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# Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations)

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Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  23 Apr 2009, 10:29
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Top Best GMAT Quantitative Books

This post is a part of a series on best GMAT Books. Also see:
Best GMAT Guidebooks
Best GMAT Verbal Prep Books
GMAT Fiction - improve reading skills on GMAT
Top 20 Best GMAT books - ranked by GMAT Club members

Common Book Combinations and Recommendatios
1. Need to figure out your weaknesses in GMAT math? Take a GMATPrep test or GMAT Club's free gmat diagnostic test
2. Rusty with Math or want to be very methodical - start with basics: Manhattan GMAT Foundations of GMAT Math
3. OK with Math but need a good review in a short amount of time: Kaplan Math Workbook + MGMAT Number Properties + MGMAT Word Translations
4. Need highest score and have time: MGMAT Guides + GMAT Club tests
5. Need specific question practice: PR 1012 (has some errors/typos), Quant OG, or use gmat club tags
6. Probability and Combinations review: combinations-permutations-and-probability-references-56486.html and MGMAT Word Translations

 Book Bundles and Study Plans at a Glance Standard Plan Advanced Plan Ultimate Plan Beyond Hardcore Plan General Strategy BooksExplain how GMAT works, provide general principles and strategies, give an idea about weaknesses, provide practice tests Kaplan Live Online+ comes with 6 practice tests Kaplan Live Online+ comes with 6 practice testsKaplan GMAT Advanced- Poor guidebook, more of a question collection Kaplan Live Online+ comes with 6 practice testsKaplan GMAT Advanced- Poor guidebook, more of a question collectionGMAT Test Simulation Booklet+ Great for practice Kaplan Live Online+ comes with 6 practice testsKaplan GMAT Advanced- Poor guidebook, more of a question collectionGMAT Test Simulation Booklet+ Great for practice Quant BooksRefresh math principles, fill gaps, and learn patterns Kaplan Math Workbook- missing probability and combinations Kaplan Math Workbook- missing probability and combinationsMGMAT Number Properties 5 Quant MGMAT GuidesMGMAT Math Foundations 5 Quant MGMAT GuidesMGMAT Math FoundationsProbability and Combinations for Dummies Verbal BooksRefresh grammar rules, aquire CR and RC strategies Kaplan Verbal WorkbookOR: PowerScore Verbal Bible CR: PowerScore CR or MGMAT CRRC: MGMAT RCSC: PowerScore SC or MGMAT SC CR: PowerScore CR or MGMAT CRRC: MGMAT RCSC: PowerScore SC or MGMAT SCSC: Kaplan Verbal Foundations CR: PowerScore CR or MGMAT CRCR: LSAT Critical ReasoningRC: MGMAT RCRC: LSAT Reading ComprehensionSC: PowerScore SC or MGMAT SCSC: Doing Grammar Practice QuestionsAdditional practice Official Guide 12th+ 900 retired real GMAT questions Official Guide 12th+ 900 retired real GMAT questionsVerbal Official Guide+ 300 retired verbal GMAT questionsQuant Official Guide+ 300 retired quant GMAT questions Official Guide 12th+ 900 retired real GMAT questionsVerbal Official Guide+ 300 retired verbal GMAT questionsQuant Official Guide+ 300 retired quant GMAT questionsPrinceton Review 1012+ Great target practice Official Guide 12th+ 900 retired real GMAT questionsVerbal Official Guide+ 300 retired verbal GMAT questionsQuant Official Guide+ 300 retired quant GMAT questionsPrinceton Review 1012+ Great target practicePaper GMAT Tests+ Official Retired tests available from GMAC TestsSimulated Practice GMAT tests GMATPrep, Kaplan, Free tests GMATprep, Kaplan, MGMAT, some GMATClub tests GMATprep, PowerPrep, GMAT Focus, Kaplan, MGMAT, GMATClub tests GMATprep, PowerPrep, GMAT Focus, Kaplan, MGMAT, PR, GMATClub tests

1. GMAT Math Books

Recommended for best results if you have the time.
Strengths:
1. Good balance between test taking strategies and background theory explanations
2. Single-topic focus of each guide allows the student to purchase only those guides that pertain to his/her weaknesses
3. Covered concepts are illustrated with examples that are conveniently assigned to either PS or DS section.
5. Additional online practice question banks (different for each book)
Weaknesses:
1. Time and Money
2. Books themselves do not contain many practice questions (though online and OG 12 references more than compensate)
Notes: most often recommended guide is the Manhattan GMAT Number properties and MGMAT Word Translations

Rival of the MGMAT bundle though a bit higher priced.
Strengths:
1. 12 total guides + an intro book for quant + test simulation booklet
2. Practice questions. Every one of the guides is packed with practice questions
3. Fresh questions; you probably have not seen them on forums/etc since these books have just been published

Weaknesses:
1. Price: $250 2. Spacing is a bit strange sometimes with only one question per page A solid supplement to the Official Guide Strengths: 1. Fairly comprehensive review of the basic math concepts needed for the GMAT 2. Structure of the book allows you to work from start to finish, building on previous skills learned 3. Sections devoted to Word problem and Data Sufficiency questions Weaknesses: 1. Statistics, Combinations/Permutations and Probability are not covered 2. Questions do not reflect GMAT questions, but rather are designed to insure that the material is mastered Notes: Recommended/most interesting problem compilation from Kaplan Math Workbook Faster than going through the math MGMAT Guides, but also not as thorough Great for additional math practice questions, but don't expect to find any strategies or math lessons here. Strengths: 1. 300 real GMAT questions 2. Real GMAT questions retired from past tests 3. The practice questions are organized by level of difficulty 4. The practice questions follow actual GMAT test patterns - great to have one's ear trained. Weaknesses: 1. The book does not contain any strategies 2. It does have a few short review sections but they are very weak 3. Mostly low and medium difficulty questions. Not very helpful to a person aiming to get above 700. Bottom Line: this book is optional; usually OG 12 is sufficient by itself. Notable Specialized Books - Arithmetic, Probability, Combinations, DS, etc Combinations & Probability Veritas Prep Combinations & Probability - added 08/24/10 [Reveal] Spoiler: Table of Contents Attachment: veritas_probability-TOC.gif [ 42 KiB | Viewed 539349 times ] Dedicated Combinations and Probability Guide considered by many to be the best Strengths: 1. Good strategies 2. Plenty of practice questions 3. Well organized and laid out Weaknesses: 1. Possibly crosses into non-gmat section but a very minor concern . - added 11/11/09 1936240122 [Reveal] Spoiler: Table of Contents Attachment: wordtranslations.png [ 24.83 KiB | Viewed 538558 times ] Contains material on Combinations and Probability Strengths: 1. Coverage of combinations and probability 2. Coverage of Statistics and Overlapping sets problems 3. Comes with 6 MGMAT tests Weaknesses: 1. As with all MGMAT Guides, lacks practice questions and relies on the Official Guide for additional practice. If you have covered the OG, you may have to look elsewhere for practice, such as GMAT Club's free collection of probability questions: combinations-permutations-and-probability-references-56486.html - Added 2/5/2010 [Reveal] Spoiler: Table of Contents Attachment: mgmat_foundations_TOC.gif [ 24.12 KiB | Viewed 538094 times ] Great for refreshing math concepts and building confidence in math Strengths: 1. Works well with other MGMAT books (structured in a similar way) 2. Best book for brushing up on long forgotten math concepts (fractions, powers, etc) 3. Comes with additional online practice questions Weaknesses: 1. The book has 400 practice questions but they are not in a GMAT format, rather a math-textbook format 2. Long! 300 full-size pages - I think the expectation is that you skip parts that you know 3. No access to MGMAT tests that usually are included with all of the other 8 guides Notes: recommended instead of the Kaplan Math Foundations. See a very detailed review of the Foundations of GMAT Math by a member [Reveal] Spoiler: Attachment: math_refresher.jpg [ 5.02 KiB | Viewed 694753 times ] Attachment: Math_Cliffs.jpg [ 10.78 KiB | Viewed 694928 times ] Attachment: pr_math.jpg [ 12.1 KiB | Viewed 694329 times ] Attachment: kaplan_foundations.jpg [ 7.13 KiB | Viewed 683791 times ] Attachment: kaplanmathfoundations.png [ 46.86 KiB | Viewed 595702 times ] _________________ Founder of GMAT Club Just starting out with GMAT? Start here... | Want to know your GMAT Score? Try GMAT Score Estimator Need GMAT Book Recommendations? Best GMAT Books Co-author of the GMAT Club tests Have a blog? Feature it on GMAT Club! GMAT Club Premium Membership - big benefits and savings Last edited by kirstik on 19 Mar 2013, 10:25, edited 50 times in total. Updated  Kaplan GMAT Prep Discount Codes Knewton GMAT Discount Codes GMAT Pill GMAT Discount Codes Intern Joined: 24 Jan 2011 Posts: 4 Location: Chennai, TN Followers: 0 Kudos [?]: 0 [0], given: 0 Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink] 07 Mar 2011, 00:57 I hear people people doing OG first is not a good practice,and that it should be done finally. If that be right, how should I plan? Is Kaplan Premier Guide with CD ROM a good one to start off with?! Simultaneously working with MGMAT SC and CR?? Which book gives best practice methods for DS questions? I took the diagnostic test and I realized I am weak in Sets, and Statistics word problems, and sometimes probability and combinatorics! --- Newbie to GMAT prep Manager Joined: 10 Jul 2010 Posts: 196 Followers: 1 Kudos [?]: 18 [0], given: 12 Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink] 04 Apr 2011, 14:09 Search for these books at your library! It will save you a ton of money! Manager Joined: 20 Jan 2011 Posts: 65 Followers: 1 Kudos [?]: 1 [0], given: 8 Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink] 24 Apr 2011, 13:29 This is great. Detailed review about each of the courses and books in one single place. Manager Joined: 16 Mar 2011 Posts: 177 Followers: 1 Kudos [?]: 34 [0], given: 13 Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink] 11 May 2011, 00:46 I just finished MGMAT, and was doing some OG practices.. I got very hopeful cause I had the questions in the beginning right but then I went downwards noticing that all the harder questions were wrong Pfff I need a 700+ score but currently it's going like$@%#\$%.. Not to mention, I read that most of the questiosn in the OG arent even that hard.. If I already get the 'harder' questions from OG wrong, can you imagine what I will actually score on the 'real hard' questions.. Sigh, any suggestions?
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  27 May 2011, 08:24
Just signed in today and am new to the site.

I wanted to relay my experience so far as a math novice. My goal is to take the GMAT sometime around October and do well enough to get into a top tier school. This should give me plenty of time to sufficiently prep for the one area where I am lacking in knowledge - math. Here is my game-plan: about a month ago I bought the CliffsNotes Math Review for Standardized Tests and am combining it with a steady diet of Khan Academy. I have not seen Khan Academy mentioned on this site but it is the single greatest resource I can imagine. I have gone from literally an elementary understanding of math to a solid understanding of Geometry, Algebra, Trig and combinations and permutations, and it has taken only a month - which for me is pretty incredible. Also, Sal Khan, who runs Khan Academy has a module where he works through, step by step, all 404 "The Official Guide for GMAT Review" quant problems.

So, here are my future plans: I will continue brushing up my general math skills for about another month, honing in on specific GMAT concepts as I go. After that, I will start to target the GMAT specifically. I am planning on buying some of the MGMAT books (and perhaps a few others) as well as the official GMAC guides and then continue to supplement with Khan Academy.

Also, I have a BFA from Juilliard. We didn't have math. I haven't touched any math since I was a sophomore in High School (which was a loooong time ago), and that was Algebra II (and I didn't do particularly well so it was really Algebra I). Now, however, I am already starting to feel confident. So, if I can get this stuff anyone can. I promise you.

Thanks for this site btw, very helpful!

Happy Studying!
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So shines a good deed in a weary world."
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  08 Jun 2011, 10:32
I am using the Ultimate Math Refresher and it's definitely helping me remember all the math that I used to know so well...I used to do math championships and the math olympiad so I wasn't a slouch, but after years of no math I definitely need the help. I would recommend this book if you're getting back into the game. I also purchased Math Review For Standardized Tests and will be giving it a try as well.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  09 Jun 2011, 04:30
I am in the same boat as you! BFA from MassArt. Our math/science requirement was 1 math OR science class in four years! I got all the MGMAT math guides, and I'm only halfway through the Number Properties guide, but it has helped me immensely. I definitely recommend it.

fllfthm5 wrote:
Just signed in today and am new to the site.

I wanted to relay my experience so far as a math novice. My goal is to take the GMAT sometime around October and do well enough to get into a top tier school. This should give me plenty of time to sufficiently prep for the one area where I am lacking in knowledge - math. Here is my game-plan: about a month ago I bought the CliffsNotes Math Review for Standardized Tests and am combining it with a steady diet of Khan Academy. I have not seen Khan Academy mentioned on this site but it is the single greatest resource I can imagine. I have gone from literally an elementary understanding of math to a solid understanding of Geometry, Algebra, Trig and combinations and permutations, and it has taken only a month - which for me is pretty incredible. Also, Sal Khan, who runs Khan Academy has a module where he works through, step by step, all 404 "The Official Guide for GMAT Review" quant problems.

So, here are my future plans: I will continue brushing up my general math skills for about another month, honing in on specific GMAT concepts as I go. After that, I will start to target the GMAT specifically. I am planning on buying some of the MGMAT books (and perhaps a few others) as well as the official GMAC guides and then continue to supplement with Khan Academy.

Also, I have a BFA from Juilliard. We didn't have math. I haven't touched any math since I was a sophomore in High School (which was a loooong time ago), and that was Algebra II (and I didn't do particularly well so it was really Algebra I). Now, however, I am already starting to feel confident. So, if I can get this stuff anyone can. I promise you.

Thanks for this site btw, very helpful!

Happy Studying!
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  26 Jul 2011, 03:52
This is great detailed description about the books
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  07 Aug 2011, 03:07
Thanks for sharing
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  04 Dec 2011, 01:37
Thank you for this-it is very helpful
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  21 Dec 2011, 20:37
Thanks for this post! It has been really helpful in my decision to choose my prep books. Currently finishing up MGMAT but not sure if I should purchase the advanced math book by MGMAT.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  21 Dec 2011, 21:39
Expert's post
Thanks for this post! It has been really helpful in my decision to choose my prep books. Currently finishing up MGMAT but not sure if I should purchase the advanced math book by MGMAT.

I am not sure either - it is intimidating in a good and a bad way.
I would recommend MGMAT Roadmap instead ( it is an easy and fast read that I think will bring more value on an hourly basis). The MGMAT Advanced Quant will only kick in at the 40+ level or higher and as number of books say, you may only see 2-3 truly hard questions on your Quan section (which means you are studying a long time to solve those 2-3 questions). I personally had only 1 hard probability question on my GMAT. The rest were tricky but straightforward.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  25 Dec 2011, 23:05
My score isnt improving from 44 in quant , I did KAPLAN and OG 12 . MGMAT books I found very basic .
As if now I am practicing from GMAT club . There are some 35 tests . I think these 35 test would be enough . Just that sometimes I dun get the explanations as they are sometimes to the point only .
Any other suggestions for practice ? I have done OG review also (Questions were very easy ) .

Is OG 12 lot different from OG 11 ?
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  25 Dec 2011, 23:21
Expert's post
neha2785 wrote:
My score isnt improving from 44 in quant , I did KAPLAN and OG 12 . MGMAT books I found very basic .
As if now I am practicing from GMAT club . There are some 35 tests . I think these 35 test would be enough . Just that sometimes I dun get the explanations as they are sometimes to the point only .
Any other suggestions for practice ? I have done OG review also (Questions were very easy ) .

Is OG 12 lot different from OG 11 ?

There are 30% new questions in the OG 12 compared to the OG 11.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  01 Jan 2012, 08:52
Nice & informative
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  05 Feb 2012, 06:34
Target Test Prep is coming out with a new Quant study guide - I was given access to it in the digital format and thought it was VERY well-constructed. They have a few typo's to work out but this may be one of top resources in the not-too-distant future.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  27 Feb 2012, 22:02
Guys I need recommendation for a math refresher, which covers the concepts and is not very time consuming.
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  28 Feb 2012, 01:04
Have trouble finding answers on this site?
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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  28 Feb 2012, 01:17
Expert's post
harleyotto wrote:
Have trouble finding answers on this site?

Hi,

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Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations) [#permalink]  11 Mar 2012, 13:01
Hi all, planning on taking the GMAT in September for tier 1 school. As Math goes, I have completed MGMAT all 5 books, OG 12 and OG Quant. Thoughts on Probability For Dummies? Very tempted to buy to further polish probability and combination. Will start Gmat Club Test soon. Anything else I should look at to prep for Quant? Thanks.
Re: Best GMAT Math Prep Books (Reviews & Recommendations)   [#permalink] 11 Mar 2012, 13:01

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