Science Calculators

These calculators cover the physics and chemistry formulas that come up most in school and first-year courses. Each page states the formula, says which units it expects and works one example through by hand.

For motion, the speed, distance and time calculator finds any one of the three from the other two. The centripetal force calculator gives the force needed to keep an object moving in a circle from its mass, speed and radius. The wavelength calculator links wavelength, frequency and wave speed. The center of mass calculator finds the balance point of a set of point masses, and the mass calculator adds masses given in kilograms, grams or pounds.

For chemistry, the stoichiometry calculator uses the mole ratio from a balanced equation to convert between amounts of reactants and products.

Units matter more in science than anywhere else in maths. Most mistakes in these problems come from mixing units, for example a speed in kilometres per hour with a time in seconds. Convert everything to one consistent set of units before you put the numbers in, and check that the unit of the answer makes sense. For unit conversions themselves, our sister site UnitCheck is the place to go.