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SSC CGL Basic Profit & Loss

Study Material — 6 PYQs (2018–2020) · Concept Notes · Shortcuts

SSC CGL Basic Profit & Loss is a frequently tested subtopic — 6 previous year questions from 2018–2020 papers are included below with concept notes, key rules and shortcut tricks.

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2018–2020
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Previous Year Questions

SSC CGL Basic Profit & Loss — Past Exam Questions

6 questions from actual SSC CGL papers · all shown free · click option to reveal solution

Exam Q 12020Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper bought a watch for ₹800. He marked it at 40% above the cost price and offered a discount of 10% on the marked price. What is his profit percentage?

Exam Q 22019Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper buys a watch for ₹800 and marks it at a price such that after giving a discount of 20%, he still makes a profit of 25%. At what price is the watch marked?

Exam Q 32018Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper buys an article for ₹840 and sells it at a profit of 25%. What is the selling price of the article?

Exam Q 42020Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper bought a batch of shirts at ₹400 per shirt. He marked them up by 60% above the cost price. During a sale, he offered a 25% discount on the marked price. What is his profit percentage on the shirts sold during the sale?

Exam Q 52019Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper buys 120 articles at ₹15 per article. He sells 80% of them at ₹20 per article and the remaining at ₹12 per article. What is his overall profit percentage?

Exam Q 62020Previous Year Pattern

A shopkeeper marks up goods by 60% above cost price. He then offers a discount of 25% on the marked price during a sale. Later, he realizes his profit margin is too low, so he increases the selling price by 20%. If the cost price of an item is ₹500, what is his final profit percentage?

Concept Notes

Basic Profit & Loss— Rules & Concept

Core ConceptRead this first — the foundation of the topic

BASIC PROFIT AND LOSS — CORE CONCEPT Every time you buy something and sell it, one of three things happens: you make a profit, you suffer a loss, or you break even. That is the heart of Profit and Loss.

Cost Price (CP): The price at which you BUY an item. Selling Price (SP): The price at which you SELL an item.

Profit: When SP is greater than CP. You gained money. Loss: When SP is less than CP. You lost money.

--- KEY RULES / PROPERTIES

1. Profit and Loss are always calculated on COST PRICE — not on Selling Price. This is the golden rule. Do not forget it. 2. Profit % and Loss % are always expressed as a percentage of CP unless the question says otherwise.

3. If an article is sold at no gain no loss, then SP = CP. ---

Formula BlockMemorise — at least one formula appears in every paper
Profit = SP − CP
Loss = CP − SP
Profit % = (Profit / CP) × 100
Loss % = (Loss / CP) × 100
SP = CP × (100 + Profit%) / 100
SP = CP × (100 − Loss%) / 100
CP = SP × 100 / (100 + Profit%)
CP = SP × 100 / (100 − Loss%)

These six formulas are your toolkit. Memorise them cold.

---

Exam PatternsWhat examiners ask — read before attempting PYQs

SSC CGL asks Profit and Loss in four main ways: 1. Find Profit % or Loss % when CP and SP are given. 2. Find SP when CP and Profit % or Loss % are given. 3. Find CP when SP and Profit % or Loss % are given. 4.

Word problems involving two items, successive transactions, or marked price and discount — but those are advanced. For Basic P&L, the above three dominate. ---

ShortcutsUse these to save 30–60 seconds per question
1

TRICK 1 — Multiplier Method (fastest method in exam): Instead of applying the formula in two steps, use a single multiplier. For 20% profit → SP = CP × 1.20 For 15% loss → SP = CP × 0.85 This saves 10–15 seconds per question. TRICK 2 — CP from SP directly: If SP = 480 and Profit = 20% CP = 480 × 100/120 = 400 Remember: divide SP by the multiplier to get CP. TRICK 3 — When profit and loss % are equal but items are different: If a trader sells two items each at the same SP, one at x% profit and one at x% loss, he ALWAYS makes a loss. Net Loss % = (x squared) / 100 Example: Two items each sold at Rs 1000, one at 20% profit and one at 20% loss. Net Loss % = (20 ×

2

/ 100 = 4% This trick alone saves 2 marks in every exam. ---

Worked ExampleSolve this step-by-step before moving on
1
Step 1

CP = 80, SP = 100

2
Step 2

Profit = SP − CP = 100 − 80 = 20

3
Step 3

Profit % = (20 / 80) × 100 = 25% Answer: 25% Profit --- WORKED EXAMPLE 2 Question: A man sells a watch at a loss of 15%. If the SP is Rs 510, find the CP.

1
Step 1

Loss % = 15, SP = 510

2
Step 2

CP = SP × 100 / (100 − Loss%)

3
Step 3

CP = 510 × 100 / 85

4
Step 4

CP = 51000 / 85 = 600 Answer: CP = Rs 600 Verification: Loss = 600 − 510 = 90. Loss % = (90/600) × 100 = 15%. Correct. ---

Exam TrapsCommon mistakes students make — avoid these

— THE NUMBER 1 TRAP Students calculate Profit % on SP instead of CP. Example: CP = 80, SP = 100, Profit = 20. Wrong Answer: (20/100) × 100 = 20% Correct Answer: (20/80) × 100 = 25% In SSC exams, both 20% and 25% are given as options to trap you. Always divide by CP. Never by SP.

Key Points to Remember

  • Profit = SP − CP; Loss = CP − SP — always start here.
  • Profit % and Loss % are ALWAYS calculated on Cost Price (CP), never on SP.
  • Formula: Profit % = (Profit / CP) × 100
  • Formula: SP = CP × (100 + Profit%) / 100 and SP = CP × (100 − Loss%) / 100
  • Formula: CP = SP × 100 / (100 + Profit%) or CP = SP × 100 / (100 − Loss%)
  • Shortcut Multiplier: 20% profit → multiply CP by 1.20; 15% loss → multiply CP by 0.85
  • Shortcut: Two items sold at same SP with equal profit% and loss% → Net Loss % = x² / 100
  • If SP > CP → Profit; If SP < CP → Loss; If SP = CP → No Profit No Loss
  • To find CP from SP, divide SP by the profit multiplier (e.g. SP ÷ 1.25 for 25% profit)
  • Trap Alert: Never calculate Profit % on SP — SSC always places the wrong answer as an option

Exam-Specific Tips

  • Profit % formula: (SP − CP) / CP × 100 — denominator is always CP
  • Loss % formula: (CP − SP) / CP × 100 — denominator is always CP
  • When two items are sold at same SP, one at x% profit and one at x% loss, net result is always a LOSS of x²/100 %
  • SP formula for profit: SP = CP × (100 + P%) / 100
  • SP formula for loss: SP = CP × (100 − L%) / 100
  • CP formula from SP with profit: CP = SP × 100 / (100 + P%)
  • CP formula from SP with loss: CP = SP × 100 / (100 − L%)
  • If an item is sold at 25% profit, the ratio SP:CP = 125:100 = 5:4
Practice MCQs

Basic Profit & Loss — Practice Questions

55graded MCQs · easy to hard · full solution & trap analysis · showing 20 of 55

All MCQs →
Practice 1easy

A book is sold for ₹240 at a loss of 20%. What was the cost price of the book?

Practice 2easy

If a shopkeeper sells an item for ₹180 and makes a loss of 10%, what is the cost price of the item?

Practice 3easy

A shopkeeper buys a pen for ₹12 and sells it for ₹15. What is his profit percentage?

Practice 4easy

A retailer buys pens at ₹12 per pen and sells them at ₹15 per pen. If he sells 200 pens, what is his profit percentage?

Practice 5easy

A fruit seller buys apples at ₹10 per dozen and sells them at ₹15 per dozen. If he sells 60 dozen apples, what is his profit percentage?

Practice 6easy

A shopkeeper buys a shirt for ₹400 and sells it for ₹520. What is his profit percentage?

Practice 7easy

A trader buys 50 kg of rice at ₹40 per kg and sells it at ₹50 per kg. What is the total profit?

Practice 8easy

A vendor buys oranges at ₹5 per dozen and sells them at ₹0.50 per orange. What is his profit percentage?

Practice 9easy

A merchant purchases a shirt for ₹400 and wants to make a profit of 35%. At what price should he sell the shirt?

Practice 10easy

A merchant purchases a book for ₹80 and wants to make a profit of 40%. At what price should he sell the book?

Practice 11easy

A vendor sells oranges at ₹60 per dozen and incurs a loss of 20%. What was the cost price per dozen?

Practice 12easy

A vendor sells oranges at ₹5 per orange. If he incurs a loss of 20%, what was the cost price per orange?

Practice 13easy

A trader buys 50 kg of rice at ₹20 per kg and sells it at ₹24 per kg. What is the total profit?

Practice 14easy

A shopkeeper buys a pen for ₹12 and sells it for ₹15. What is his profit percentage?

Practice 15easy

A merchant purchases a book for ₹250 and wants to make a profit of 40%. At what price should he sell the book?

Practice 16easy

A shopkeeper buys a watch for ₹800 and sells it for ₹1000. What is his profit percentage?

Practice 17easy

If a book is sold for ₹360 at a loss of 10%, what is its Cost Price?

Practice 18easy

A merchant purchases 5 kg of rice at ₹40 per kg and sells the entire quantity at ₹50 per kg. What is the total profit earned?

Practice 19easy

A shopkeeper marks an article at ₹500. He offers a discount of 10% and still makes a profit of 25%. What is the cost price of the article?

Practice 20medium

A shopkeeper sells an item at ₹1200 and makes a profit of 20%. What would be his profit percentage if he had sold it at ₹1320?

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60-Second Revision — Basic Profit & Loss

  • Remember: Profit % and Loss % are ALWAYS on CP — this is the most common trap in SSC.
  • Formula: SP = CP × (100 ± P or L%) / 100 — use + for profit, − for loss.
  • Formula: CP = SP × 100 / (100 ± P or L%) — use + for profit given, − for loss given.
  • Shortcut: Use multipliers — 20% profit means SP = 1.20 × CP; reverse it to find CP = SP / 1.20.
  • Trap: Two items at same SP with equal profit% and loss% always give a net loss = x²/100 %.
  • Verify answers: After finding CP or SP, always recheck the profit or loss % once.
  • Exam tip: In every P&L question, write down CP and SP first — this avoids 90% of errors.
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