WorkKeys Applied Math Practice Questions
Updated October 31, 2026
ACT WorkKeys Applied Math is the math test of the National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC). Every question puts you in a job and asks you to solve a problem you could meet at work: making change, figuring a rate, converting units, finding an area or a volume, or picking the better deal. The real test has 34 questions in 55 minutes, each with five choices, and you can use a calculator and the Applied Math formula sheet.
The 15 questions below are original, written for this page in the style of the real test, and they run from Level 3 up to Level 7, three at each level, in that order. This page is independent practice information and is not affiliated with ACT.
Applied Math at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Questions | 34 on the test (a few are unscored tryout questions) |
| Time | 55 minutes |
| Choices | 5 per question (A to E) |
| Calculator | Allowed; the online test has an on-screen calculator |
| Formula sheet | Provided, with unit conversions and shape formulas |
| Order | Questions get harder as you go, from Level 3 to Level 7 |
Tips for Applied Math questions
- Use 3.14 for pi. The directions say so, and a calculator’s pi key can give an answer that does not match any choice.
- Look for the extra numbers. From Level 4 up, a problem can include information you do not need. Decide what the question asks before you start pressing keys.
- Convert before you calculate. If one length is in inches and another in feet, change them to the same unit first. The conversions you need are on the formula sheet.
- Expect traps in the choices. Wrong answers often come from a common slip: forgetting a step, using the wrong formula, or rounding the wrong way. If your answer matches a choice, check that you did every step.
- Answer every question. Only correct answers count, so a guess can only help.
For what each level covers, see the Applied Math topics by level, and for the conversions and formulas you get on test day, see the Applied Math formula sheet.
WorkKeys Applied Math practice questions
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In your job as a cashier at a hardware store, a customer buys a hammer for $14.97, a box of nails for $3.49, and a tape measure for $8.25. The customer pays with a $30 bill. How much change should you give back?Answer: BThe items total $14.97 + $3.49 + $8.25 = $26.71. The change is $30.00 - $26.71 = $3.29.
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You are a shift lead in a shipping warehouse. Your crew packs 48 boxes each hour. How many boxes will the crew pack during a 6-hour shift?Answer: DOne operation is needed: 48 boxes per hour x 6 hours = 288 boxes.
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You work at a deli counter. A customer asks for 1/4 pound of sliced turkey. Your scale shows weight in decimal pounds. What should the scale read when you have the right amount?Answer: AOne fourth is the same as 1 divided by 4, which is 0.25. A reading of 0.5 would be half a pound.
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As a quality technician at a food plant, you weigh five sample bags from the line. They weigh 12.4, 12.8, 12.1, 12.5, and 13.2 ounces. The target weight printed on the bag is 12 ounces. What is the average weight of the five samples, in ounces?Answer: EThe average is the sum divided by the count: 12.4 + 12.8 + 12.1 + 12.5 + 13.2 = 63.0, and 63.0 / 5 = 12.6 ounces. The 12-ounce target is extra information. The middle value, 12.5, is the median, not the average.
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You drive a delivery truck that has a 40-gallon fuel tank and gets 12 miles per gallon. Today's route is 180 miles. How many gallons of fuel will the truck use on the route?Answer: CDivide the distance by the fuel rate: 180 miles / 12 miles per gallon = 15 gallons. The size of the tank does not affect how much fuel the route uses.
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You are a carpenter cutting window trim from a strip of molding 96 inches long. You need 6 pieces, each 12 1/8 inches long. How many inches of the strip will be left over after you cut the 6 pieces?Answer: AThe 6 pieces use 6 x 12 1/8 = 72 + 6/8 = 72 3/4 inches. The strip left over is 96 - 72 3/4 = 23 1/4 inches.
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You take phone orders for a uniform supplier. A customer orders 3 shirts at $18.50 each and 2 caps at $12.25 each. Sales tax of 7% is added to the whole order. What is the total the customer will pay?Answer: CThe shirts cost 3 x $18.50 = $55.50 and the caps cost 2 x $12.25 = $24.50, so the order is $80.00 before tax. The tax is 0.07 x $80.00 = $5.60, for a total of $85.60.
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You are installing baseboard in a rectangular office that measures 14 feet 6 inches by 11 feet 9 inches. The office has two doorways, each 3 feet wide, that get no baseboard. How many feet of baseboard do you need?Answer: CChange the inches to feet: 14 feet 6 inches = 14.5 feet and 11 feet 9 inches = 11.75 feet. The perimeter is 2(14.5 + 11.75) = 52.5 feet. Subtract the two doorways, 2 x 3 = 6 feet, to get 46.5 feet.
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You buy supplies for a repair shop. Supplier 1 sells work gloves at 12 pairs for $27.00 with free shipping. Supplier 2 sells 20 pairs for $43.00 plus a $4.00 shipping charge. What is the lowest cost per pair, including shipping?Answer: DSupplier 1 costs $27.00 / 12 = $2.25 a pair. Supplier 2 costs ($43.00 + $4.00) / 20 = $47.00 / 20 = $2.35 a pair. The lower cost is $2.25. Leaving out the shipping would wrongly make Supplier 2 look cheaper at $2.15.
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You work in the returns department of a store. A customer's receipt shows a total of $59.40, which includes 8% sales tax. To refund the item, you need the price before tax. What was the price before tax?Answer: DThe total is 108% of the price, so the price is $59.40 / 1.08 = $55.00. Taking 8% off the total gives $54.65, which is wrong because the tax was figured on the lower price, not on the total.
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As a production planner, you schedule a labeling machine that applies 1,450 labels per hour. Each shift runs the machine for 7.5 hours. An order calls for 25,000 labels. How many shifts must you schedule to finish the order?Answer: BOne shift produces 1,450 x 7.5 = 10,875 labels. The order needs 25,000 / 10,875 = about 2.3 shifts. Two shifts would fall short, so you must schedule 3.
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You are pouring a concrete slab for a shed. The slab will be 20 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 4 inches thick. Concrete is ordered by the cubic yard. How many cubic yards of concrete does the slab need, to the nearest hundredth?Answer: AChange the thickness to feet first: 4 inches = 4/12 = 1/3 foot. The volume is 20 x 12 x 1/3 = 80 cubic feet. With 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard, 80 / 27 = 2.96 cubic yards.
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You maintain the water system at a plant. A cylindrical storage tank has a diameter of 6 feet and a height of 10 feet. Using 1 cubic foot = 1,728 cubic inches and 1 gallon = 231 cubic inches, about how many gallons does the tank hold when full?Answer: EThe radius is half the diameter, 3 feet. The volume is 3.14 x 3 x 3 x 10 = 282.6 cubic feet. That is 282.6 x 1,728 = 488,332.8 cubic inches, and 488,332.8 / 231 = about 2,114 gallons.
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You supervise three assembly crews. Crew 1 has 12 workers who averaged 50 units each yesterday. Crew 2 has 8 workers who averaged 42 units each. Crew 3 has 5 workers who averaged 36 units each. What was the average number of units per worker for all 25 workers, to the nearest hundredth?Answer: EFind the total units first: 12 x 50 = 600, 8 x 42 = 336, and 5 x 36 = 180, for 1,116 units. Divide by all 25 workers: 1,116 / 25 = 44.64. Averaging the three crew averages gives 42.67, which ignores that the crews are different sizes.
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You mix cleaning solution for a janitorial crew. The label calls for 2/3 cup of concentrate for every 1 1/2 gallons of water. You are filling a bucket with 9 gallons of water. How many cups of concentrate should you add?Answer: B9 gallons holds 9 / 1 1/2 = 6 batches of 1 1/2 gallons. Each batch needs 2/3 cup, so 6 x 2/3 = 4 cups. Multiplying 9 by 2/3 gives 6, which forgets that the 2/3 cup goes with 1 1/2 gallons, not with 1 gallon.
Keep practicing
Our three timed Applied Math practice tests each have 34 questions in 55 minutes, in level order like the real test, with the formula sheet and an on-screen calculator beside every question and an estimated level when you finish. Start from the home page.
Next, try the Graphic Literacy practice questions or the Workplace Documents practice questions, or read the WorkKeys test guide and how scores and levels work.
Get the WorkKeys level the job asks for
- All 321 questions across Applied Math, Graphic Literacy and Workplace Documents
- An explanation for every answer, with the math steps worked out
- Nine timed practice tests, three for each test, with an estimated level after each