Multi-Step Word Problems Worksheets

Multi-step word problems need two or three calculations, and the hardest part is planning them. These worksheets for grades 4 and 5 use bigger numbers, real-life stories such as school trips, bakeries and fences, and a “show your work” box for each problem. Two of the sheets add a twist: each problem includes a piece of information you do not need, so children must decide what matters before they calculate.

What is on these worksheets

• Multi-step word problems, grade 4: five problems with products up to the thousands, remainders that change the answer (how many buses?) and perimeter costs.
• Multi-step word problems, grade 5: the same kinds of stories with bigger numbers.
• Word problems with extra information (grades 4 and 5): four problems with a number that is not needed, such as how long the movie lasts when the question asks about ticket prices. The answer key names the extra information.

These problems follow Common Core standard 4.OA.A.3 (multi-step word problems with whole numbers, including remainders) and 5.NBT.B.5 (multi-digit multiplication). For two-step stories with smaller numbers, start with the two-step word problems worksheets.

How to solve multi-step word problems

1. Read the question first. Know what you are looking for before you read the numbers.
2. Cross out what you do not need. If the question is about tickets, the length of the movie does not matter.
3. Write the hidden questions. “How many students in all?” comes before “how many buses?”
4. Solve one step at a time. Write each number sentence on its own line in the work box.
5. Estimate to check. Round the numbers and see whether the answer is about the right size.

A worked example

“A bus holds 40 people. 232 students and 9 teachers are going on a trip. How many buses are needed?”

Step 1: find everyone going: 232 + 9 = 241 people. Step 2: divide by the bus size: 241 ÷ 40 = 6 remainder 1. Six buses carry 240 people, but one person is left, so 7 buses are needed. The remainder changes the answer, which is why checking the story matters.

Common mistakes

• Using every number. Extra information is there on purpose. Ask “does the question need this?”
• Stopping after one step. In “how much money is left” stories, the total saved is not the answer yet.
• Ignoring remainders. You cannot hire 6.025 buses. Decide whether to round up, round down or use the remainder.

For a step-by-step method that works for every problem, read how to solve math word problems.

Breaking the problems into steps

Each picture splits one of the problems above into its steps, the way Common Core standard 4.OA.A.3 expects children to plan them.

10 more multi-step word problems with answers

Each of these problems needs two or three steps. The answers show every step, so children can see where a mistake happened.

Read each problem aloud or let your child read it, then check the answer below it. To print the problems as a quiz, with or without the answers, use the print buttons on this page.

1. A class collects 128 cans on Monday and 96 cans on Tuesday. They pack the cans in boxes of 8. How many boxes do they fill?
   Answer: 28 boxes (128 + 96 = 224, then 224 ÷ 8 = 28)
2. Tickets cost $12 for adults and $7 for children. How much do tickets for 2 adults and 3 children cost?
   Answer: $45 (2 × 12 = 24, 3 × 7 = 21, then 24 + 21 = 45)
3. A baker makes 6 trays of 24 cookies. She sells 115 cookies. How many cookies are left?
   Answer: 29 cookies (6 × 24 = 144, then 144 − 115 = 29)
4. Mia saves $15 a week for 8 weeks. Then she buys a game for $89. How much money does she have left?
   Answer: $31 (15 × 8 = 120, then 120 − 89 = 31)
5. A garden is 25 meters long and 14 meters wide. Fencing costs $6 a meter. How much does it cost to fence all the way around?
   Answer: $468 (25 + 14 + 25 + 14 = 78 meters, then 78 × 6 = 468)
6. 3 classes of 28 students and 9 teachers go on a trip. A bus holds 45 people. How many buses are needed?
   Answer: 3 buses (3 × 28 = 84, 84 + 9 = 93, and 93 ÷ 45 = 2 remainder 3, so a third bus is needed)
7. A store has 450 apples. It sells 120 on Saturday and twice as many on Sunday. How many apples are left?
   Answer: 90 apples (120 × 2 = 240, 120 + 240 = 360, then 450 − 360 = 90)
8. Leo reads 35 pages a day for 2 weeks. His book has 600 pages. How many pages does he still have to read?
   Answer: 110 pages (2 weeks is 14 days, 35 × 14 = 490, then 600 − 490 = 110)
9. A pack of 6 juice boxes costs $4. How much do 30 juice boxes cost?
   Answer: $20 (30 ÷ 6 = 5 packs, then 5 × 4 = 20)
10. A theater has 18 rows of 24 seats. 389 tickets are sold. How many seats are empty?
    Answer: 43 seats (18 × 24 = 432, then 432 − 389 = 43)

A planning frame

Children who struggle with multi-step problems usually start calculating too soon. This four-part frame slows them down. Here it is filled in for a new problem: “A school buys 14 boxes of markers with 12 markers in each box. The markers are shared equally among 6 classes. How many markers does each class get?”

Each class gets 28 markers. Copying the frame onto scrap paper for the first few problems builds the habit; most children drop it once planning becomes automatic.

More word problems

• Kindergarten word problems
• Addition and subtraction word problems
• Multiplication and division word problems
• Two-step word problems
• Money word problems
• Time word problems
• Fraction word problems
• 40 simple word problems with answers
• How to solve math word problems

Last updated: October 2026