The GED Math test gives you a formula sheet, but it does not give you everything. A third of the questions lean on formulas you are expected to know cold: area and perimeter, the Pythagorean theorem, slope, simple interest, and a handful of others. The candidates who pass on the first attempt memorized that short list before test day. This page gives you the full list, grouped the way the exam actually uses it, with quick examples so the formulas stick instead of sliding out of your memory an hour later.
What the Official Formula Sheet Gives You
The reference sheet built into the test software includes the distance formula, the slope formula, the point-slope equation, the quadratic formula, several circle and rectangle formulas, and simple interest. Sounds generous - until you notice what is missing. Area of a triangle, volume of a cylinder, the Pythagorean theorem, unit rate, and percent change are all fair game, and none of them appear on that sheet. Treat it as a supplement, not a safety net. You should arrive knowing at least twenty formulas without looking anything up, because every second spent hunting the sheet is a second stolen from the multi-step problems.
Geometry Formulas to Memorize Cold
Geometry questions appear in every official practice test. Copy this list and drill it until each formula takes under two seconds to recall:
- Rectangle: area = length x width, perimeter = 2 x (length + width)
- Triangle: area = (base x height) / 2
- Circle: area = pi x r2, circumference = 2 x pi x r
- Rectangular prism: volume = length x width x height
- Cylinder: volume = pi x r2 x height
- Right triangles: a2 + b2 = c2, the Pythagorean theorem
Notice how the shapes overlap. If you know the rectangle and the circle, you can rebuild most of the rest under pressure. Rounding almost never matters here unless the question explicitly says to round - answers are usually exact or clean fractions, so a long decimal is a signal you took a wrong turn.
Algebra and Data Formulas
The algebra half of the test leans on slope, rate, and percent. Slope is rise over run: (y2 - y1) / (x2 - x1). When the test hands you a point and a slope, point-slope form - y - y1 = m(x - x1) - writes the full line in one move. Unit rate is a ratio reduced to a per-one comparison: total cost divided by total units. Percent change equals (new - old) / old, multiplied by 100. Simple interest is I = P x r x t, with r written as a decimal. Mean is the sum divided by the count; median is the middle value once the data sits in order. Four formulas cover nearly every data question the GED can build, which is why these deserve more drill time than any geometry set.
Formulas You Will Not Find on the Sheet
Memorize these separately: triangle area, every three-dimensional volume above, the Pythagorean theorem, percent change, mean and median, unit price comparisons, and the number-line distance shortcut - subtract the endpoints and take the absolute value. If you have two weeks to prepare, spend the first three days on this list alone. Write each formula ten times, then answer twenty practice questions that only touch these formulas. Fluency here buys you time on the harder multi-step problems later, and on a timed test, time is the whole game.
GED Math Formulas - Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a formula sheet on the GED Math test?
Yes. The test software includes a built-in sheet with slope, distance, quadratic, circle, and simple interest formulas. It omits triangle area, volume, the Pythagorean theorem, and percent change, so you must memorize those yourself.
How many formulas do I need to memorize?
About twenty. The list on this page covers every formula that appears on recent official practice tests. Memorize them, then practice applying them inside word problems, where most points are actually lost.
What is the fastest way to learn GED math formulas?
Write them by hand, say them out loud, then apply each one in five practice questions the same day. Review the next morning and again four days later. Two weeks of that cycle beats a month of passive re-reading every time.
If formulas are not your problem and time is, see how candidates finish with our pass GED fast route. Next, read the algebra shortcuts that actually work, or let a professional test taker sit the GED exam for you - confidential, with a 98.6% pass rate and results in 2 to 5 business days.