Cambridge IGCSE Mathematics (0580)

From the 2025 examination series, every 0580 candidate sits exactly two papers, and the split is by calculator use:

Core candidates sit Papers 1 and 3; Extended candidates sit Papers 2 and 4. Each Extended paper is worth 100 marks. The non-calculator paper is the newer challenge: questions are written so the arithmetic stays manageable, but they reward exact values — fractions, surds and π left in the answer rather than rounded decimals.

The two tiers share the same subject areas but not the same depth. Core covers the foundation content and awards grades C to G. Extended adds the harder material — among other things: surds, algebraic fractions, functions, the sine and cosine rules, circle theorems with reasons, vectors in geometric proofs, and histograms with unequal class widths — and awards grades A* to E.

The practical rule of thumb most schools use: if a grade above C is a realistic target, sit Extended. A student who finds Extended papers overwhelming early in the course still has time to consolidate on Core content first, because every Core skill appears inside the Extended syllabus.

Free, in-depth guides to the 0580 topics students search for most — each one covers the method, a worked example, and the specific mistakes Cambridge examiner reports flag year after year:

Quanta has mapped 42 Cambridge 0580 past papers question by question. Each has a page showing exactly how its marks split across the syllabus — useful for deciding what to revise before you sit it.

Browse all 42 IGCSE 0580 past papers →

The 0580 syllabus is organised into nine content areas:

1. Number — types of number, fractions/decimals/percentages, ratio, rates, bounds, standard form, compound interest
2. Algebra and graphs — manipulation, indices, equations, inequalities, sequences, proportion, function graphs, differentiation
3. Coordinate geometry — straight lines, gradients, midpoints, parallel and perpendicular lines
4. Geometry — angles, constructions, similarity, symmetry, circle theorems
5. Mensuration — perimeter, area, volume, arcs and sectors, compound shapes
6. Trigonometry — right-angled trig, sine and cosine rules, bearings, 3D problems
7. Transformations and vectors — reflections, rotations, enlargements, translations, vector geometry
8. Probability — single and combined events, tree diagrams, conditional probability
9. Statistics — averages, charts, scatter diagrams, cumulative frequency, histograms

Past papers are the highest-value revision there is for 0580 — but a finished paper with a score on it tells you what you got wrong, not which skill caused it. Quanta maps real Cambridge 0580 papers question by question to their official mark schemes — 42 papers so far — so every question you answer updates a per-skill picture of exactly where your marks are leaking.

That matters because most lost IGCSE marks are method marks: the examiner reports repeatedly single out missing reasons, missing working and wrong-form answers rather than wrong arithmetic.