How to Improve Mental Maths Speed

Fast mental maths isn't a gift — it's a trained skill. And it pays off: less time on arithmetic means more time for the hard marks.

Learn a few tricks

• To multiply by 5, multiply by 10 and halve.
• To add near-round numbers, round then adjust.
• Know your times tables and square numbers cold.

Practise little and often

Five minutes a day beats an hour once a week. Mental maths apps and quick-fire drills build automatic recall.

Estimate before you calculate

Estimating first gives you a sanity check — if your exact answer is wildly different, you know something went wrong.

Why it matters in exams

Students who calculate quickly and accurately finish with time to check their work, which is often worth several grades' difference.