Okay, so quick story before we even get into the math stuff. Bandapally Varshith Goud — he’s this kid who just passed SSC recently, and he’s super excited, right? The family’s all happy, sweets are going around, and people are calling to say congrats. But in the middle of all this, he’s staring at his marksheet with this completely blank face and goes, “I don’t know how to calculate my percentage.”
And I’m like — wait, what? You don’t know how to calculate your percentage of marks?
But honestly… same. I mean, I remember being in school and freezing up when someone asked me to find 40% of 80. My brain would just give me the “file not found” screen. So yeah, I get it. It’s one of those basic things nobody really explains well. You either figure it out by accident or you Google it three minutes before your results are due.
And it’s not just about school. This whole “how to calculate percentage” thing sneaks into your life when you’re checking discounts, calculating a salary hike, or opening Excel just to look smart and end up stuck typing =B2/A2 like it’s going to magically solve itself. Spoiler: it won’t.
So… we’re going to talk about it here. From percentages in marks to money stuff to the percentage formula itself — with zero shame and no math degree required. Just real stuff.
2. Understanding the Percentage Formula
Alright. So.
You know when someone says, “Just calculate the percentage,” and you’re like… cool. But what the hell does that even mean?
I remember in 10th grade—math class, last bench, sweating buckets during a surprise test—and the teacher throws this problem like, “Out of 80 marks, Ravi scored 56. What’s the percentage?”
And I just froze. Like I suddenly forgot numbers existed.
I stared at 56 and 80 like they were judging me.
Anyway.
It’s actually stupid simple (but only once it clicks, right?). Here’s the formula that Dummies and Cuemath both shout from the rooftops:
Percentage = (Part ÷ Whole) × 100
That’s it. That’s the whole deal.
So in that Ravi problem?
👉 56 is the part, 80 is the whole.
👉 56 ÷ 80 = 0.7
👉 0.7 × 100 = 70%
Boom. Done.
But it took me years to not overthink this crap.
I used to get tangled between what’s the “whole,” what’s the “part,” and then I’d randomly multiply or divide things until the answer looked like it might be right. (Pro tip: that never works.)
And the whole part → decimal → percentage thing? It’s just steps:
- First you divide (like, get a decimal: 0.3 or 0.75 or whatever)
- Then you slap a ×100 on it
- And suddenly it becomes something familiar: like 30%, 75%, etc.
Somehow just seeing it as “percent = part over total times 100” makes your brain chill.
Like oh okay… I’m not dumb. This actually makes sense.
And no, you don’t need to memorize anything weird. If you can divide pizza slices, you can get a percentage.
Anyway, I still sometimes Google “how to calculate percentage of a number” when my brain’s tired.
It’s fine. We all do it.
3. How to Calculate Percentage of Marks
Okay, so — calculating percentage of marks. I used to overthink this so much it’s ridiculous. Like, I thought there was some secret trick, some genius formula only the top scorers knew. Spoiler: it’s literally just math. Basic math. But nobody ever explained it like an actual human being, y’know?
So here’s how I finally got it (after messing it up in 10th class and panicking before PTM).
Let’s say you have 6 subjects. You got:
- English: 75
- Maths: 88
- Science: 79
- Social: 80
- Hindi: 85
- Computers: 81
You add them all up. That’s the first step. No shortcuts here.
75 + 88 + 79 + 80 + 85 + 81 = 488. That’s your total marks scored.
Now figure out how much the total marks possible is. If each subject is out of 100, then 6 × 100 = 600.
So now:
(488 ÷ 600) × 100 = 81.3%
Boom. That’s it. That’s literally how to calculate percentage of marks. I remember doing this in a hurry and putting 600 in the numerator once. I got 123%, felt like Einstein for 3 seconds until my teacher was like “are you okay?” So double-check what goes where.
Now—if you’re dealing with CGPA instead of marks (thanks CBSE, very helpful 🙄), you just multiply your CGPA by 9.5. Like if you have 8.2 CGPA:
8.2 × 9.5 = 77.9%
And if it’s SGPA (hello engineering students), different colleges have weird formulas. Mine was something like (SGPA – 0.75) × 10. Ask your college, don’t guess.
Oh, and for 10th class CBSE with 6 subjects, ignore the 6th optional subject (usually). Only top 5 are counted. So even if you got 99 in painting and failed maths, they’d skip maths. Sounds cool until it’s not. 😬
Honestly, it’s not hard. It just feels hard because school makes you scared to mess up. You won’t. Just remember: total marks you got ÷ total marks possible × 100. That’s it.
And keep a calculator nearby if numbers give you anxiety. No shame.
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4. Percentage of Money & Price Increase/Discount
So. I’ll be honest — I used to completely mess this up. Like, whenever someone said “what’s the percentage of X amount,” my brain would just freeze. You’d think it’s basic math, right? But nah. I’d just randomly divide stuff and pretend I knew what I was doing. Spoiler: I didn’t.
Anyway, one day my friend asked, “Hey, if I saved ₹2,000 out of ₹5,000 this month, what percentage is that?” And I panicked. I opened the calculator app like I was diffusing a bomb. Turns out, it’s just (part ÷ total) × 100. So in that case: (2000 ÷ 5000) × 100 = 40%. Easy. Obvious. And yet, I had to Google it again later. Why is math like this?
Now. The percentage of money thing also gets weird when prices start changing — like if your salary goes up (rare, but yeah), or if something gets more expensive (all the time, right?). That’s when you use this little monster:
((new – old) ÷ old) × 100
So let’s say your electricity bill went from ₹1,200 to ₹1,500 —
((1500 – 1200) ÷ 1200) × 100 = 25% increase.
Yay. Not.
And then there’s discounts — which, btw, never feel real. Like those “70% off” signs that somehow still cost more than your budget. But yeah, same formula. If a shirt was ₹2,000 and it’s now ₹1,400:
((2000 – 1400) ÷ 2000) × 100 = 30% discount. Seems great. Until you add shipping.
There’s also compound vs. simple discounts but honestly, most stores don’t even explain which one they’re doing. You just go broke slower.
Anyway, if you ever forget all this — just remember:
Numbers don’t lie. But they do hide stuff sometimes.
Just type “how to calculate percentage of money” in Google and you’ll land right back here. Hopefully.
5. Using Excel or a Calculator
So… Excel. God, where do I even start?
The first time I tried to calculate a percentage in Excel, I just stared at the blinking cursor like it was mocking me. You know when someone tells you, “Just use a formula!” like that means anything? I typed =B2/A2 and… nothing made sense. It gave me a number like 0.78 and I was like, cool… is that good? Am I passing? Failing? Who knows.
But then someone told me — duh — just multiply by 100. So yeah, =(B2/A2)*100. And boom, you get a real percentage. Like “78%” instead of “0.78,” which feels way less depressing. If you don’t wanna see the decimal drama, just format the cell as a percent — right-click, Format Cells > Percentage. Or there’s that tiny % button in the toolbar that I missed for three years straight.
Anyway. The calculator. Honestly, my brain just melts when it comes to that old Casio thing from school. There’s a percent button, right? But I always forget how to use it. Sometimes I’ll just type 25 ÷ 200 × 100, because that always works. And feels safer. Like, I trust the calculator more when I don’t try anything fancy.
“how to calculate percentage in calculator” is literally something I’ve Googled during exams. No shame.
And Excel? It’s scary at first but weirdly satisfying once you get it right. Like folding a fitted sheet correctly. Rare. Magical. Maybe not life-changing, but still, it helps.
Also, small warning — don’t do formulas when you’re sleep-deprived. I once copied =B2/A2*100 down a column, forgot to lock the cells, and everything broke. I almost cried. Ctrl+Z saved me though.
Anyway. Try stuff. Mess up. Ctrl+Z exists for a reason.
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6. Real‑World Scenarios & Tools
Okay, so quick confession: I used to completely freeze whenever someone asked me, “What’s the percentage?” Like, even simple stuff. Exam results? Salary hike? Discounts at a mall? My brain just went nope. Total math blackout.
I remember this one time—I got my 12th-grade results, and the first thing my uncle asked me (before even asking if I passed) was, “Beta, kitna percentage aaya?” And I had no clue. I just mumbled something like “umm… good?” and Googled “how to calculate percentage of marks” in the bathroom. (Yep. True story.)
Anyway, turns out it’s not that scary. Like, if you know your total marks are 500 and you got 421, just do 421 divided by 500 and multiply by 100. That’s it. 84.2%. Done. But for some reason, when real life throws numbers at you—like when your boss says your salary went from 28K to 33K—you panic. Or maybe that’s just me.
Now? I’m lazy. I just use a percentage calculator online. You punch in two numbers and boom—done. Even for things like “how to calculate percentage increase in salary,” those calculators save your life.
I still kinda suck at mental math. But at least I stopped lying about knowing it.
7. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is 40% of 70 marks?
Okay, so you’re looking at 40% of 70? Simple. Just take 70, multiply it by 0.40 (because 40% is the same as 0.40), and boom, you get 28. You just scored 28 marks out of 70. Nice!
How to convert CGPA to percentage?
This one trips up a lot of people, trust me. So, here’s how it works: you just take your CGPA, multiply it by 9.5. Yup, that’s it. So if you’ve got a CGPA of, say, 7.2, you multiply 7.2 by 9.5, and you get 68.4%. It’s as easy as that! (Just don’t forget that 9.5 bit, okay?)
How to calculate percentage of marks of 5 subjects?
Ah, the classic 5-subject struggle. It’s simple math, though. You add up the marks of all 5 subjects, and then divide by the total marks possible for those subjects. Like, if each subject is out of 100, and you get 85 in one, 90 in another, 78 in one more, 88 in another, and 92 in the last, you’d add those all up. So, 85+90+78+88+92 = 433. Then, divide 433 by the total marks — 500 (because 5 subjects × 100 = 500). Now, multiply that by 100, and you get your percentage: 433 ÷ 500 × 100 = 86.6%. Boom, you’re good!
Anyway, these percentage questions can be pretty annoying at first, but once you get the hang of them, it’s kind of like riding a bike. You know, wobbly at first, but then it all clicks. Keep practicing, and soon you’ll be a percentage pro.
8. Conclusion & CTA
So, yeah, percentages are not as scary as they seem. Once you get the hang of the formula and maybe—just maybe—start using a calculator or Excel to make things easier, it’s really just a numbers game. I mean, we all gotta do this stuff at some point—whether you’re checking your exam marks or figuring out a discount at the store. It’s kinda basic math, but still… knowing the right tools helps.
Look, practice makes this all way simpler. Seriously, make your own calculator sheet. If you need a little cheat sheet to get you started, I got you. Click below to grab it. Trust me, you’ll be adding percentages like a pro in no time.