Fractions to Percentages
💡 How to solve ▾
Learn the handful of building blocks: 1/2 is 50%, 1/4 is 25%, 1/5 is 20%, 1/8 is 12.5%. Most fractions are just multiples of these.
A worked example
3/8: one eighth is 12.5%, so three eighths is 3 × 12.5 = 37.5%.
Questions people ask
Which fractions are worth memorising? ▾
The eighths and fifths cover most of what you will meet: 1/8 = 12.5%, 1/5 = 20%, plus the obvious 1/2, 1/4 and 3/4. Everything else builds from these.
What about a fraction with an awkward denominator? ▾
Divide the top by the bottom to get a decimal, then multiply by 100. 5/16 is 0.3125, which is 31.25%.