Solve problems involving costs, coins, change, and totals.
Free, timed SHSAT practice sets on money & cost problems— every question includes a full worked explanation, and there's no account required.
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Money problems use adding, multiplying and subtracting. Be careful at each step.
Coins: work in cents so the decimal point cannot trip you up. A quarter is 25, a dime is 10, a nickel is 5 and a penny is 1. Multiply each count by its value, add, then change back to dollars. Example: 4 quarters, 3 dimes and 2 nickels \(= 100 + 30 + 10 = 140\) cents, which is 1.40 dollars.
Change: add up everything you buy first, then subtract the total from the amount you pay with. Example: items cost 12.75 and 4.50 dollars, paid with a 20-dollar bill: \(20 - 17.25 = 2.75\) dollars in change.
Traps:
Total \(= 25(9) + 10(3) + 5(6) = 285\) cents \(= \$2.85\). (Counting the nickels as pennies gives $2.61. Leaving out the nickels gives $2.55. Swapping the quarter and nickel counts gives $2.25.)
Total spent \(= \$26.50 + \$11.25 = \$37.75\). Change \(= \$50 - \$37.75 = \$12.25\). (Not borrowing for the cents (\(50 - 37 = 13\) dollars, then keeping the 75 cents) gives $13.75. Forgetting the second item gives $23.50. Forgetting the first item gives $38.75.)