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3 Digit Subtraction With Regrouping

If you need 3 digit subtraction with regrouping worksheets that you can print right now, this page builds them for you — 20 fresh problems, an answer key underneath, and no account to create first. Right now the generator is set to problems such as 586 − 339 (answer 247) and 787 − 148 (answer 639); press the button again and the numbers change while the skill stays the same.

📄 3 DIGIT SUBTRACTION WITH REGROUPING — A NEW SHEET EVERY TIME YOU PRESS THE BUTTON
🎲 New set of problems

‘New set of problems’ opens the generator in its own tab. There you can change the problem count and turn the answer key on or off. ‘Print or save as PDF’ opens the print dialog — choose Save as PDF in the printer list to keep the file. The sheet fits US Letter and A4, and the answer key prints on its own page.

What you are practising here

Because the sheet regenerates, the child meets the borrowing pattern in a different place each time, which is exactly what stops the method from being memorised as a sequence of pen strokes; 234 − 125 today will not borrow in the same column as tomorrow's sheet.

There are two ways to think about a subtraction such as 586 − 339: taking away, or finding the difference. Children who only know the first find 247 slowly whenever the two numbers are close together.

Every subtraction has an addition hiding inside it, and checking 787 − 148 by adding 639 back to the smaller number is the single most useful habit you can teach on this page.

This sheet uses three-digit numbers that borrow. That is deliberate: wide enough to force real regrouping, narrow enough that a child can still check the answer by adding back.

Teachers usually place 3 digit subtraction with regrouping worksheets alongside the subtraction strand of most US state standards for this grade, which is where the skill sits in the majority of US state frameworks.

Examples taken from this worksheet

These six come from the sheet loaded on this page. Press the button and the numbers change, but the shape stays the same (three-digit numbers that borrow).
#ProblemAnswerWhat to check
1586 − 339 =247Watch for: reading the minus sign as a plus
2787 − 148 =639Check: forgetting to reduce the column that was borrowed from
3524 − 107 =417Look at: borrowing across a zero
4234 − 125 =109Ask about: subtracting the smaller digit from the larger one
5424 − 319 =105Watch for: counting back one at a time
6737 − 428 =309Check: checking by re-subtracting

Try one together first

Here is one worked through. 787 − 148 gives 639. If your child arrives somewhere other than 639 on 787 − 148, look at the working rather than the answer: nearly every wrong result comes from a skipped step, not an unknown fact.

Try 524 − 107 together before letting the child start alone. The answer to 524 − 107 is 417, and talking through how it was reached takes about a minute and saves several minutes of guessing later in the sheet.

Three mistakes we see most often

Getting the most out of 10 minutes a day

  1. Write the finish time and the score at the top of every sheet. Two weeks of those two numbers tells you more about progress on three-digit subtraction that borrows than any single test result.
  2. Mark it together straight away while the working is still fresh, so a slip like the one behind 524 − 107 can be talked through instead of guessed at.
  3. Stop the session at the time limit even if the sheet is unfinished, and note where the child got to. A half sheet done well is better data than a whole sheet rushed.
  4. Keep the session to about 10 minutes. A child working at this level who is still counting on fingers will need longer than that on a line like 586 − 339, and that is fine: the timer is a measurement, never a punishment.
  5. Run the sheet at the same time each day. Ten focused minutes before dinner beats an hour on Sunday, because three-digit subtraction that borrows is a recall skill: 586 − 339 has to arrive without being worked out, and recall is built by frequency.

Marking the sheet

The answer key is generated with the worksheet, not written by hand, so it always matches the sheet in front of you — 586 − 339 is listed as 247, 787 − 148 as 639, and so on down the page.

The key prints on its own page by default. Uncheck the answer-key box before printing if you would rather keep it back and mark the sheet yourself.

Printing and saving as PDF

Portrait orientation is what the sheet is designed for. Landscape works but wastes about a third of the paper, so leave the orientation alone unless you have a reason.

If the problems look cramped, drop the count from 20 to a smaller number before printing these 3 digit subtraction with regrouping worksheets; the font stays the same size and the spacing opens up.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my child find subtraction so much harder than addition?
Because subtraction is not commutative and the regrouping runs the opposite way to the reading direction. Most children need roughly twice as much practice on three-digit subtraction that borrows as on the matching addition.
Are these worksheets really free?
Yes, completely. The page is supported by advertising, not by subscriptions, so there is no limit on how many 3 digit subtraction with regrouping worksheets you print.
How do I check the answers quickly?
Add the answer to the number that was taken away. For the item that gives 247, adding it back should return the starting number exactly.
Is the answer key included?
Yes, on its own page behind the worksheet. For the sheet loaded right now it shows 247 for 586 − 339 and 639 for 787 − 148.

Keep the finished 3 digit subtraction with regrouping worksheets in date order — the drop in time across ten sheets is the clearest progress report you will get.

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Free printable math worksheets from a working math academy director in Korea. Problems come from our own code, not from a published workbook. Every sheet prints on US Letter or A4 with its answer key. All worksheets · Worksheet generator · Korean site
Last updated: 2026-09-13