Ready to test your understanding of the order of operations? Working through practice problems is the most effective way to consolidate your skills and build speed.
Before starting, remember the core principles of PEMDAS: handle parentheses first, apply the left-to-right rule for equal-priority operations, and watch out for common traps.
Practice Problems
Try to solve the following 20 math problems on paper before checking your answers below:
- 8 + 4 × 3 = ?
- 20 − 12 ÷ 4 = ?
- 6 × 5 + 7 = ?
- 36 ÷ 6 + 9 = ?
- 15 − 3 × 4 = ?
- 24 ÷ 4 × 3 = ?
- 7 + 8 × 2 − 5 = ?
- 40 − 18 ÷ 3 + 2 = ?
- (6 + 4) × 3 = ?
- 5 × (7 − 3) = ?
- 20 + 3 × (8 − 2) = ?
- (18 ÷ 3) + 5 × 2 = ?
- 30 − 4 × (6 + 1) = ?
- (12 + 8) ÷ 4 = ?
- 9 + 6 ÷ 3 × 2 = ?
- 50 − 5 × 6 + 4 = ?
- (15 − 5) × (2 + 3) = ?
- 48 ÷ 6 + 7 × 2 = ?
- 100 − 20 ÷ 5 × 3 = ?
- 4 × (9 − 3) + 8 = ?
Answer Key
Check your results against the correct answers below:
- 20 (Multiply 4 × 3 first, then add 8)
- 17 (Divide 12 ÷ 4 first, then subtract from 20)
- 37 (Multiply 6 × 5 first, then add 7)
- 15 (Divide 36 ÷ 6 first, then add 9)
- 3 (Multiply 3 × 4 first, then subtract from 15)
- 18 (Evaluate left to right: 24 ÷ 4 = 6, then 6 × 3)
- 18 (Multiply 8 × 2 = 16, then 7 + 16 − 5)
- 36 (Divide 18 ÷ 3 = 6, then 40 − 6 + 2)
- 30 (Solve parentheses first: 6 + 4 = 10, then 10 × 3)
- 20 (Solve parentheses first: 7 − 3 = 4, then 5 × 4)
- 38 (Parentheses 8 − 2 = 6, then 3 × 6 = 18, then 20 + 18)
- 16 (Parentheses 18 ÷ 3 = 6, then 5 × 2 = 10, then 6 + 10)
- 2 (Parentheses 6 + 1 = 7, then 4 × 7 = 28, then 30 − 28)
- 5 (Parentheses 12 + 8 = 20, then 20 ÷ 4)
- 13 (Divide 6 ÷ 3 = 2, multiply 2 × 2 = 4, then 9 + 4)
- 24 (Multiply 5 × 6 = 30, then 50 − 30 + 4)
- 50 (Parentheses: 10 × 5 = 50)
- 22 (Divide 48 ÷ 6 = 8, multiply 7 × 2 = 14, then 8 + 14)
- 88 (Divide 20 ÷ 5 = 4, multiply 4 × 3 = 12, then 100 − 12)
- 32 (Parentheses 9 − 3 = 6, multiply 4 × 6 = 24, then 24 + 8)
How Did You Do?
When reviewing your answers, do not just check the final number. Look closely at the sequence of steps you took.
If you missed a problem, determine which rule caused the confusion:
- Did you skip a set of parentheses?
- Did you forget the left-to-right rule on multiplication/division?
- Did you evaluate unbracketed terms out of order? See our guide on solving expressions without parentheses for a quick refresher.
Want More Practice?
If you want to continue sharpening your skills with more structured exercises, check out our complete step-by-step worked examples or download our full practice set below.