What Are Cents in Math? Definition, Examples, Facts (2024)

What Are Cents?

A cent is the most basic unit of money used across many countries. The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States, where 100 cents make 1 dollar.

In the US, Canada, and Australia, a cent equals one-hundredth of a dollar. In Europe, 100 cents make 1 euro. It is also called “euro cent” to differentiate it from the US cent.

1 USD = 100 cents

In the US, one dollar comes in both coin and note forms. Cents are primarily represented by coins. There are coins for 1 cent (penny), 5 cents (nickel), 10 cents (dime), 25 cents (quarter), etc.

Cents are used for expressing smaller denominations of currency and are often used in transactions involving coins or fractional monetary values.

Definition of Cents

A cent is the smallest denomination of money. Also known by the name the penny, a cent is in circulation across many countries, including the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Cent is a currency that can be used to obtain several items for exchange purposes.

Cent Symbol

Cent symbol or cent sign: ¢

How to use the cents symbol? It may be interesting to know that whereas we write the symbol of a dollar before the amount, the cents symbol is written after the numerical value. The Cent symbol follows the amount with no space between.

Here is an image to show you what the cents sign looks like.

Example 1: $\$1$ = 100¢

Example 2: How to write 75 cents

Let us take a look at cent examples to understand how we can express cents.

If we want to denote 75 cents in terms of dollars, then we can write it as $\$0.75$. Or, we can state it as 75¢.

What Is 1 Cent?

1 US cent coin is called a penny. Each cent represents one hundredth of a dollar, making it a fraction of the base unit.

Here’s an image of a cent coin. It features the image of Abraham Lincoln on it.

How Much is a Cent?

5 cents = 1 nickel

10 cents = 1 dime

25 cents = a quarter dollar

50 cents = Half dollar

100 cents = 1 US dollar

How Many Cents in $\$1$?

There are 100 cents in $\$1$.

This subdivision allows for more precise and flexible transactions and calculations when dealing with smaller denominations of currency.

Facts about Cents

Conclusion

In this article, we learnt about cents, its definition, symbol, its value, and relation with different coins. Let’s solve a few examples based on the concept for better clarity and comprehension.

Solved Examples on Cents

1. If Andy bought 3 items which cost 50 cents each and paid for them with a $\$5$ bill, how much change would he receive?

Solution:

Each item costs 50 cents.

Cost of 3 items $= 3 \times 50 = 150$ cents

100 cents make 1 dollar.

Thus, 150 cents $= \$1.5$

Andy paid $\$5$.

The change that he will receive $= \$5\; -\; \$1.5 = \$3.5$

2. Convert $\$2.5$ into cents.

Solution:

We know that $1 = 100 cents.

Thus, $\$2.5 = (100 \times 2.5)$ cents = 250 cents

3. If we have a nickel, a dime, a quarter, and a dollar with us, how many cents in total do we have?

Solution:

We know that 1 nickel = 5 cents

1 dime = 10 cents

1 quarter = 25 cents

1 dollar = 100 cents

Total = 5 + 10 + 25 + 100 = 140 cents.

In total, we have 140 cents.

4. If you spend 8 dimes to buy a roller skate and 60 cents to buy a video game, what is the total cost?

Solution:

You will be spending $\$1.4$.

We know that 1 dime = 10 cents

8 dimes $= 10 \times 8 = 80$ cents.

Total cost = 80 cents + 60 cents = 140 cents

Now, 140 cents $= \$\frac{140}{100} = \$1.4$

5. Which is greater: 2 quarters or 3 dimes?

Solution:

We know that 1 quarter = 25 cents.

2 quarters $= 25 \times 2$ cents = 50 cents

Also, 1 dime = 5 cents

3 dimes $= 10 \times 3$ cents = 30 cents

Thus, 2 quarters > 3 dimes

Practice Problems on Cents

Frequently Asked Questions on Cents