Well, percentages are all around us, from sales discounts to investment returns. Imagine you're shopping for a new pair of shoes and they're on 20% off - you'll want to know how much you'll actually pay, right? That's where your trusty calculator comes in.
To calculate a percentage, you'll need to know the original number and the percentage rate. For example, let's say you want to calculate 15% of $250. Simply enter the original number ($250) into your calculator, followed by the multiply button, and then the percentage rate (15%) converted to a decimal (0.15). Easy peasy!
But, what if you want to find the percentage increase or decrease between two numbers? No worries, it's just as straightforward. Let's say you want to know the percentage increase from $200 to $250. Enter the new number ($250) minus the original number ($200) = $50, then divide by the original number ($200), and finally multiply by 100 to get the percentage increase (25%).