80 Clever Math Riddles to Make Your Brain Sweat!
Love numbers and puzzles? These math riddles are perfect for giving your brain a fun workout! From easy logic puzzles to number trickery, each riddle is designed to test your thinking skill. Whether you’re a student, teacher, or puzzle lover.
Easy Math Riddles for Warm-Up
- What comes after 3, 6, 9, and 12?
Answer: 15
- I am a number. Multiply me by 2 and add 6. The result is 14. What am I?
Answer: 4
- What two numbers add up to 10 but multiply to 24?
Answer: 4 and 6
- If you buy one thing for $5 and pay with a $10 bill, how much change should you get?
Answer: $5
- What is half of 8?
Answer: 4
- What is the smallest even number?
Answer: 0
- Which number stays the same when you multiply it by any other number?
Answer: 0
- I am a number. Add 5 to me and you get 10. What number am I?
Answer: 5
- If you cut a cake into 3 pieces with 2 cuts, what’s the fewest pieces you get?
Answer: 3
- What number am I if I’m greater than 5 but less than 7?
Answer: 6
- A dozen is 12. What is half a dozen?
Answer: 6
- I’m a number. Multiply me by myself and you get 64. What am I?
Answer: 8
- What comes next: 2, 4, 8, 16?
Answer: 32
- What is 1/4 of 100?
Answer: 25
- I am a number. Subtract me from 10 and the result is 3. What number am I?
Answer: 7
- What’s the result of 9 + 6 ÷ 3?
Answer: 11
- If you have 3 apples and take away 2, how many do you have?
Answer: 2
- What’s the sum of the first five odd numbers?
Answer: 25
- What’s a quarter of 20?
Answer: 5
- If a pizza has 8 slices and you eat half, how many are left?
Answer: 4
Moderate Math Riddles for the Curious Mind
- I add five to nine and get two. How?
Answer: On a clock, 9 + 5 = 2 (2 o’clock)
- If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?
Answer: Nine
- What 3-digit number reads the same upside down?
Answer: 808
- How many times can you subtract 5 from 25?
Answer: Once (then it’s no longer 25)
- What’s always in front of you but can’t be seen?
Answer: The future (conceptual riddle, often in math brain teasers)
- Which number becomes even when you remove one letter?
Answer: Seven (remove the “s” = “even”)
- If you double a number and subtract 2, the result is 10. What’s the number?
Answer: 6
- What’s the only number with the same number of letters as its value?
Answer: Four
- What 2-digit number becomes zero when its digits are reversed and subtracted?
Answer: 21 (21 – 12 = 9; trick question – none becomes zero exactly)
- How can you make 6 using only three 1s?
Answer: (1 + 1 + 1)! = 3! = 6
- What is the missing number: 3, 6, 9, __, 15?
Answer: 12
- I am a number between 1 and 10. Multiply me by 2, subtract 3, and you get 11. What number am I?
Answer: 7
- What’s heavier: 1kg of rocks or 1kg of feathers?
Answer: Neither (they weigh the same)
- Divide 30 by ½ and add 10. What’s the result?
Answer: 70
- A triangle has three sides. What shape has no sides?
Answer: A circle
- If 5 workers can build 5 walls in 5 days, how long will it take 10 workers to build 10 walls?
Answer: 5 days
- What’s the square root of 81?
Answer: 9
- Which is more: 2 dozen or 20?
Answer: 2 dozen (24)
- You have 10 fingers. How many fingers do 10 people have?
Answer: 100
- If you triple me and subtract 4, you get 11. What number am I?
Answer: 5
Tricky Math Riddles for Brainiacs
- What two whole numbers multiply to 36 and add up to 13?
Answer: 9 and 4
- I am a number. Multiply me by 4 and divide by 2. The result is 10. What am I?
Answer: 5
- A man is 4 times as old as his son. In 20 years, he will be only twice as old. How old is the son now?
Answer: 10
- If 3 cats can catch 3 mice in 3 minutes, how many cats are needed to catch 100 mice in 100 minutes?
Answer: 3 cats
- A bat and a ball cost $1.10. The bat costs $1 more. How much is the ball?
Answer: $0.05
- What comes next: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, __?
Answer: 13 (Fibonacci sequence)
- I’m a three-digit number. My tens digit is five more than my ones digit. My hundreds digit is eight less than my tens digit. What number am I?
Answer: 194
- A clock shows 3:15. What angle is between the hour and minute hands?
Answer: 7.5 degrees
- I am a number less than 20. I’m odd and my digits add up to 10. What number am I?
Answer: 19
- What is the result of 1 + 2 × 3?
Answer: 7 (Follow order of operations)
- If you take 1 from 19, what’s left?
Answer: 18
- What’s a third of 90?
Answer: 30
- I’m divisible by 3 and 5 but not by 10. What number am I?
Answer: 15
- What is the smallest number that has three digits?
Answer: 100
- Which two numbers make 100 when added, but have a difference of 10?
Answer: 55 and 45
- I’m more than 50 and less than 60. My digits add to 11. What number am I?
Answer: 56
- I’m a palindrome between 100 and 200. What could I be?
Answer: 121
- What’s the next square number after 49?
Answer: 64
- What’s the cube root of 27?
Answer: 3
- Add me once, I’m 10. Add me again, I’m 20. What am I?
Answer: 10
Fun Math Riddles for Everyone
- What math symbol can be used to make 5 become 6?
Answer: Add a line to 5 to make it a 6
- What do you call friends who love math?
Answer: Alge-bros
- Why did the number 6 hate 7?
Answer: Because 7 8 9
- What did 0 say to 8?
Answer: Nice belt!
- Why was the equal sign so humble?
Answer: It knew it wasn’t less than or greater than anyone else.
- What do you call a number that can’t keep still?
Answer: A roamin’ numeral
- Why was the math book sad?
Answer: It had too many problems.
- What is the most patient number?
Answer: Wait (Eight)
- Why can’t you trust an atom?
Answer: They make up everything—even math problems!
- What shape is always in a good mood?
Answer: A circle (It’s well-rounded)
- Why did the student eat his math homework?
Answer: Because the teacher said it was a piece of cake!
- What has numbers but no hands?
Answer: A calculator
- What’s a ghost’s favorite math subject?
Answer: Boo-lean algebra
- What number do you get when you cross a dog with a calculator?
Answer: A bark-ulator!
- What’s a pirate’s favorite math subject?
Answer: Arrr-ithmetic!
- Why did the triangle break up with the circle?
Answer: Because it found the circle pointless!
- What’s a math teacher’s favorite season?
Answer: Sum-mer
- Why do plants hate math?
Answer: It gives them square roots
- What’s a math joke that never gets old?
Answer: The one with 7 eating 9!
- What’s a math wizard’s favorite drink?
Answer: Root beer!
Math riddles turn numbers into fun! Whether you’re a kid getting started or an adult looking for a challenge, these puzzles make learning exciting. Keep solving, keep smiling—and remember, every tricky question has an answer if you think outside the box!