Multiples (A ÷ B)
💡A multiple is simply A divided by B. When the gap is large, truncate both numbers to their leading digits — that is usually precise enough.
Try it — how many times bigger
liveDivide A by B.
- 1
Divide A by B
9,240 ÷ 1,180 = 7.83
- 2
Quick estimate (truncate first)
9,200 / 1,100 ≈ 8.36
⏱️ Practice against the clock
A worked example
9,240 ÷ 1,180: truncate to 92 / 12, which is about 7.7, so A is roughly 7.8 times B.
Divide, then trim for speed
“A is how many times B” is just A ÷ B. When the numbers are big, chop both down to their leading digits first. 9,240 ÷ 1,180 becomes 92 / 12, about 7.7, so A is roughly 7.8 times B.
Dropping the tail-end digits hardly moves the ratio, since both numbers shrink together, and you have swapped a hard division for an easy one.
What if B is the bigger one?
Then the answer dips below 1 and the question has quietly turned into a fraction. The same routine still works, you just read it as “A is about 0.4 times B”, or 40%.
Keep only as much precision as the options force on you. Widely spaced choices are settled by the first couple of figures.
Questions people ask
How accurate does the multiple need to be? ▾
Only accurate enough to pick between the options. For widely spaced choices, the first two significant digits settle it.
What if B is larger than A? ▾
Then the multiple is less than one, and the question usually becomes a fraction or percentage. The same divide-and-truncate approach still works.