Worksheets · Algebra 1

Algebra 1 one-step equation word problems worksheet

Find the unknown and give it a letter, then find the one thing that happened to it: something added, taken away, multiplied or shared out. Write that as an equation and undo it.

Select your difficulty

Pick more than one for a sheet that mixes them.

Free math worksheets at sigmaprep.io/worksheets© 2026 Sigma Prep

Sigma Prep · sigmaprep.io/worksheets

Name

One-Step Equation Word Problems

Date Period

Write an equation and solve it.

  1. Some pencils are shared equally among 3 students, and each gets 5. How many pencils were there?
  2. Write an equation, then solve it. A prize is split equally among 4 winners, and each gets $38. How big was the prize?
  3. Three fifths of the class, 21 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  4. 5 notebooks cost $25 in all. How much does each notebook cost?
  5. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $17, Jo has $17 left. How much did Jo have at first?
  6. One third of the class, 7 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  7. Jordan got 11 more stickers from a friend and now has 43. How many stickers did Jordan have before?
  8. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $3, Jo has $27 left. How much did Jo have at first?
  9. Two fifths of the class, 20 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  10. After spending $11 on a jacket, Priya has $35 left. How much did Priya have to start with?
  11. Write an equation, then solve it. A prize is split equally among 3 winners, and each gets $44. How big was the prize?
  12. Three fourths of the class, 30 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  13. 4 notebooks cost $28 in all. How much does each notebook cost?
  14. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $14, Jo has $26 left. How much did Jo have at first?
  15. Two thirds of the class, 8 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  16. The temperature fell 8 degrees overnight to 6 degrees. What was it before it fell?
  17. Write an equation, then solve it. A plant grew 3 cm and is now 39 cm tall. How tall was it before?
  18. Five sixths of the class, 25 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?
  19. 7 notebooks cost $28 in all. How much does each notebook cost?
  20. Write an equation, then solve it. A plant grew 28 cm and is now 58 cm tall. How tall was it before?

Free math worksheets at sigmaprep.io/worksheets© 2026 Sigma Prep

Sigma Prep · sigmaprep.io/worksheets

Name

One-Step Equation Word ProblemsAnswer keyVersion 1

Date Period

Write an equation and solve it.

  1. Some pencils are shared equally among 3 students, and each gets 5. How many pencils were there?15
  2. Write an equation, then solve it. A prize is split equally among 4 winners, and each gets $38. How big was the prize?x4=38, x=152
  3. Three fifths of the class, 21 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?35
  4. 5 notebooks cost $25 in all. How much does each notebook cost?$5
  5. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $17, Jo has $17 left. How much did Jo have at first?x−17=17, x=34
  6. One third of the class, 7 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?21
  7. Jordan got 11 more stickers from a friend and now has 43. How many stickers did Jordan have before?32
  8. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $3, Jo has $27 left. How much did Jo have at first?x−3=27, x=30
  9. Two fifths of the class, 20 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?50
  10. After spending $11 on a jacket, Priya has $35 left. How much did Priya have to start with?$46
  11. Write an equation, then solve it. A prize is split equally among 3 winners, and each gets $44. How big was the prize?x3=44, x=132
  12. Three fourths of the class, 30 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?40
  13. 4 notebooks cost $28 in all. How much does each notebook cost?$7
  14. Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $14, Jo has $26 left. How much did Jo have at first?x−14=26, x=40
  15. Two thirds of the class, 8 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?12
  16. The temperature fell 8 degrees overnight to 6 degrees. What was it before it fell?14
  17. Write an equation, then solve it. A plant grew 3 cm and is now 39 cm tall. How tall was it before?x+3=39, x=36
  18. Five sixths of the class, 25 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class?30
  19. 7 notebooks cost $28 in all. How much does each notebook cost?$4
  20. Write an equation, then solve it. A plant grew 28 cm and is now 58 cm tall. How tall was it before?x+28=58, x=30

Free math worksheets at sigmaprep.io/worksheets© 2026 Sigma Prep

How to do these

After spending $15, Leo has $32 left

  1. Call the starting amount x.
  2. x minus 15 is 32.
  3. Add 15 to both sides.

The answer is $47.

Where students go wrong

Using the operation in the story instead of undoing it. Spending $15 is a subtraction in the story, so it is an addition when you solve for what was there before.

Also called one step equation word problems, one-step word problems or writing one-step equations.

What you can put on this worksheet

One-step word problems
Some cards are shared equally among 5 players, and each gets 7. How many cards were there? → 35
Write the equation, then solve
Write an equation, then solve it. After spending $20, Jo has $35 left. How much did Jo have at first? → x−20=35, x=55
A fraction or percent of an unknown
Three fourths of the class, 24 students, went on the trip. How many students are in the class? → 32

Questions about these worksheets

Yes. Every one-step equation word problems sheet is free to print and free to download as a PDF. There is no account to make, no email to hand over and no limit on how many you take.

Yes. The answer key prints on a second page, and you can choose whether it shows each question beside its answer or just the answers in a list.

Yes. Print straight from the page, or download the PDF and print that. The sheet is laid out for paper rather than squeezed off a screen, so there is room to work under each question, and the answer key comes out on its own page.

Algebra 1 is usually taken around 8th or 9th grade, though schools vary and plenty of students meet it earlier or later. Pick the difficulty rather than the grade: the easy level suits a first lesson on it, the hard level suits review before a test.

Yes, as many as you like. The questions are built fresh each time rather than picked from a fixed set of files, so pressing Generate gives a new sheet. That is what you want for a second class, a retake, or two students sitting next to each other.

That is the closest comparison, and Kuta Software is good software. It is also paid software you install on a computer. These worksheets run in a browser tab for free, with no account and nothing to install. Like Kuta, the one-step equation word problems questions are generated when you ask for them rather than pulled from a fixed set of files, so two classes never get the same sheet, and the answer key comes with it.

Yes. There are three levels, and you can tick more than one for a sheet that mixes them, in which case the questions come out easiest first. The harder levels are not just larger numbers: they ask for something the easy ones do not.

You pick from 3: one-step word problems, write the equation, then solve and a fraction or percent of an unknown. Tick as many as you want and set how many of each, or let it spread them evenly.

Using the operation in the story instead of undoing it. Spending $15 is a subtraction in the story, so it is an addition when you solve for what was there before.