Using a scientific calculator in simple words
Type a sum with the keys or your keyboard, then press = to see the answer. Below it, the calculator shows each step it took, using your numbers.
When a sum mixes different signs, the order matters. Work inside brackets first, then functions such as √ or sin, then powers, then × and ÷, and last + and −. Many people remember this as BODMAS or PEMDAS.
Example: for 3 + 4 × 2, do the multiplication first: 4 × 2 = 8. Then add: 3 + 8 = 11. The answer is 11, not 14. If you want to add first, use brackets: (3 + 4) × 2 = 14.
The ^ key means “to the power of”, so 2^3 = 2 × 2 × 2 = 8. The Degrees box matters only for sin, cos and tan: leave it ticked if your angle is in degrees.
Check the expression and angle mode
The parser handles arithmetic without executing JavaScript. Powers bind more tightly than a leading minus: −2² = −4, while (−2)² = 4. Parentheses make grouping explicit. The % key means remainder (modulo), as in 17 % 5 = 2. To calculate 15% of 200, enter 200 × 15 ÷ 100.
sin(30) is 0.5 in degree mode. In radian mode use sin(pi/6) for the same result. In degree mode, whole multiples of 90° are exact (sin(180) = 0, cos(90) = 0), and tan(90), tan(270) and other odd multiples of 90° are reported as undefined; division by zero is reported as an error rather than a number. log(100) = 2 and ln(e) = 1. A square root of a negative value or a logarithm of zero has no finite real result here; use a suitable complex-number method when required.
Order of operations
This calculator follows standard mathematical precedence rather than evaluating left to right, which is why it gives 14 for 2+3*4 rather than 20. Multiplication and division bind more tightly than addition and subtraction, and exponentiation binds more tightly still.
Two details are worth knowing because calculators disagree on them. Exponentiation here is right-associative, so 2^3^2 evaluates as 2^(3^2) = 512, matching mathematical convention. And unary minus binds more loosely than exponentiation, so -2^2 gives -4, the same as -(2^2). If you want the square of negative two, write (-2)^2.
| Level | Operation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parentheses | (2 + 3) × 4 = 20 |
| 2 | Functions and factorials | sin(30), 5! = 120 |
| 3 | Exponents, right to left | 2^3^2 = 2^9 = 512 |
| 4 | Unary minus | −2^2 = −4 |
| 5 | Multiply, divide, modulo, left to right | 8 ÷ 2 × 3 = 12 |
| 6 | Add and subtract, left to right | 2 + 3 × 4 = 14 |
Supported functions
Type function names directly followed by a parenthesis. Trigonometric functions respect the degrees or radians setting; the inverse functions return values in the same mode.
| Name | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| sin, cos, tan | Trigonometric ratios of an angle | sin(30) = 0.5 in degree mode |
| asin, acos, atan | Inverse trigonometry; returns an angle | atan(1) = 45 in degree mode |
| sinh, cosh, tanh | Hyperbolic functions | cosh(0) = 1 |
| ln | Natural logarithm, base e | ln(e) = 1 |
| log, log10 | Logarithm base 10 | log(1000) = 3 |
| log2 | Logarithm base 2 | log2(1024) = 10 |
| sqrt, cbrt | Square and cube root | cbrt(27) = 3 |
| exp | e raised to a power | exp(2) = 7.389056 |
| abs, sign | Absolute value; sign of a number | abs(−4.2) = 4.2 |
| floor, ceil, round | Round down, up, or to nearest (a tie rounds up: round(2.5) = 3, round(−2.5) = −2) | ceil(2.1) = 3 |
| x! | Factorial (postfix) | 6! = 720 |
| ^ | Power | 2^10 = 1024 |
| % | Modulo (remainder) | 17 % 5 = 2 |
Degrees versus radians
This is the single most common source of wrong trigonometric answers. Degrees divide a full turn into 360 parts and are typical in geometry, surveying, and everyday use. Radians measure angle as arc length over radius, giving 2π for a full turn, and are required in calculus because the derivative of sin(x) is cos(x) only when x is in radians.
Check the mode before trusting a trig result. sin(90) is 1 in degrees but approximately 0.894 in radians — both are correct answers to different questions. Convert with degrees = radians × 180/π.
| Angle | Radians | sin | cos | tan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0° | 0 | 0 = 0.0000 | 1 = 1.0000 | 0 = 0.0000 |
| 30° | 0.1667π | 1/2 = 0.5000 | √3/2 = 0.8660 | √3/3 = 0.5774 |
| 45° | 0.25π | √2/2 = 0.7071 | √2/2 = 0.7071 | 1 = 1.0000 |
| 60° | 0.3333π | √3/2 = 0.8660 | 1/2 = 0.5000 | √3 = 1.7321 |
| 90° | 0.5π | 1 = 1.0000 | 0 = 0.0000 | undefined |
Constants
Two constants are built in and can be typed by name: pi (or the symbol π) and e. The others below are here for reference; enter them as expressions, for instance sqrt(2) or (1+sqrt(5))/2.
| Constant | Value | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| π (pi) | 3.14159265… | Ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter |
| e | 2.71828183… | Base of natural logarithms; limit of (1 + 1/n)^n |
| √2 | 1.41421356… | Diagonal of a unit square |
| φ (golden ratio) | 1.61803399… | (1 + √5) ÷ 2 |
Implicit multiplication and other shortcuts
The parser accepts implicit multiplication, so 2(3+4), 2pi, and 3sin(45) all work as written. This is convenient but can be ambiguous in hand-written notation, so when precedence matters, parentheses are always clearer than relying on a convention.
Numbers may use commas as thousands separators: 1,000 + 1 = 1001 and 1,234,567.5 are read as written. A comma counts as a separator only when 1–3 digits come before the first comma and exactly three digits follow every comma, with no spaces, so 2,5, 1,00 and 1, 000 are rejected with a message rather than guessed at. None of the functions takes more than one argument, so a comma never separates arguments. Use a point for decimals (2.5); a trailing point such as 5. is read as 5, while 2.5.3 is rejected. Two numbers separated only by a space, such as 1 000, are rejected too, never multiplied.
The keyboard works anywhere on the page: digits and operators type, Enter evaluates, Escape clears, and letters spell function names. The result of each calculation is stored and can be reused with the Ans key, which is useful for chaining a sequence of operations without retyping intermediate values.
Step-by-step order of operations and money mode
Below the result, the calculator reduces your expression one operation at a time in PEMDAS order: innermost parentheses first, then functions and factorials, exponents, multiplication and division from left to right, and addition and subtraction from left to right. For 3 + 4 × 2 ÷ (1 − 5)^2, the steps are 1 − 5 = −4, (−4)^2 = 16, 4 × 2 = 8, 8 ÷ 16 = 0.5 and 3 + 0.5 = 3.5.
Money mode works in exact decimal arithmetic, so 0.1 + 0.2 is exactly 0.30 rather than the binary 0.30000000000000004. Dollar signs and thousands commas such as $1,250.00 are accepted. Division keeps 20 decimal places, and only the final answer is rounded to the cent, with half a cent rounding away from zero: 2.675 becomes $2.68. It supports + − × ÷, whole-number powers and parentheses.