Kani Math
Cosmic Abacus
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Soroban multiplication practice

Multiplication on the soroban is addition with bookkeeping — the times table you already know, placed on the right rods.

  • 2-digit × 1-digit multiplication
  • About 10 min
  • Free, no account

Sample problems

Real problems from this drill, with answers. Nothing to install, no account, no email — work them on paper, on a physical abacus, or in your head.

  1. 1
    64 × 9
    ?
  2. 2
    12 × 5
    ?
  3. 3
    61 × 8
    ?
  4. 4
    30 × 3
    ?
  5. 5
    91 × 2
    ?
  6. 6
    89 × 6
    ?
  7. 7
    69 × 6
    ?
  8. 8
    72 × 2
    ?
  9. 9
    36 × 6
    ?
  10. 10
    12 × 4
    ?
Full answer key
  1. 64 × 9 = 576
  2. 12 × 5 = 60
  3. 61 × 8 = 488
  4. 30 × 3 = 90
  5. 91 × 2 = 182
  6. 89 × 6 = 534
  7. 69 × 6 = 414
  8. 72 × 2 = 144
  9. 36 × 6 = 216
  10. 12 × 4 = 48

This page is one drill. The app is the whole programme.

Kani Math is a full mental-arithmetic course, not a single exercise. Free to start, no signup, and it runs on the web, Android and iPhone.

  • ✓Nine levels, from the first bead to division
  • ✓Guided lessons that teach the technique, not just drills
  • ✓Flash, listening and abacus drills at a speed you set
  • ✓Versus matches against friends or the computer
  • ✓Say your answers out loud — the app listens and marks them
  • ✓Streaks, coins and badges, with parent and teacher views
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Practise it now

The same drill, live in your browser, with a virtual soroban and instant marking.

This problem type runs in the full app rather than the inline drill:

Open in the app ↗

Explore the free virtual abacus →How to use an abacus →Mental Math Drill →

About this drill

The soroban does not multiply — it accumulates partial products in the right places. The learner reads the multiplier digit, recalls the times-table fact, and adds that two-digit product starting at a rod determined by the position of the digits being multiplied. Everything hard about multiplication on paper (alignment, carrying between partial products) disappears, because the abacus is already keeping place value for you.

These drills are two-digit by one-digit, which is the standard entry point: two partial products, one carry at most. The times tables themselves must already be secure — the abacus will not rescue a learner who is deriving 7 × 8 each time.

How to practise it

  1. 1Check the times tables first — anything slower than a second is not ready.
  2. 2Set the multiplicand on the left rods, leaving room on the right for the product.
  3. 3Work the multiplier digit by digit, adding each partial product in place.
  4. 4Read the whole product off the rods; there is nothing left to combine.
Where this sits

Level 7 — Higher A

Multiplication basics on the soroban and mentally.

Teaches: Multiplication fundamentals, single-by-multi-digit problems

Find your level with the free placement exam →

Questions

Do I need the times tables memorised?
Yes, completely. The soroban handles placement and carrying, not recall. A shaky table turns a two-second problem into a fifteen-second one.
Which rod does the product start on?
It depends on the digit counts of both numbers. The standard rule places it so the product lands with its units digit on a fixed reference rod — the drill enforces this automatically.
Is there more than one multiplication method?
Several exist. Kani Math teaches the standard rod-placement method used across most abacus traditions, because it scales cleanly to multi-digit multipliers.
When does mental multiplication start?
After 2×1 is fluent on beads. Mental multiplication reuses the same placement logic, so rushing it before the placement is automatic just produces guessing.
Learn the techniqueAbacus multiplicationWalk through it on the beads →