Advanced Order of Operations

Ready to take on the order of operations with parentheses in the mix? These advanced quizzes give you multi-step problems where clearing the brackets first is what stands between you and the right answer.

Mastering the Order of Operations with Parentheses

You will work through lines like 5 + 3 x (4 + 2) = and 30 - 2 x (5 + 4) =, clearing what is inside the parentheses before touching anything else. The tougher round piles several steps on top of each other, with expressions such as 22 - 3 x (4 + 2) + 7 = and 30 - (6 + 4) / 2 + 15 =, where you clear the brackets, then sweep through multiplication and division, and finish with addition and subtraction.

Getting this order right is a skill you lean on well beyond the classroom, from splitting a bill to checking the math in a spreadsheet formula. The longer problems here reward patience, since skipping a single layer is the fastest route to an answer that is just slightly off.

Did You Know?

The name PEMDAS fools a lot of students into reading it as a strict ranking, as if multiplication always beats division and addition always beats subtraction. In reality each of those pairs is worked from left to right, so the letters are more of a loose guide than a fixed order.

How the Quizzes Work

Each quiz has 12 problems plus a few true-or-false equations to verify, and a full round takes only about five minutes. You can repeat them as often as you need until the steps feel automatic, and they are pitched at the intermediate to advanced level for learners ready for a real challenge.

Think you can keep every step in the right order? Try these free interactive math quizzes and see how cleanly you can solve order of operations problems with parentheses.