Question

Ninety percent of a town’s population owns cars. If the number of cars owned is 4761, what is the population of the town?

Answer 1

Write an equation. Use x for the population of the town.

90% of the population is the same as 90% of x.

To change a percent into a decimal, divide the percent by 100.

90/100 = 0.9, so 90% is the same as 0.9.

Now we write an equation.

0.9x = 4761

Divide both sides by 0.9:

x = 4761/0.9

x = 5290

Answer: The population of the town is 5290.

Answer 2

We can write an equation of this, with p representing the unknown population. We know that 90% of the population owns cars:

90% * p

We also know that 4761 people own cars, which is the same as the above expression, so we write:

90% * p = 4761.

From there, you just divide both sides by 90%, or 0.9

p = 4761/0.9 = 5290

The population is 5290 people.