The times tables, also called multiplication tables, are not hard. They are just slow and boring to learn the usual way, by reciting a chart from top to bottom. This guide shows how to learn your times tables fast with a smarter order, a few pattern tricks and a short daily routine. It works for children and for adults who never quite got them down.
What is the fastest way to learn times tables?
The fastest way to learn times tables is to learn fewer facts. Swap pairs like 3 × 7 and 7 × 3 count as one fact, the easy tables cover most of the grid, and patterns turn known facts into new ones. Then practise by recalling answers from memory for a few minutes every day, rather than rereading.
Here is how much smaller the job gets. The tables from 1 × 1 to 10 × 10 contain 100 facts. Because 6 × 8 gives the same answer as 8 × 6, only 55 of them are different. Learn the 1s, 2s, 5s and 10s, which follow simple counting patterns, and just 21 of those 55 are left.
How you practise matters as much as what you practise. In 2013, a team of psychologists led by John Dunlosky reviewed ten common study techniques and rated two of them as high utility. Those two were practice testing and spreading practice out over time. Rereading was rated low.
For times tables, practice testing simply means answering "what is 7 × 8?" from memory, with flashcards, a quiz or a game, instead of looking the answer up again. A chart on the wall feels productive, but reading a fact is not the same as remembering it.
In what order should you learn the times tables?
Learn the times tables in an order where each step leans on what you already know. Start with the 1s, 2s, 5s and 10s. Then add the 4s by doubling the 2s and the 9s with a finger trick, then the 3s. That leaves only six facts that need pure memory.
This list shows how quickly the grid from 1 × 1 to 10 × 10 shrinks when you follow that order.
- Start with the whole grid. Swap pairs count once, so 6 × 8 = 8 × 6. Different facts still to learn: 55.
- Step 1: the 1s, 2s, 5s and 10s, using counting patterns. Different facts still to learn: 21.
- Step 2: the 4s and the 9s, using doubling and the finger trick. Different facts still to learn: 10.
- Step 3: the 3s, as the 2s plus one more group. Different facts still to learn: 6.
- Step 4: 6 × 6, 6 × 7, 6 × 8, 7 × 7, 7 × 8 and 8 × 8, using the tricks below and then lots of recall. Different facts still to learn: 0.
So the hard part of the grid is six facts, not a hundred. Spend the extra practice on those six instead of reciting tables your child already knows well.
Many schools also expect the 11s and 12s. The 11s repeat the digit up to 11 × 9, as in 22, 33 and 44. The 12s are the 10s plus the 2s, so 12 × 7 = 70 + 14 = 84.
What are the best tricks for learning multiplication?
The best multiplication tricks turn a hard fact into easy ones you already know. Double to get the 4s and 8s, use your fingers for the 9s, and build the 6s from the 5s plus one more group. These tricks use only numbers and fingers, so they work in any language.
Double for the 4s and 8s
To multiply by 4, double twice. For 4 × 7, double 7 to get 14, then double 14 to get 28. To multiply by 8, double three times. For 8 × 6, go from 6 to 12, then 24, then 48.
Use your fingers for the 9s
Hold up all ten fingers. For 9 × 7, fold down the seventh finger from the left. Six fingers stand to the left of it and three to the right, so the answer is 63.
There is a built-in check too. From 9 × 1 to 9 × 10, the digits of every answer add up to 9, as in 6 + 3 for 63. You can also think of 9 × 7 as 10 × 7 minus one 7, which gives 70 − 7 = 63.
Build the 6s from the 5s
Six 8s are five 8s plus one more 8. Five 8s make 40, and 40 + 8 = 48, so 6 × 8 = 48. The same idea builds the 3s from the 2s, because 3 × 8 = 16 + 8 = 24.
Split a hard fact into two easy ones
Any fact can be split into parts your child already knows. For 7 × 8, take five 8s and two 8s. That gives 40 + 16 = 56.
Is there a trick to learning the 7 times table?
The best trick for the 7 times table is that you barely need one. Once you know the other tables up to 10, every fact in the 7s is already covered by its swap partner except 7 × 7. If a 7s fact still won't come, split 7 into 5 and 2 and add the two results.
For 7 × 6, five 6s are 30 and two 6s are 12, so 7 × 6 = 30 + 12 = 42. For 7 × 8, look at the digits in 56 = 7 × 8. They run 5, 6, 7, 8 in order, which makes this famously tricky fact easy to picture.
That leaves 7 × 7 = 49. It belongs to the square numbers, so practise it with its neighbours 6 × 6 = 36 and 8 × 8 = 64 as one small set.
How much should you practise times tables each day?
Short and daily beats long and occasional. Five to ten minutes of recall on most days, ideally at the same moment each day, works better than one long session at the weekend. Spreading practice out gives memory time to settle between sessions, which is why it scores so well in learning research.
A ten-minute session could look like this.
- Two minutes on facts your child already knows, as a warm-up that builds confidence.
- Five minutes on the current target, such as the 4s or the last six facts.
- Three minutes of mixed questions that include division. If 6 × 8 = 48, then 48 ÷ 8 = 6 and 48 ÷ 6 = 8.
That last step is worth keeping. Both England's national curriculum and the US Common Core pair multiplication facts with their division facts. Many parents find it helps to say them as one unit, such as "6 times 8 is 48, and 48 divided by 8 is 6."
Pick a slot your family will actually keep, like the ride to school or the minutes before dinner. Consistency does more of the work than intensity.
Fast recall comes from many repetitions, and the hard part is keeping a child willing to do them. In the Math Max multiplication game, every correct answer is a punch in a head-to-head fight, and the times tables level mixes every fact from 2 × 2 to 9 × 9. Children get the recall practice that research favours while it feels like play.
What age should a child know their times tables?
Many school systems expect children to recall their times tables instantly by about age 9. England's national curriculum and the US Common Core both set this goal for the school year in which most children turn 9. England asks for every table up to 12 × 12, while the US standard covers every fact up to 9 × 9.
Children usually start earlier with the easy tables. In England, the 2s, 5s and 10s come first, in the school year in which most children turn 7. The 3s, 4s and 8s follow a year later.
These ages are targets, not deadlines. Plenty of children get there a year or two later, and adults can learn the tables at any age with exactly the same method.
What if your child gets stuck or practice ends in tears?
If practice ends in tears, make it shorter and easier, not longer. Go back to facts your child already knows, end every session on a correct answer, and work on one small set at a time. A child who feels stressed thinks less clearly, so a few relaxed minutes each day work better than a tense half hour.
A common pattern is a child who counts up to every answer, such as 7, 14, 21, 28 to find 4 × 7. That is a good sign, because it shows they understand what multiplication means. The goal now is to shorten the path. Keep a fact on a "working it out" list until the answer comes without counting, then move it to a "know it" list.
Another common pattern is a child who can recite the 7s in order but freezes on 7 × 6 on its own. Reciting a table and recalling a single fact are different skills. Mix the questions so each fact has to stand on its own.
If your child keeps struggling despite regular, relaxed practice, talk to their teacher. Difficulty with number facts can have many causes, and a teacher or specialist can look at what is going on.
A few minutes of recall every day is what makes the tables stick
Learn the tables in a smart order, use doubling, splitting and the finger trick to fill the gaps, and save your repetition for the last six facts. Then keep it short and daily. When multiplication feels solid, the division game on Math Max uses the same facts in reverse, which is where many children find the tables finally lock in. Ten calm minutes a day will take your child further than any long weekend session.
Train these next