Last visit was: 24 Apr 2026, 07:59 It is currently 24 Apr 2026, 07:59
Home
Messages
Tests
Schools
Events
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Go to My Error Log Learn more
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
Back to Forum
Create Topic
User avatar
mikemcgarry
User avatar
Magoosh GMAT Instructor
Joined: 28 Dec 2011
Last visit: 06 Aug 2018
Posts: 4,474
Own Kudos:
30,882
 [6]
Given Kudos: 130
Expert
Expert reply
Posts: 4,474
Kudos: 30,882
 [6]
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 05 Mar 2015, 15:36
2
Kudos
Add Kudos
4
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
00:00
Start Timer
Pause Timer
Resume Timer
Show Answer
Hide
Show
History
E
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!

Difficulty:

15% (low)

Question Stats:

86% (02:09) correct 14% (02:41) wrong based on 285 sessions

History

Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 employees make $150,000/yr, and the 4 highest-paid employees all make the same amount. If the average annual salary for the 20 employees is $175,000/yr, then what is the annual salary of each highest-paid employee?
(A) $250,000
(B) $300,000
(C) $350,000
(D) $400,000
(E) $450,000

This question concerns Weighted Averages. For a set of practice problems and a discussion of strategies on this topic, as well as the OE for this particular problem, see:
https://magoosh.com/gmat/2015/gmat-math ... -averages/

Mike :-)
ShowHide Answer
Official Answer
E
User avatar
pacifist85
User avatar
Joined: 07 Apr 2014
Last visit: 20 Sep 2015
Posts: 322
Own Kudos:
459
 [2]
Given Kudos: 169
Status:Math is psycho-logical
Location: Netherlands
GMAT Date: 02-11-2015
WE:Psychology and Counseling (Other)
Posts: 322
Kudos: 459
 [2]
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 05 Mar 2015, 16:18
2
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Soooooo, here we go:

80000(10) + 150000(6) + 4x = 175000(20)
3500000 - 800000 - 900000 = 4x
x = 450000

ANS E
User avatar
Konstantin1983
User avatar
Joined: 02 Dec 2014
Last visit: 08 Dec 2021
Posts: 298
Own Kudos:
324
Given Kudos: 353
Location: Russian Federation
Concentration: General Management, Economics
GMAT 1: 640 Q44 V33
WE:Sales (Telecommunications)
GMAT 1: 640 Q44 V33
Posts: 298
Kudos: 324
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 02 Jan 2016, 15:17
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
To use weighted average we have (10*80000 + 6*150000+4x)/(20) = 175000 where x is how much highest-paid employees earn. Hence 4x=1800000, x=450000$
User avatar
BrentGMATPrepNow
User avatar
Major Poster
Joined: 12 Sep 2015
Last visit: 31 Oct 2025
Posts: 6,733
Own Kudos:
36,455
 [1]
Given Kudos: 799
Location: Canada
Expert
Expert reply
Posts: 6,733
Kudos: 36,455
 [1]
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 23 Sep 2016, 15:28
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
mikemcgarry
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 employees make $150,000/yr, and the 4 highest-paid employees all make the same amount. If the average annual salary for the 20 employees is $175,000/yr, then what is the annual salary of each highest-paid employee?
(A) $250,000
(B) $300,000
(C) $350,000
(D) $400,000
(E) $450,000

Show more

Weighted average of groups combined = (group A proportion)(group A average) + (group B proportion)(group B average) + (group C proportion)(group C average) + etc

NOTE: To make things easier, let's drop the thousands and write $80 instead of $80,000

Let x = the annual salary of each highest-paid employee
Plug values into the formula to get: 175 = (10/20)(80) + (6/20)(150) + (4/10)(x)
Simplify: 175 = 40 + 45 + x/5
Simplify: 90 = x/5
Solve: x = 450

So, the annual salary of each highest-paid employee is $450,000
Answer:
Show Spoiler
E

RELATED VIDEO
User avatar
BrushMyQuant
User avatar
Joined: 05 Apr 2011
Last visit: 03 Apr 2026
Posts: 2,286
Own Kudos:
2,680
 [1]
Given Kudos: 100
Status:Tutor - BrushMyQuant
Location: India
Concentration: Finance, Marketing
Schools: XLRI (A)
GMAT 1: 700 Q51 V31
GPA: 3
WE:Information Technology (Computer Software)
Expert
Expert reply
Schools: XLRI (A)
GMAT 1: 700 Q51 V31
Posts: 2,286
Kudos: 2,680
 [1]
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 01 Oct 2022, 00:28
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Given that In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 employees make $150,000/yr, and the 4 highest-paid employees all make the same amount. If the average annual salary for the 20 employees is $175,000/yr, then what is the annual salary of each highest-paid employee

Theory : Weighted Average = \(\frac{((Weight1∗Value1) + (Weight2∗Value2)…+ (WeightN∗ValueN))}{(Weight1 + Weight2 + ... WeightN)}\)

Let average salary of 4 highest employees be $ x

=> Average Annual Salary of 20 employees = \(\frac{10*80,000 + 6*150,000 + 4*x }{ 20}\)

=> 175,000 * 20 = 800,000 + 900,000 + 4x
=> 3,500,000 = 1,700,000 + 4x
=> 4x = 3,500,000 - 1,700,000 = 1,800,000
=> x = \(\frac{1,800,000}{4}\) = 450,000

So, Answer will be E
Hope it helps!

Watch the following video to Learn the Basics of Statistics

User avatar
bumpbot
User avatar
Non-Human User
Joined: 09 Sep 2013
Last visit: 04 Jan 2021
Posts: 38,972
Own Kudos:
1,117
Posts: 38,972
Kudos: 1,117
In a company of only 20 employees, 10 employees make $80,000/yr, 6 emp 14 Apr 2026, 07:06
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Automated notice from GMAT Club BumpBot:

A member just gave Kudos to this thread, showing it’s still useful. I’ve bumped it to the top so more people can benefit. Feel free to add your own questions or solutions.

This post was generated automatically.
Moderators:
Bunuel
Math Expert
109814 posts
Krunaal
Tuck School Moderator
853 posts