Simple problem

[tonyroland]

Can someone help me set up this problem for some reason I can't remember how to do it .

Joe paid for his lunch with a $5.00 gift card and $2.36 in cash after adding a 15% tip how much did the meal cost before adding the tip? Is this the right way

x= ($5.00 + $2.36)- 15%

tonyroland

 

[Mrspi]

Can someone help me set up this problem for some reason I can't remember how to do it .

Joe paid for his lunch with a $5.00 gift card and $2.36 in cash after adding a 15% tip how much did the meal cost before adding the tip? Is this the right way

x= ($5.00 + $2.36)- 15%

tonyroland

I'm sorry, but no, that's not the right way.

Let x = cost of the meal before tip

The tip is 15% of the cost of the meal, or 15% of x, or 0.15x

The total Joe needs to pay is
x + 0.15x

And we know that he paid $5 + $2.36, or $7.36.

cost of meal + tip = total paid
x + 0.15x = 7.36

Now, solve that for x, and you'll have the cost of the meal before the tip was added.