How to do long division step by step
- Enter the dividend (the number being divided) and the divisor (the number you divide by).
- Choose whether to stop with a remainder or continue to 2, 4 or 8 decimal places.
- Follow the worked layout and the numbered steps: divide, multiply, subtract, bring down the next digit, and repeat.
The long division method
Long division breaks a hard division into a series of easy ones, working from the leftmost digit of the dividend. At each step you divide the current number by the divisor to get one digit of the answer, multiply that digit by the divisor, subtract to find what is left, and bring down the next digit. A popular mnemonic is "Does McDonald's Sell Burgers?" (Divide, Multiply, Subtract, Bring down). For 7452 ÷ 12: 74 ÷ 12 = 6 (72, remainder 2); bring down 5 to make 25, 25 ÷ 12 = 2 (24, remainder 1); bring down 2 to make 12, 12 ÷ 12 = 1, remainder 0. So 7452 ÷ 12 = 621.
When the division does not come out evenly, you can stop with a remainder or keep going by adding zeros after a decimal point, which turns the remainder into decimal digits. Checking is easy: quotient × divisor + remainder should give the dividend. The calculator uses exact big-integer arithmetic, so it handles very large numbers. It is designed for homework help and for parents explaining the method; everything runs in your browser.
How do I write the remainder as a fraction?
Put the remainder over the divisor: 25 ÷ 4 = 6 R 1 = 6¼.
What if the first digit is smaller than the divisor?
Use the first two (or more) digits together, as the steps show.
Can it divide decimals?
Multiply both numbers by the same power of 10 to make them whole first: 7.5 ÷ 0.5 = 75 ÷ 5.