This exam tips covers Exam Tips: Percentage Decrease within Percentage Decrease for GCSE Mathematics. Revise Percentage Decrease in Ratio & Proportion for GCSE Mathematics with 12 exam-style questions and 22 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 5 of 6 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
💡 Exam Tips: Percentage Decrease
- Always subtract from 1 - the percentage (as decimal) to get the multiplier
- Check your multiplier - it should always be less than 1 for decreases
- Show your working - write out the multiplier calculation
- Round sensibly - money to nearest penny, people to whole numbers
- Check your answer - new amount should be smaller than original
- Look for key words: "decrease", "discount", "reduction", "fall", "depreciation"
- Watch units - keep them consistent throughout
Practice questions for Percentage Decrease
What multiplier is used to decrease a value by 35%?
A shop advertises '25% off everything'. A student says: 'The multiplier is 0.25 because 25% = 0.25.' Explain what is wrong with the student's reasoning and state the correct multiplier.
Quick recall flashcards
What is a percentage decrease?
Finding a new amount after subtracting a percentage from the original amount
What is the multiplier for a 10% decrease?
0.90 (because 1 - 0.10 = 0.90)