22 questions on percentage change, reverse percentages, simple and compound interest, and depreciation.
💷 Percentages and compound interest
Percentages appear on all three papers and in more contexts than any other single topic — prices, wages, interest, VAT, population, depreciation. This sheet covers the whole of it in order. It begins with percentage of an amount and percentage change, including finding the percentage rather than applying it; moves to multipliers, which make everything after this easier; then to reverse percentages, where you are given the value after the change and asked for the original, and where subtracting instead of dividing is the commonest error in the topic; then to simple interest, compound interest and depreciation, where the multiplier is raised to a power rather than multiplied by the number of years. The last few questions mix the types without labelling them, because on the paper they are not labelled either.
- 1.Work out 8% of £250.
- 2.A laptop costs £800 when new. Its value decreases by 25% of its value at the start of each year. Work out how much value the laptop loses in the second year.
- 3.£2000 is invested in a savings account that pays 5% compound interest each year. Work out the value of the investment at the end of 2 years.
- 4.A jacket normally costs £65. In a sale it is reduced by 20%, and the shop then takes a further £5 off at the till. Work out the final price.
- 5.A laptop costs £720. A carrying case for it costs 1/9 of the price of the laptop. Work out the cost of the carrying case.
- 6.40% of a number is 12 more than 25% of the same number. Work out the number.
- 7.The value of a motorbike falls by 12% each year. The motorbike is worth £3200 now. Write down the calculation that gives its value after 3 years.
- 8.A company's turnover this year is £180,000. Last year's turnover was £120,000. Write down this year's turnover as a percentage of last year's turnover.
- 9.The same jumper is sold at two shops. Shop A charges £40 and Shop B charges £50. Write down the price at Shop A as a percentage of the price at Shop B.
- 10.A car is bought for £12000. Its value falls by 15% in the first year and by 10% in each year after that. Work out the value of the car 3 years after it was bought.
- 11.£3000 is invested in a savings account that pays 4% compound interest each year. Work out the value of the investment after 2 years.
- 12.A charity shop buys a coat for £24 and sells it for a profit that is 3/8 of the buying price. Work out the selling price.
- 13.£5000 is invested in an account paying 4% compound interest each year. Work out the total interest earned after 3 years.
- 14.Order these three values from smallest to largest: 3/8, 0.43, 41%.
- 15.The population of a village is 1200. It is predicted to grow by 5% next year. Work out the predicted population after 1 year, to the nearest whole number.
- 16.A laptop priced at £520 is first increased by 15%, and then the new price is decreased by 20%. Work out the final price of the laptop.
- 17.A gym increases its membership price by 1/5. The original price is £60. Work out the new price.
- 18.The value of a rare coin increases by 12% each year. The coin is currently worth £270. Work out the value of the coin after 2 years, giving your answer to the nearest penny.
- 19.Priya invests £750 in a savings account that pays simple interest. After 3 years, the account contains £840. Work out the annual rate of simple interest.
- 20.Grace's mean mark in her maths tests rises from 70 to 84. Work out the percentage increase in her mean mark.
- 21.A restaurant adds a service charge of 15% to a bill of £120. Work out the service charge.
- 22.In a class, 1/3 of the pupils are girls. There are 12 girls in the class. Work out how many pupils are in the class.
What is on this worksheet?
The sheet holds 22 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content areas covered: Ratio, proportion and rates of change, Number (statements R9, R16, N12). It is pitched at GCSE Foundation and takes about 40 minutes to work through in full. It is built for independent practice, with full answers at the end for self-marking.
How to use the sheet well
- Print it or open it on screen — both work. Printing is A4; the screen view fits phones and tablets.
- Do all 22 questions before checking — about 40 minutes is the guide, but there is no time pressure.
- Check the answers — press “Show answers” or print the answer page separately.
- Redo the questions you got wrong — twice as effective as doing 22 fresh ones.
- “New questions” — builds a fresh sheet on the same statements, so you can practise again without repeats.
Why this sheet helps
MathsUK worksheets use questions graded by difficulty and a fair spread of correct-answer positions (the answer is not always (a)) — so the student really has to think about each question rather than guess a pattern. Every question is tagged to a DfE content statement and checked before it enters the bank. The answers come with a step-by-step explanation, not just a value — so a wrong answer becomes a lesson.
Similar worksheets worth a look
- ✏️ Paper 1 non-calculator warm-up — Foundation · 20 questions · ~25 min
- 🎯 Grade 4 pass booster · 25 questions · ~40 min
- ⚖️ Foundation to Higher crossover check · 20 questions · ~35 min
- ⚗️ Ratio and proportion mastery — Higher · 24 questions · ~45 min