About This Calculator
How It Works
This calculator handles all four arithmetic operations on fractions and automatically simplifies the result to its lowest terms. For addition and subtraction, it finds a common denominator before operating. For multiplication, it multiplies numerators and denominators directly. For division, it multiplies by the reciprocal. Every result is reduced by dividing by the greatest common divisor — so you always get the cleanest possible answer.
The Formula
Addition: (a/b) + (c/d) = (ad + bc) / bd. Multiplication: (a/b) × (c/d) = ac / bd. Always simplify by GCD.
When to Use This
Fractions come up in cooking (scaling recipes), woodworking and construction (imperial measurements), math homework, and any situation where exact ratios matter more than decimal approximations. This calculator is especially useful when you need to combine multiple fractional measurements — like adding 3/4 cup and 2/3 cup — and want to verify the result without doing mental arithmetic.
Example
3/4 + 2/3 = 9/12 + 8/12 = 17/12 = 1 and 5/12. See? Not so scary when someone else does the work.
Did You Know?
Ancient Egyptians only used unit fractions — fractions with 1 in the numerator (like 1/2, 1/4). To write 3/4, they'd write 1/2 + 1/4. This is called Egyptian fraction notation and mathematicians still study it today.