GED practice test

GED Quantitative Problem Solving Practice Test

Fractions, decimals, percents, ratios, unit conversions, area and volume, mean and median, probability and reading data. 45% of Math. Here are 9 GED quantitative problem solving questions, each with the answer and the reason.

Updated 2026-11-14 by the Tigertest team. Based on the assessment targets in the GED Testing Service Assessment Guide for Educators (October 2020 edition). Original questions; not affiliated with GED Testing Service.

1. 1.

   A shopper buys items priced at $4.79, $12.50 and $0.99 and pays with a $20 bill. How much change should the shopper receive?

   • A.

     $0.72

   • B.

     $1.28

   • C.

     $1.62

   • D.

     $1.72

   Answer: D.

   The total is $4.79 + 12.50 + 0.99 = 18.28$ dollars, so the change is $20.00 - 18.28 = 1.72$ dollars. The value 1.28 is what 18.72 would leave, 1.62 comes from adding 0.89 instead of 0.99, and 0.72 from dropping a dollar in the subtraction.

2. 2.

   A store sold 24 laptops during a sale, which was 30% of the laptops it had in stock. How many laptops did the store have in stock before the sale?

   • A.

     $54$

   • B.

     $72$

   • C.

     $80$

   • D.

     $96$

   Answer: C.

   If 30% of the stock is 24, the stock is $24 \div 0.30 = 80$ laptops. Multiplying $24 \times 0.30 = 7.2$ finds 30% of 24 instead, and 54 comes from adding 30 to 24.

3. 3.

   Six customers waited 12, 15, 9, 20, 18 and 11 minutes for service. What is the median wait time, in minutes?

   • A.

     $12$

   • B.

     $13.5$

   • C.

     $14.2$

   • D.

     $15$

   Answer: B.

   In order the times are 9, 11, 12, 15, 18, 20. With six values, the median is the mean of the middle two: $\frac{12 + 15}{2} = 13.5$ minutes. The value 14.2 is the mean of all six, and 15 is only the fourth value.

4. 4.

   In a survey, $\frac{1}{3}$ of the respondents chose plan A and $\frac{1}{4}$ chose plan B. Everyone else chose plan C. What fraction of the respondents chose plan C?

   • A.

     $\frac{5}{12}$

   • B.

     $\frac{7}{12}$

   • C.

     $\frac{2}{7}$

   • D.

     $\frac{1}{12}$

   Answer: A.

   Plans A and B together are $\frac{1}{3} + \frac{1}{4} = \frac{4}{12} + \frac{3}{12} = \frac{7}{12}$. The rest is $1 - \frac{7}{12} = \frac{5}{12}$. Adding numerators and denominators gives $\frac{2}{7}$, which is not how fractions add.

5. 5.

   What is the value of $\frac{18 - 6}{2} + 4 \times 3$?

   • A.

     $6$

   • B.

     $10$

   • C.

     $18$

   • D.

     $30$

   Answer: C.

   A fraction bar groups what is above it: $18 - 6 = 12$, then $12 \div 2 = 6$. Multiply $4 \times 3 = 12$, then add: $6 + 12 = 18$. Adding 4 before multiplying gives 30, stopping after $6 + 4$ gives 10, and dividing 12 by $2 + 4$ gives 6.

6. 6.

   A bread recipe calls for $\frac{3}{4}$ cup of sugar for each batch. How many cups of sugar are needed for 6 batches?

   • A.

     $4\frac{1}{2}$

   • B.

     $4\frac{3}{4}$

   • C.

     $6\frac{3}{4}$

   • D.

     $8$

   Answer: A.

   Multiply $\frac{3}{4} \times 6 = \frac{18}{4} = 4\frac{1}{2}$ cups. Adding $\frac{3}{4} + 6$ gives $6\frac{3}{4}$, and dividing 6 by $\frac{3}{4}$ gives 8, both common slips.

7. 7.

   On a road map, 1 inch represents 35 miles. Two towns are $4\frac{1}{2}$ inches apart on the map. How many miles apart are the towns?

   • A.

     $140$

   • B.

     $157.5$

   • C.

     $175$

   • D.

     $192.5$

   Answer: B.

   Multiply the map distance by the scale: $4.5 \times 35 = 157.5$ miles. Using 4 inches gives 140 and using 5 inches gives 175; the half inch must be included.

8. 8.

   A student scored 78, 85, 92 and 88 on four tests. What score does the student need on the fifth test to have a mean of exactly 85 for all five tests?

   • A.

     $74$

   • B.

     $78$

   • C.

     $82$

   • D.

     $85$

   Answer: C.

   A mean of 85 over five tests requires a total of $85 \times 5 = 425$ points. The first four tests total $78 + 85 + 92 + 88 = 343$, so the fifth must be $425 - 343 = 82$. Answering 85 ignores the scores already earned, and 78 or 74 come from subtracting in the wrong direction.

9. 9.

   A bag holds 4 red, 6 blue and 10 green marbles. One marble is drawn at random. What is the probability that it is not green?

   • A.

     $\frac{1}{2}$

   • B.

     $\frac{1}{5}$

   • C.

     $\frac{3}{10}$

   • D.

     $\frac{3}{4}$

   Answer: A.

   There are $4 + 6 + 10 = 20$ marbles and $4 + 6 = 10$ are not green, so the probability is $\frac{10}{20} = \frac{1}{2}$. The probability of green is also $\frac{1}{2}$ here, but $\frac{1}{5}$ counts only the red marbles and $\frac{3}{10}$ only the blue.