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Calculus Calculators

Calculus is the study of change and accumulation. Every result here shows which rule was applied at each line — because in calculus, knowing the answer without knowing the rule is worth very little on the next problem.

Every calculator in this branch is checked by a mathematician before it goes live.

Derivative Calculator worked example
  1. f(x) = x³ + 5x the function
  2. f′(x) = 3x³⁻¹ + 5 power rule on each term
  3. f′(x) = 3x² + 5 simplify the exponent

Where this sits

What comes before calculus

each topic assumes the one to its left

Stuck part way through? Start at the leftmost topic you are not sure about — everything to the right depends on it.

Knowledge base

Read the reasoning, not just the answer

one article per question a teacher would answer

All explainers

Questions

Asked often enough to answer here

the ones that change how you work, not trivia

Do I need to understand limits before derivatives?

You can compute derivatives without them, but you cannot understand why the rules work — the derivative is defined as a limit. Most people who find calculus arbitrary skipped this part.

When do I use the chain rule rather than the product rule?

Product rule when two functions are multiplied. Chain rule when one function is inside another. Something like x²·sin(3x) needs both, in that order.

Why does the indefinite integral need “+ C”?

Because differentiating any constant gives zero, so infinitely many functions share the same derivative. The C records that the original constant is unrecoverable.

Nearby

Branches that touch this one

linked because the maths overlaps, not because it fills space