GCSE & IGCSE maths practice

Order of operations questions and answers

When a calculation has several operations, do them in this order: Brackets, Indices (powers and roots), Division and Multiplication (left to right), then Addition and Subtraction (left to right). That's BIDMAS (also called BODMAS or PEMDAS). Division and multiplication have equal priority, as do addition and subtraction.

15 questions · Foundation tier · Every answer is checked as you type it, with a full worked solution. Updated 10 Nov 2026.

Start the questions BIDMAS, BODMAS and PEMDAS guide Order of operations calculator

Where order of operations comes up

GCSE (AQA, Edexcel, OCR)	Foundation and Higher: use conventional notation for the priority of operations, including brackets, powers, roots and reciprocals.
Cambridge IGCSE (0580)	Core and Extended: use the four operations, with the correct order of operations and brackets.

The method

Work out anything in brackets first.
Then powers and roots.
Then × and ÷, from left to right.
Then + and −, from left to right.

Order of operations questions

Try each one before looking at the hint. If you're stuck, the AI tutor can talk you through it step by step.

Warm-up

Question 1Warm-upFoundation

Work out $3 + 4 \times 2$

Question 2Warm-upFoundation

Work out $(3 + 4) \times 2$

Question 9Warm-upFoundation

Work out $10 - 2 \times 3$

Question 10Warm-upFoundation

Work out $6 + 8 \div 2$

Exam-style

Question 3Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $20 - 12 \div 4$

Question 4Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $5 + 3^2 \times 2$

Question 5Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $(8 - 2)^2 \div 4$

Question 6Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $18 \div (2 + 1) \times 3$

Question 11Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $4^2 - 3 \times 5$

Question 12Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $(12 - 4) \times (3 + 2)$

Question 13Exam-styleFoundation

Work out $36 \div 4 + 2 \times 5$

Challenge

Question 7ChallengeFoundation

Work out $2 + 3 \times (10 - 2^2)$

Question 8ChallengeFoundation

Where do the brackets go to make $4 + 6 \times 2 - 1 = 19$ true?

Question 14ChallengeFoundation

Work out $3 \times (2 + 4)^2 \div 9$

Question 15ChallengeFoundation

Work out $(15 - 3^2) \div 2 + 7$

Common mistakes

Working strictly left to right: 3 + 4 × 2 is 11, not 14.
Doing multiplication before division when division comes first: 18 ÷ 3 × 2 = 12.
Forgetting powers come before multiplication: 2 × 3² = 18, not 36.

Stuck on one of these?

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Sources

The questions are our own. The “where it comes up” notes are from each board's published specification, checked on 26 October 2026:

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