Multi-digit add/subtract3-digit
Name: Date:
Add or subtract. Work down the columns, and check the sign first.
1651−403
2595−382
3993+954
4902−149
5744−433
6251+663
7937+751
8401+244
Column addition & subtraction worksheets
Once single-digit facts are automatic, children line numbers up and work column by column. These free printable worksheets practice the standard written method for adding and subtracting multi-digit whole numbers, carrying and borrowing across places.
If they get stuck
Column addition & subtraction
The answer key prints on a separate page.
What's on this sheet
Each problem stacks two numbers of the chosen digit length with the operation on the left, ready to be worked one column at a time from the ones place. Addition and subtraction share a page — or sticks to one — and every subtraction's top number is larger than the bottom, so answers stay whole and non-negative while the child concentrates on regrouping.
Why this sheet works
Regrouping is the whole point at this stage, so it is a control rather than an accident. Ask for problems that always carry or borrow when that is the sticking point, turn regrouping off for a gentler warm-up, or leave it mixed. The digit size sets the difficulty — two, three, or four digits — while the layout stays the familiar vertical column a child writes in by hand.
How this one works
One question from a sheet like this one, worked a step at a time — with a sentence saying what just happened and why.
Column addition & subtraction, step by step