How to Find Remainders in Division on a Calculator

Calculators give answers to division problems in decimal form, but that doesn't mean you have to work a division problem by hand to find the remainder. A few operations on the calculator convert your decimal answer to an answer in the quotient and remainder form.

Instructions

1. Perform the division. If the answer is a whole number, the remainder is zero.

2. Type only the decimal part of the answer into the calculator. If the answer is 10.45, for example, type 0.45.

3. Multiply the decimal by the divisor and round to the nearest whole number to get the remainder.

Tips & Warnings

• Check your answer by multiplying the quotient and divisor together, then subtracting this number from the dividend to get the remainder.

• The remainder should be a whole number unless the dividend, divisor or both are decimal numbers.

References

• New York University; Number Theory and Cryptography; Melvin Hausner; 2002
• Carnegie Mellon University; Additional Topics in Number Theory; Brian Kell; Februrary 2010