Can You Solve This Simple Math Riddle?
At first, this puzzle looks like something a child could solve in a few seconds.
But once people start thinking about it, things get surprisingly confusing.
Some people say the answer is $200.
Others say $170.
Some even come up with $130.
So why does such a simple question cause so many arguments?
The trick is that your brain can easily count the same $100 twice.
Before looking at the answer, try solving it yourself.
Here’s the Riddle
A man takes $100 from a store’s cash register.
Later, he comes back to the same store and buys $70 worth of goods. He pays with the stolen $100 bill.
The cashier gives him $30 in change.
So, how much money did the store actually lose?
Take a moment and work it out carefully.
The Simple Answer
The store’s total loss is $100.
Here’s why.
When the man first took the $100, the store lost $100.
Later, he returned and used that same $100 to buy $70 worth of products. The cashier gave him $30 back.
But that stolen $100 bill is now back inside the cash register.
So the store has lost:
- $70 worth of products
- $30 in cash
That adds up to exactly $100.
The original $100 bill cannot be counted as another $100 loss because it came back to the store.
An Easier Way to See It
Imagine the thief walked into the store and simply asked for:
$70 worth of merchandise + $30 cash
That would clearly be a $100 loss for the store.
That’s exactly what happened.
The stolen bill was only used to make the purchase. It eventually returned to the register.
That’s where the confusion usually happens. People see the stolen $100, the $70 purchase, and the $30 change and start adding everything together.
But the same $100 is being counted more than once.
This puzzle isn’t really testing your math skills.
It’s testing whether you can keep track of what actually left the store in the end.
The final loss is simple:
$70 in products + $30 in cash = $100.
So, did you get $100 on your first attempt, or did the riddle trick you?
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