Divisible by 5: Last Digit Trick, Examples, Chart, and Practice

What does divisible by 5 mean?

A number is divisible by 5 if you can divide it by 5 evenly.

Evenly means there is no remainder.

For example, 45 is divisible by 5 because 45 / 5 = 9 with no remainder.

But 47 is not divisible by 5 because 47 / 5 leaves 2 left over.

You can also think of it as making five equal groups. If the groups are equal and nothing is left over, the number is divisible by 5.

Printable Divisible by 5 trick chart

Use this SumReflex chart to remember the last digit trick for divisibility by 5.

The same chart is also available in the Printable Number Reference Charts section with print and download buttons.

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The last digit trick

To check if a whole number is divisible by 5, look only at the last digit.

If the last digit is 0 or 5, the number is divisible by 5.

If the last digit is anything else, the number is not divisible by 5.

For example, 2,345 ends in 5. Since 5 is on the yes list, 2,345 is divisible by 5.

How this is different from divisibility by 2

Divisibility by 5 and divisibility by 2 both use the last digit, but they use different ending digits.

For divisibility by 2, the last digit must be 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8.

For divisibility by 5, the last digit must be 0 or 5.

A number ending in 0 is divisible by both 2 and 5. Example: 40 is divisible by 2 and by 5.

A number ending in 5 is divisible by 5, but not by 2. Example: 45 is divisible by 5, but 45 is not divisible by 2.

Ending digits that work

Numbers ending in 0 are divisible by 5. Examples: 10, 40, 120, 900, 6,000.

Numbers ending in 5 are divisible by 5. Examples: 15, 75, 305, 1,875.

Numbers ending in 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, or 9 are not divisible by 5.

That means 118, 222, 634, and 4,449 are not divisible by 5 because none of them ends in 0 or 5.

Why does the trick work?

The trick works because every group of ten is divisible by 5.

10 / 5 = 2, 100 / 5 = 20, 1,000 / 5 = 200, and so on.

So the tens, hundreds, thousands, and larger place values are already safe for dividing by 5.

That leaves only the ones digit to decide whether the whole number divides evenly by 5.

The only ones digits that make a multiple of 5 are 0 and 5.

Step-by-step method

Step 1: Find the last digit.

Step 2: Ask whether the last digit is 0 or 5.

Step 3: If yes, the number is divisible by 5.

Step 4: If no, the number is not divisible by 5.

Example: 1,230 ends in 0. Since 0 is on the yes list, 1,230 is divisible by 5.

Examples with solutions

Example 1: Is 75 divisible by 5? The last digit is 5. Since 5 is on the yes list, 75 is divisible by 5. 75 / 5 = 15.

Example 2: Is 118 divisible by 5? The last digit is 8. Since 8 is not 0 or 5, 118 is not divisible by 5.

Example 3: Is 240 divisible by 5? The last digit is 0. Since 0 is on the yes list, 240 is divisible by 5. 240 / 5 = 48.

Example 4: Is 1,875 divisible by 5? The last digit is 5. Since 5 is on the yes list, 1,875 is divisible by 5. 1,875 / 5 = 375.

Example 5: Is 2,222 divisible by 5? The last digit is 2. Since 2 is not 0 or 5, 2,222 is not divisible by 5.

Example 6: Is 6,000 divisible by 5? The last digit is 0. Since 0 is on the yes list, 6,000 is divisible by 5. 6,000 / 5 = 1,200.

Tougher examples

Example: Is 48,735 divisible by 5? The last digit is 5, so yes. 48,735 / 5 = 9,747.

Example: Is 91,426 divisible by 5? The last digit is 6, so no.

Example: Is 100,000 divisible by 5? The last digit is 0, so yes.

Example: Is 7,314 divisible by 5? The last digit is 4, so no.

Word problem examples

Example: A teacher has 235 cards and wants to split them equally into 5 boxes. Can she do it? Yes, because 235 ends in 5. Each box gets 47 cards.

Example: There are 342 stickers. Can 5 students share them equally with none left over? No, because 342 ends in 2.

Example: A game has 1,250 points to divide equally among 5 teams. Yes, because 1,250 ends in 0. Each team gets 250 points.

Common mistakes

Do not use the even-digit rule for 5. Even endings are for divisibility by 2.

Do not say every number ending in 2, 4, 6, or 8 is divisible by 5. Those endings do not work for 5.

Do not forget that 0 works. Any whole number ending in 0 is divisible by 5.

Do not look at the first digit. For 512, the first digit is 5, but the last digit is 2, so 512 is not divisible by 5.

Quick practice

1. Is 45 divisible by 5? Answer: yes, because it ends in 5.

2. Is 62 divisible by 5? Answer: no, because it ends in 2.

3. Is 100 divisible by 5? Answer: yes, because it ends in 0.

4. Is 318 divisible by 5? Answer: no, because it ends in 8.

5. Is 725 divisible by 5? Answer: yes, because it ends in 5.

6. Is 1,230 divisible by 5? Answer: yes, because it ends in 0.

7. Is 4,444 divisible by 5? Answer: no, because it ends in 4.

The big idea

Divisibility by 5 is a last digit rule.

If a whole number ends in 0 or 5, it is divisible by 5.

If it ends in any other digit, it is not divisible by 5.

Remember the difference: divisibility by 2 uses even endings, while divisibility by 5 uses only 0 and 5.