Guides for parents

The Australian Mathematics Competition, explained for parents

The AMC is the Australian Maths Trust's national competition, sat at school in early August. It is the broadest maths competition in the country and the one most primary schools enter.

Facts checked on 14 October 2026 against the official sites listed at the foot of the page.

When: 3 to 5 August 2027

The 2027 competition runs from Tuesday 3 to Thursday 5 August; in 2026 it was 4 to 6 August. Schools choose one of the days. Entries are made by the school, usually by early July for paper entries and the end of July for online.

Divisions

A child sits the division for their year and may enter only once. From 2027 an Early Primary division for Years 1 and 2 joins the standard offering.

Middle Primary: Years 3 and 4.
Upper Primary: Years 5 and 6.
Junior: Years 7 and 8.

The paper

30 questions in 60 minutes for the primary divisions, 75 minutes for Junior and above: 25 multiple choice with five options, then five questions whose answer is a whole number from 0 to 999. A calculator is allowed in Middle and Upper Primary only; from Junior upwards nothing but a dictionary is allowed.

How marks work

The total is 135, and there is no penalty for a wrong answer, so every question should be attempted. The last ten questions carry 65 of the 135 marks: that is where the awards are decided.

Questions 1 to 10: 3 marks each.
Questions 11 to 20: 4 marks each.
Questions 21 to 25: 5 marks each.
Questions 26 to 30: 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 marks.

Awards

Prize: about one in every 300 entrants in a year level and region.
High Distinction: the top 3% of the year level and region.
Distinction: the top 20%.
Credit: the top 55%.
Proficiency: a set score, awarded below Credit to those who reach it.

Entry and cost

Only schools, home schools and tutoring centres can enter students; a parent cannot register a child directly. The 2026 fee was A$9.30 a student, paid through the school. If the school does not enter, ask the maths coordinator: the school needs only to register and supervise.

Preparing

The first twenty questions reward careful arithmetic and reading; the last ten reward a handful of methods that come up every year: working backwards, counting systematically, finding the pattern, drawing the picture. Learning those one at a time on fresh questions is what moves a child from Credit to Distinction. The practice pages for Middle Primary and Upper Primary show six questions each, worked step by step; the free diagnostic shows which of the methods a child already holds. This site is independent of the Australian Maths Trust.

Start the free diagnostic More about AMC

Questions parents ask

What is a good AMC score?

Credit puts a child in the top 55% of the year, Distinction in the top 20%, High Distinction in the top 3%. The marks needed change each year with the paper.

Is a calculator allowed in the AMC?

In Middle Primary and Upper Primary, yes. From Junior (Years 7 and 8) upwards, no.

Should a Year 3 child enter?

Yes, if they enjoy puzzles. Year 3 sits the same Middle Primary paper as Year 4 and is ranked within Year 3, so the opening questions are the goal in the first year.