Multiplication table facts for kids

A multiplication table by Adam Ries, from the 1490s.

This is an 18th-century set of Napier's bones, a tool for calculations.

A multiplication table is a helpful chart that shows you how to multiply numbers. It's a key tool for learning math! The very first multiplication tables were made by the Babylonians about 4,000 years ago. Many people believe it's super important to know your multiplication facts by heart. Usually, this means knowing up to 12 × 12, but some learn up to 30 × 30 or even 99 × 99.

Most kids start learning the 2, 5, and 10 times tables around age six or seven. By age seven or eight, they move on to the 3, 4, and 8 times tables. Did you know that 6 × 8 is often the hardest multiplication fact for students? They get it wrong about 63% of the time! Close behind are 8 × 6, 11 × 12, 12 × 8, and 8 × 12. The easiest ones are usually 1 × 12, 1 × 6, and 9 × 1, with less than 5% of students getting them wrong.

In a multiplication table, you pick a number from the first column and multiply it by a number from the first row. The answer is found where that row and column meet. For example, in the table below, if you want to multiply 21 by 18, you'll find the answer, 378, where the row for 21 and the column for 18 cross. Numbers shown in bold are squares, which means a number multiplied by itself (like 5 × 5 = 25).

Ancient Decimal Multiplication Table

The oldest known decimal multiplication table comes from ancient China. It's made of 21 strips of bamboo and dates back to 305 BC. This amazing discovery is from the Warring States period.

This image shows a Warring States decimal multiplication table. It can be used to find the answer to 12 × 34.5.

How Multiplication Tables are Used

Multiplication tables are often written in columns, showing complete math problems. This is how they are taught in schools. Here are some examples of how the 6 and 7 times tables look in this traditional way.

The 6 Times Table

This chart shows multiples of 6.

• 6 x 1 = 6
• 6 x 2 = 12
• 6 x 3 = 18
• 6 x 4 = 24
• 6 x 5 = 30
• 6 x 6 = 36
• 6 x 7 = 42
• 6 x 8 = 48
• 6 x 9 = 54
• 6 x 10 = 60
• 6 x 11 = 66
• 6 x 12 = 72

The 7 Times Table

A matrix showing multiples of 7.

• 7 x 1 = 7
• 7 x 2 = 14
• 7 x 3 = 21
• 7 x 4 = 28
• 7 x 5 = 35
• 7 x 6 = 42
• 7 x 7 = 49
• 7 x 8 = 56
• 7 x 9 = 63
• 7 x 10 = 70
• 7 x 11 = 77
• 7 x 12 = 84

Tables for Other Math Operations

Just like multiplication, Addition and Division can also have their own tables. You could even make a table for Subtraction, though it's not used as often.

Addition Tables

Addition tables help you quickly find the sum of two numbers.

Division Tables

In math, a division table helps you understand division. It's like a multiplication table but for dividing numbers. The symbol for division, ÷, is called the obelus. It was first used in 1659. However, mathematicians usually write division as a fraction, using a line called a vinculum. Division tables can help you find the answer, or quotient, when you do Long division.

Images for kids

• 

  The Tsinghua Bamboo Slips, a Chinese Warring States era decimal multiplication table from 305 BC.

• 

  "Table of Pythagoras" on Napier's bones.

See also

In Spanish: Tabla de multiplicar para niños