Percentage Word Problems | Worksheet - Free Printable

Let’s solve each problem one by one, step by step. We’ll calculate how much each person spent after discounts and coupons.

---

Problem 1: Max at the farmer’s market

Max bought:
- Bananas for $3.00 with 30% off
- Apples for $2.00 with 40% off

Step 1: Calculate discount on bananas
30% of $3.00 = 0.30 × 3.00 = $0.90
So, Max pays: $3.00 - $0.90 = $2.10 for bananas

Step 2: Calculate discount on apples
40% of $2.00 = 0.40 × 2.00 = $0.80
So, Max pays: $2.00 - $0.80 = $1.20 for apples

Step 3: Add both amounts
$2.10 + $1.20 = $3.30

✔ Max spent $3.30

---

Problem 2: John shopping for his mom

John bought:
- Gloves: $5.00
- Scarf: $4.00
- Knit hat: $7.00
Total before coupon: $5 + $4 + $7 = $16.00

He used a 20% off coupon

Step 1: Find 20% of $16.00
0.20 × 16.00 = $3.20

Step 2: Subtract discount from total
$16.00 - $3.20 = $12.80

✔ John spent $12.80

---

Problem 3: Michelle at the deli

Michelle bought:
- Hot dog: $3.25 (no discount)
- Hamburger: $4.20 (no discount)
- Veggie stir fry sub: $5.50 (no discount)
- 3 sodas at $1.25 each → but they were 50% off

Step 1: Cost of sodas before discount
3 × $1.25 = $3.75

Step 2: Apply 50% discount to sodas
50% of $3.75 = 0.50 × 3.75 = $1.875 → round to nearest cent: $1.88

Wait — actually, since it’s 50% off, she pays half:
$3.75 ÷ 2 = $1.875 → which is $1.88 when rounded up? But in money, we usually keep two decimals. Let’s be precise:

Actually, 50% off means you pay 50%, so:
$3.75 × 0.50 = $1.875 → but cents can’t have fractions, so we round to $1.88? Wait — no! In real life, stores often round down or use exact change. But mathematically, let’s keep it as $1.875 and then add everything and round at the end? Actually, better to do exact calculation.

But let’s think: 3 sodas at $1.25 each = $3.75 total. 50% off means she pays $1.875. Since we’re dealing with money, we should express this as $1.88? Or maybe the problem expects us to treat it as exact?

Actually, let’s check: $1.25 per soda, 50% off → each soda costs $0.625 → times 3 = $1.875 → which is $1.88 if rounded to nearest cent.

But in many school problems, they expect you to keep it as decimal and sum exactly. Let’s do exact:

Sodas cost: $1.25 × 3 × 0.5 = $1.875

Now add all items:

Hot dog: $3.25
Hamburger: $4.20
Sub: $5.50
Sodas: $1.875

Total = 3.25 + 4.20 = 7.45
7.45 + 5.50 = 12.95
12.95 + 1.875 = 14.825

Round to nearest cent: $14.83

Wait — but let me double-check: Is 50% off applied per item or total? The problem says “the sodas were 50% off” — so likely total for sodas.

Alternatively, maybe we should calculate per soda: each soda $1.25, 50% off → $0.625 per soda → 3 × 0.625 = $1.875 → same thing.

In most elementary/middle school contexts, they might expect you to write $1.88, but let’s see what makes sense.

Actually, let’s recalculate without rounding intermediate steps:

Total for food items (no discount):
$3.25 + $4.20 + $5.50 = $12.95

Sodas: 3 × $1.25 = $3.75 → 50% off → she pays $1.875

Total spent: $12.95 + $1.875 = $14.825 → which rounds to $14.83

But wait — perhaps the problem expects exact cents? Maybe I made a mistake.

Another way: 50% off $1.25 is $0.625 per soda — but you can’t pay half a cent. So realistically, store would charge $0.63 per soda? Or $0.62? This is ambiguous.

Looking back at the problem: “she also bought 3 large sodas for $1.25 each but the sodas were 50% off.” It doesn’t specify if discount is per item or total. But since it says “the sodas were 50% off”, it’s likely total.

To avoid confusion, let’s assume we calculate total soda cost first, then apply discount.

Total soda cost: 3 × 1.25 = 3.75
50% off: 3.75 × 0.5 = 1.875 → which is $1.88 when rounded to nearest cent.

Then total: 3.25 + 4.20 + 5.50 + 1.88 = let’s add:

3.25 + 4.20 = 7.45
7.45 + 5.50 = 12.95
12.95 + 1.88 = 14.83

Yes.

✔ Michelle spent $14.83

---

Problem 4: Shannon at the book store

Shannon bought:
- Book: $7.99
- Magazine: $4.25
- Bookmark: $1.99
Total before discount: 7.99 + 4.25 + 1.99

Let’s add:

7.99 + 4.25 = 12.24
12.24 + 1.99 = 14.23

Her purchase was 15% off

Step 1: Find 15% of $14.23
0.15 × 14.23 = ?

Calculate:
10% of 14.23 = 1.423
5% of 14.23 = 0.7115
So 15% = 1.423 + 0.7115 = 2.1345 → approximately $2.13 (rounded to nearest cent)

Step 2: Subtract discount from total
$14.23 - $2.13 = $12.10

She handed the cashier a $20 bill.

Change = $20.00 - $12.10 = $7.90

✔ Shannon spent $12.10 and got $7.90 change.

---

Final Answers:

1. Max spent $3.30
2. John spent $12.80
3. Michelle spent $14.83
4. Shannon spent $12.10 and received $7.90 change

──────────────────────────────────────

Final Answer:
1. $3.30
2. $12.80
3. $14.83
4. Spent: $12.10, Change: $7.90