GED math practice test: a free timed drill, then everything the test asks
GED Mathematical Reasoning gives you 115 minutes for about 46 questions, roughly 2.5 minutes each, with an on-screen TI-30XS calculator and a formula sheet for all but the first few. About 55% of it is algebra and 45% is quantitative problem solving. You need 145 on a 100 to 200 scale to pass. Start with the free 12-question drill below.
- 115 min
- on the real clock
- ~46
- questions
- 2.5 min
- a question, evenly paced
- 145
- to pass (of 100 to 200)
Last checked · Facts from GED Testing Service's own pages
Free GED math drill: 12 original GED-style questions in 30:00. Your score, your time per question and the question that cost you most, explained. No sign-up.
Free GED Math drill · real section pace
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30 min
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By the LifeScore Editorial Team · Updated · How we check facts · How this is scored
What is on the GED Mathematical Reasoning test?
About 46 questions in 115 minutes, in two parts: a short first part with no calculator, then the rest with the on-screen TI-30XS. A formula sheet is on screen throughout the second part.
| Questions | about 46Published by the ownerGED Testing Service, "Test subjects" |
|---|---|
| Time | 115 minutesPublished by the ownerGED Testing Service, "Test subjects" |
| Quantitative problem solving (numbers, geometry, data) | about 45%Published by the ownerGED Testing Service, "Test subjects" |
| Algebraic problem solving (expressions, equations, functions) | about 55%Published by the ownerGED Testing Service, "Test subjects" |
| Tools | On-screen TI-30XS for all but the first few questions; formula sheet providedPublished by the ownerGED Testing Service, "TI-30XS calculator reference guide" (PDF) |
| To pass | 145 on a 100 to 200 scale, on this subject by itselfPublished by the ownerGED Testing Service, "How is the GED test scored?" |
| Even pace | About 150 seconds a questionLifeScore |
What does each part of GED math ask?
Two content areas: quantitative problem solving (about 45%: percents, ratios, area, volume, mean and probability) and algebraic problem solving (about 55%: expressions, equations, inequalities, graphs and functions).
GED Testing Service sorts the math test into these two families and weights them roughly 45 to 55. In practice nearly every question is a word problem: a short real-world setting, then one or two steps of arithmetic or algebra. The skill being tested is turning the words into the right calculation, more than the calculation itself.
Percents, rates and ratios
quantitative
Sale prices, tax and tips, percent change, unit price, recipes and map scales. The most common question type on the test.
Trap: dividing a percent change by the new value instead of the starting one.
Geometry and measurement
quantitative
Perimeter, area of rectangles, triangles, circles and L-shapes, volume of boxes and cylinders, and the Pythagorean theorem. The formulas are on the sheet; knowing which one applies is the skill.
Trap: using the diameter where the formula wants the radius.
Data, statistics and probability
quantitative
Mean, median, mode and range, reading tables and graphs, and the chance of one or two events.
Trap: taking the middle value of an unsorted list as the median.
Expressions and equations
algebraic
Simplifying, evaluating with negative numbers, solving one- and two-step equations, writing an expression from words, and systems of two equations in a word problem.
Trap: forgetting that a minus sign in front of brackets flips every term inside.
Inequalities
algebraic
Solving them and choosing the right graph on a number line.
Trap: not reversing the sign when you divide by a negative number.
Graphs, slope and functions
algebraic
Slope from two points or a table, the equation of a line, function notation such as f(3), and reading a rate of change from a table or graph. Factorable quadratics appear at the hard end.
Trap: putting run over rise instead of rise over run.
What do GED math questions look like?
Short word problems with one or two steps and four answer choices, where the wrong answers are the numbers you get from the most common slips. Try the ones below before you open the worked answers.
GED-style question 1 · Scale drawing
On a map, 1 inch represents 50 miles. Two towns are 2 inches apart on the map. How far apart are they in real life?
- A200 miles
- B100 miles
- C20 miles
- D25 miles
Worked answer
B: 100 miles. Multiply map distance by the scale: 2 × 50 = 100 miles.
GED-style question 2 · Equation of a line
A line has a slope of 1 and passes through (−4, −2). Which is its equation?
- Ay = −4x + 2
- By = −x − 6
- Cy = x + 2
- Dy = x − 6
Worked answer
C: y = x + 2. Use y = mx + b: −2 = 1(−4) + b, so −2 = −4 + b and b = 2. The equation is y = x + 2.
GED-style question 3 · Unit rate
A 20-ounce box of cereal costs $4.40 and a 64-ounce box costs $15.36. Which is the better buy, and what does it cost per ounce?
- AThe 20-ounce box, at $0.22 an ounce
- BThe 20-ounce box, at $0.07 an ounce
- CThey cost the same per ounce
- DThe 64-ounce box, at $0.24 an ounce
Show the answer
A: The 20-ounce box, at $0.22 an ounce. Divide price by ounces: $4.40 ÷ 20 = $0.22 and $15.36 ÷ 64 = $0.24. The lower unit price is the better buy.
GED-style question 4 · Quadratic equation
What are the solutions of x² − 13x + 42 = 0?
- Ax = −13 and x = 42
- Bx = −7 and x = −6
- Cx = −7 and x = 6
- Dx = 6 and x = 7
Show the answer
D: x = 6 and x = 7. Find two numbers that multiply to 42 and add to −13: −7 and −6. So (x − 7)(x − 6) = 0, and each factor is zero when x = 7 or x = 6.
These come from our public sample set, so none of them appears in the drills or the paid tests. More, for every subject, are in GED-style practice questions.
Make math the subject you bank
Twelve questions show the gap. 4 more math drills and 8 full practice tests close it.
The GED Pass Pack gives you 8 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The GED Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 8
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor
Which formulas are on the GED math formula sheet, and which do I need to know?
The sheet gives area, perimeter, volume and surface area formulas, the Pythagorean theorem, slope and line equations, the quadratic formula and simple interest. It does not teach you when to use them, and it does not give percent change, mean or median.
| Formula | Use it for | On the sheet? |
|---|---|---|
| A = lw, A = ½bh | Area of a rectangle or triangle | Yes |
| A = πr², C = 2πr | Area and circumference of a circle | Yes |
| V = lwh, V = πr²h | Volume of a box or a cylinder | Yes |
| a² + b² = c² | A missing side of a right triangle | Yes |
| m = (y₂ − y₁) ÷ (x₂ − x₁) | Slope through two points | Yes |
| y = mx + b | Equation of a line | Yes |
| I = Prt | Simple interest | Yes |
| Change ÷ original × 100 | Percent increase or decrease | No: learn it |
| Sum ÷ count | Mean (average) | No: learn it |
| Middle value of the sorted list | Median | No: learn it |
| Favorable ÷ total | Probability of one event | No: learn it |
Spend ten minutes with the real formula sheet before test day so you know where each formula sits. The time you save hunting is time you can spend checking.
How should I pace GED math?
About 2.5 minutes a question on average. Bank time on one-step percent and evaluation questions so you have four or five minutes for the multi-step algebra and geometry at the end.
| Mark | Number | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Real time limit | 115 min | For about 46 questions |
| Even pace | 150 s | A question, if you spread the clock evenly |
| Halfway check | 58 min | Be near question 23 |
| Our free drill | 12 in 30:00 | The same seconds per question as our full practice test |
Our rule of thumb: if you have read a question twice and still cannot set it up, flag it and move on. Coming back with fresh eyes is faster than staring. With 115 minutes and about 46 questions, being at question 23 by the 55-minute mark leaves enough in hand to review flags.
Use the on-screen calculator for arithmetic you could get wrong under pressure, such as 3.14 × 36, but do the setup on your noteboard first. The calculator cannot tell you whether to divide by the old value or the new one.
What traps cost the most points on GED math?
The wrong answers are built from the classic slips, so knowing the slips is worth points.
- Percent change divided by the new value instead of the original value.
- A discount number given as the sale price: $20 off is not a $20 price.
- Using the diameter in πr², which makes the area four times too big.
- Not flipping the inequality sign after dividing by a negative number.
- Losing a negative sign when squaring: (−3)² is 9, but −3² is −9.
- Adding denominators when adding fractions.
- Reading the median off a list that has not been sorted.
How should I study for GED math?
Seven days of 30 to 45 minutes, each built around one family of questions, then a timed mixed set. This is our plan, not an official one.
Day 1
30 min
Take the free drill above. Note which question types you missed, not just how many.
Day 2
40 min
Percents, rates and ratios: discount and tax, percent change, unit price, proportions. Ten questions, checked by putting each answer back.
Day 3
40 min
Equations and inequalities: one-step, two-step, brackets on both sides, dividing by negatives.
Day 4
40 min
Geometry: area, perimeter, circles, volume and the Pythagorean theorem with the formula sheet open.
Day 5
40 min
Slope, lines and functions: two points, a table, f(x) with negative inputs.
Day 6
35 min
Data and probability: mean, median, the score needed for a target average, one and two draws.
Day 7
45 min
A full timed math part from a practice test. Review every miss and write down the rule it broke.
How does math fit the whole GED?
Math is one of four separate GED subjects, and it has to reach 145 on its own: a high Language Arts score cannot make up for it.
Many people book math last because it worries them most, and that is often the right call: pass the subjects you are closest to first, and the momentum carries you. Others book it first to get it out of the way. Either works, as long as your practice scores tell you that you are ready before you pay for the subject.
Science and Social Studies also use numbers, mainly reading tables and graphs and doing one step of arithmetic, so the percent and data work you do here pays off twice. See the GED science practice test for how that looks.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on the GED math test?
Can I use a calculator on the GED math test?
Do I get a formula sheet on the GED?
What score do I need to pass GED math?
Is GED math hard?
Is this GED math practice test free?
Pass GED math first time
16 drills (4 for math) and 8 full practice tests, in one payment with no subscription.
The GED Pass Pack gives you 8 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The GED Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 8
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor