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Countdown
numbers solver.
Enter six number tiles and a target to find a Countdown-style solution with worked steps. Use +, −, × and ÷; each tile can be used once, and you can leave tiles unused.
How the Countdown numbers solver works
Enter your six tiles and the target, then choose Find a solution. A tile may be used at most once; you do not need to use all six. All intermediate results must be positive whole numbers, so 8 ÷ 3 and 3 − 8 are not allowed. An exact answer is returned as soon as one is found; it is not necessarily the shortest.
If no exact solution exists, a completed search returns the nearest reachable number and the steps to make it. You can cancel a search; a search stopped by the time limit does not establish that a puzzle is impossible.
Which numbers can I enter?
The familiar large tiles are 25, 50, 75 and 100; small tiles are 1 to 10. This calculator also accepts custom puzzles with any six whole numbers from 1 to 100. Repeated values count as separate tiles. Targets range from 100 to 999.
Try a four-number puzzle
For four numbers, fractions and targets from 1 to 100, use our Make 24 solver. Prefer to solve the puzzle yourself? Play Four Numbers or try the Four Fours challenge.
This is an independent arithmetic tool, not affiliated with the television programme.