 312 × 204 – (This can be done similarly in a larger crisscross, treating each place). While a bit
complex to do mentally for 3-digit numbers, the principle scales up: calculate crosswise products for
ones, tens, hundreds, etc., adding carries as you go. The two-digit case is easy and often used in speed
math. With practice, you can multiply even larger numbers using this technique much faster than the
standard algorithm.

• Nikhilam Multiplication Sutra (Multiply near a Base): This Vedic trick multiplies numbers close to a power of
10 by using their deviations from the base.

o Choose a base (10, 100, 1000, etc.) near the numbers.

o Find the deviations: how much each number is above or below the base.

o The product has two parts: cross-addition for the base part and product of deviations for the
remainder.
Example 1: 97 × 94 (base 100). 97 is –3 off 100, and 94 is –6 off 100. Cross-add: 97 + (–6) = 91 (or 94 + (–3)
= 91) – this is the first part. Multiply deviations: (–3)×(–6) = 18 for the second part. Combine: 9118 is the
answer (since 97*94 = 9118).
Example 2: 102 × 108 (base 100). Deviations: +2 and +8. Cross-add: 102 + 8 = 110. Multiply deviations:
2×8 = 16. Attach: 11016. (If the product of deviations exceeds the base, carry over to the first part
appropriately.) This method essentially leverages the identity (B+x)(B+y)=B∗(x+y)+xy+B2(B+x)(B+y) =
B*(x+y) + xy + B^2, but it’s done mentally. It’s very effective for numbers near 100, 1000, etc.
• Digit Sums and Casting Out 9’s (Check method): While not exactly a trick for computing answers faster, this
Vedic method is useful to verify calculations. The idea is that you can reduce numbers by “casting out 9s”
(replacing them by their digital sum modulo 9) to check arithmetic.
Example: To verify 516 from 43×12, check digit sum: 43 → 4+3=7; 12 → 1+2=3; their product’s digit sum should
equal the digit sum of 516. Indeed, 7×3 = 21, sum digits → 2+1 = 3; and 516 → 5+1+6 = 12 → 1+2 = 3. Both give 3, so
the answer is likely correct.
This doesn’t directly answer a question, but it’s a quick way to catch errors in mental math.