How to use the scientific calculator
Tap the buttons, or click in the display and type. You can use your keyboard: * for multiply, / for divide, ^ for powers and sqrt( for square roots. The answer updates as you type, and pressing = or Enter saves the sum to the list underneath so you can look back at your working.
Ans uses your last answer in the next sum, so you can do a long calculation in steps. AC clears the display and ⌫ deletes the last character.
Order of operations (BIDMAS)
The calculator follows the same order you learn at school in the UK, called BIDMAS (or BODMAS):
- Brackets first
- Indices (powers and roots)
- Division and Multiplication, left to right
- Addition and Subtraction, left to right
So 2 + 3 × 4 is 14, not 20, because the multiplication happens first. Put brackets round the part you want done first: (2 + 3) × 4 = 20. A minus sign in front of a power applies after the power, so −3² is −9, while (−3)² is 9.
Degrees or radians?
Angles can be measured in degrees (a full turn is 360°) or radians (a full turn is 2π). GCSE maths, building work and most everyday angles use degrees, so the calculator starts in Deg. Switch to Rad for A level, university maths and physics questions that give angles in terms of π. Getting this wrong is the most common reason for a "wrong" trig answer.
Worked examples
| Type this | Answer | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 2+3×4 | 14 | Multiplication before addition |
| (2+3)×4 | 20 | Brackets first |
| 2^10 | 1,024 | 2 to the power of 10 |
| √(144) | 12 | Square root |
| sin(30) | 0.5 | In degrees |
| tan(45) | 1 | In degrees |
| cos⁻¹(0.5) | 60 | The angle whose cosine is 0.5, in degrees |
| log(1000) | 3 | Log to base 10 |
| ln(e) | 1 | Natural log, base e |
| 5! | 120 | 5 × 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 |
| 80×15% | 12 | 15% of 80 |
| 2×π×3 | 18.8496 | Circumference of a circle with radius 3 (2πr) |
What the buttons do
- sin, cos, tan: trigonometry for right-angled triangles. SOH CAH TOA: sin = opposite ÷ hypotenuse, cos = adjacent ÷ hypotenuse, tan = opposite ÷ adjacent.
- sin⁻¹, cos⁻¹, tan⁻¹: work backwards from a ratio to the angle.
- log: logarithm to base 10. log(100) = 2 because 10² = 100.
- ln: natural logarithm, to base e (about 2.71828), used for growth and decay.
- x², xʸ, √: squares, any power, and square roots. For a cube root use a power of one third:
27^(1/3)= 3. - n!: factorial, the number of ways to arrange n things. 4! = 24.
- %: divides by 100, so
200×17.5%gives 35.
For everyday percentage questions such as "what's 20% off?" the percentage calculator is quicker, and the fraction calculator keeps answers as fractions.
Frequently asked questions
How do I do sin, cos and tan in degrees?
Select Deg, type the function with the angle in brackets, for example sin(30), and press =. In degrees sin(30) = 0.5, cos(60) = 0.5 and tan(45) = 1.
Why is my sin answer wrong?
The calculator is probably in the wrong angle mode. Use Deg for angles in degrees, such as 30°, and Rad for angles in radians, such as π/6.
Does the calculator use BIDMAS?
Yes. Brackets come first, then powers and roots, then division and multiplication, then addition and subtraction. So 2 + 3 × 4 = 14.
How do I do a cube root?
Raise the number to the power of one third. Type 27^(1/3) and press = to get 3. Use 1/4 for a fourth root, and so on.
What is the difference between log and ln?
log is the logarithm to base 10, so log(100) = 2. ln is the natural logarithm to base e (about 2.718), so ln(e) = 1.
Last reviewed October 2026. Answers are shown to 13 significant figures.