This Apparently Easy Math Problem Continues to Confuse People

An additional problem that seems easy enough at first glance is being widely shared, as people’s mental arithmetic skills keep getting tripped up by the same part of it. All you have to do is add up the following numbers. Try it for yourself:

You have 1000,

add 40,

add 1000,

add 30,

again add 1000,

add 20,

again 1000,

add 10

What is the result?

Got it? Share your answer below and then check the answer! Keep scrolling for answers or solutions.

A

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C

ANSWER:
If you came up with 5,000 then congratulations: you’re not alone. But you’re also not correct.

The actual right answer is 4,100.

See, it’s remarkably straightforward to add up the first bunch of numbers in your head. 1,000 plus 40 is 1,040, plus 1,000 is 2,040, plus 30 is 3,070, plus 1,000 is 3,070, plus 20 is 3,090, plus 1,000 is 4,090. But it’s at this penultimate sum that things get tricky. Most people, when adding 10 to that figure, come up with 5,000. But that’s your brain skipping ahead (and overlooking a zero). The correct sum is, of course, 4,100.