Subtraction Drill Worksheets
Subtraction starts as take-away and ends as adding the opposite. These sheets track that progression: differences within 5 and 10 in kindergarten, facts within 20 and subtracting multiples of ten in grade 1, two-digit subtraction with regrouping in grade 2, three-digit subtraction including across zeros in grade 3, and the standard algorithm on four- and five-digit numbers in grade 4.
The three-set format matters more for subtraction than almost anywhere else, because borrowing errors are systematic — a student who makes one will make it on every problem of that shape. A second and third version of the same sheet shows whether a correction actually took hold. Vertical sheets leave room above each column for the regrouped digit; missing-number sheets present subtraction as an unknown-addend problem.
Choose a grade
Subtraction on this site runs from Kindergarten to grade 4: 29 worksheets across five grades and six formats (drill, timed drill, missing number, mixed review, vertical format, and word problems), each in three versions, for 2,424 problems in all with every answer keyed. Six of the sheets were first published on MathSheetLab and are kept here as Set A of their cell, with Sets B and C derived from them.
Grade by grade: Kindergarten works on taking away within 5 and within 10, including taking from ten; Grade 1 works on facts within 20, unknown-addend equations, and subtracting multiples of ten; Grade 2 works on two-digit subtraction within 100 with regrouping, and mental subtraction of 10 and 100; Grade 3 works on three-digit subtraction with regrouping, including across zeros; Grade 4 works on the standard algorithm on four- and five-digit numbers.
Focus: taking away within 5 and within 10, including taking from ten.
Kindergarten Subtraction Drill
Straight practice, 20-40 problems.
Kindergarten Subtraction Timed Drill
Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet.
Kindergarten Subtraction Missing Number
Solve for the blank in any position.
Kindergarten Subtraction Mixed Review
Assorted problem shapes from the operation.
Kindergarten Subtraction Vertical Format
Column arithmetic with regrouping lines.
Focus: facts within 20, unknown-addend equations, and subtracting multiples of ten.
Subtracting Multiples of 10 — Grade 1 Practice
Straight practice, 20-40 problems.
Grade 1 Subtraction Timed Drill
Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet.
Grade 1 Subtraction Missing Number
Solve for the blank in any position.
Grade 1 Subtraction Mixed Review
Assorted problem shapes from the operation.
Grade 1 Addition and Subtraction Word Problems
Story problems in real-world contexts.
Grade 1 Subtraction Vertical Format
Column arithmetic with regrouping lines.
Focus: two-digit subtraction within 100 with regrouping, and mental subtraction of 10 and 100.
Grade 2 Subtraction Practice
Straight practice, 20-40 problems.
Grade 2 Subtraction Timed Drill
Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet.
Grade 2 Subtraction Missing Number
Solve for the blank in any position.
2.MD.6 — Subtraction on a Number Line
Assorted problem shapes from the operation.
Grade 2 Subtraction Word Problems
Story problems in real-world contexts.
Grade 2 Subtraction Vertical Format
Column arithmetic with regrouping lines.
Focus: three-digit subtraction with regrouping, including across zeros.
Grade 3 Subtraction Drill
Straight practice, 20-40 problems.
Grade 3 Subtraction Timed Drill
Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet.
Grade 3 Subtraction Missing Number
Solve for the blank in any position.
Grade 3 Subtraction Mixed Review
Assorted problem shapes from the operation.
Grade 3 Subtraction Word Problems
Story problems in real-world contexts.
Grade 3 Three-Digit Subtraction with Regrouping
Column arithmetic with regrouping lines.
Focus: the standard algorithm on four- and five-digit numbers.
Grade 4 Subtraction Drill
Straight practice, 20-40 problems.
Grade 4 Subtraction Timed Drill
Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet.
Grade 4 Subtraction Missing Number
Solve for the blank in any position.
Grade 4 Subtraction Mixed Review
Assorted problem shapes from the operation.
Grade 4 Subtraction Word Problems
Story problems in real-world contexts.
Grade 4 Multi-Digit Subtraction (Standard Algorithm)
Column arithmetic with regrouping lines.
The six formats
- Drill. Straight practice, 20-40 problems. A page of same-shaped differences is where a borrowing method either settles or shows its cracks.
- Timed Drill. Fact fluency, 50-100 problems, timer box on sheet. Subtraction facts are the slowest of the four to become automatic; a timer shows which ones are still being counted.
- Missing Number. Solve for the blank in any position. Blanks in the minuend or subtrahend force the student to think of subtraction as a missing part, which is the idea behind every later inverse operation.
- Mixed Review. Assorted problem shapes from the operation. Mixing regrouping and non-regrouping problems stops a student from borrowing on every problem out of habit.
- Word Problems. Story problems in real-world contexts. Take-away, comparison and missing-part situations all call for subtraction, and telling them apart is the reading work this format practises.
- Vertical Format. Column arithmetic with regrouping lines. Column layout is the format regrouping was designed for; the trade has somewhere to be written.