Cambridge 0580 · counted from 42 papers

Most common topics in IGCSE Maths 0580

Across 42 real Cambridge 0580 papers from 2023 to 2025, the topic that carries the most marks is Equations — 324 marks, 7.7% of everything, appearing on 40 of the 42 papers. Next come Non-right-angled triangles (4.6%) and Surface area and volume (4.2%). The ten biggest topics together account for 41% of the marks.

Cambridge publishes a syllabus, not a weighting. These figures are counted from the papers themselves: every part of every question Quanta holds is filed under the topic it tests, and its marks are added up. That makes this the closest thing to a real answer to “what comes up most”.

Updated 28 September 2026

What comes up most on 0580 Paper 2

Counted from 21 Paper 2 sittings (2023–2025). The top topic is Equations at 8% of the paper. Every Paper 2 sitting →

Equations

135 mk · 8%

Angles

71 mk · 4.2%

Algebraic fractions

70 mk · 4.2%

Algebraic manipulation

68 mk · 4%

Sequences

51 mk · 3%

The four operations

50 mk · 3%

Surface area and volume

50 mk · 3%

Circle theorems I

49 mk · 2.9%

Transformations

48 mk · 2.9%

Trigonometric functions

46 mk · 2.7%

What comes up most on 0580 Paper 4

Counted from 21 Paper 4 sittings (2023–2025). The top topic is Equations at 7.5% of the paper. Every Paper 4 sitting →

Equations

189 mk · 7.5%

Non-right-angled triangles

172 mk · 6.8%

Percentages

146 mk · 5.8%

Surface area and volume

127 mk · 5%

Averages and measures of spread

121 mk · 4.8%

Functions

113 mk · 4.5%

Differentiation

110 mk · 4.4%

Algebraic manipulation

91 mk · 3.6%

Transformations

86 mk · 3.4%

Circles, arcs and sectors

80 mk · 3.2%

By syllabus section

The same marks, grouped into the syllabus’s own sections:

Algebra and graphs

1367 mk · 32.5%

Number

744 mk · 17.7%

Trigonometry

440 mk · 10.5%

Geometry

363 mk · 8.6%

Mensuration

363 mk · 8.6%

Statistics

311 mk · 7.4%

Transformations and vectors

282 mk · 6.7%

Probability

182 mk · 4.3%

Coordinate geometry

148 mk · 3.5%

Every 0580 topic, ranked

All 72 topics, most marks first. “On papers” counts how many of the 42 papers gave the topic at least one mark. Topics in blue have a free Quanta guide.

#	Topic	Marks	Share	On papers
1	EquationsAlgebra and graphs	324	7.7%	40/42
2	Non-right-angled trianglesTrigonometry	192	4.6%	27/42
3	Surface area and volumeMensuration	177	4.2%	27/42
4	PercentagesNumber	175	4.2%	29/42
5	Algebraic manipulationAlgebra and graphs	159	3.8%	34/42
6	Averages and measures of spreadStatistics	158	3.8%	31/42
7	FunctionsAlgebra and graphs	153	3.6%	24/42
8	DifferentiationAlgebra and graphs	148	3.5%	23/42
9	TransformationsTransformations and vectors	134	3.2%	21/42
10	SequencesAlgebra and graphs	113	2.7%	21/42
11	Circles, arcs and sectorsMensuration	108	2.6%	25/42
12	Probability of combined eventsProbability	104	2.5%	25/42
13	Algebraic fractionsAlgebra and graphs	104	2.5%	24/42
14	Graphs of functionsAlgebra and graphs	102	2.4%	13/42
15	AnglesGeometry	98	2.3%	24/42
16	Right-angled trianglesTrigonometry	83	2%	22/42
17	Vector geometryTransformations and vectors	82	2%	20/42
18	Pythagoras' theorem and trigonometry in 3DTrigonometry	79	1.9%	17/42
19	Circle theorems IGeometry	78	1.9%	22/42
20	InequalitiesAlgebra and graphs	77	1.8%	14/42
21	SimilarityGeometry	75	1.8%	19/42
22	Indices IIAlgebra and graphs	71	1.7%	25/42
23	Trigonometric functionsTrigonometry	63	1.5%	17/42
24	Limits of accuracyNumber	62	1.5%	20/42
25	RatesNumber	62	1.5%	12/42
26	SetsNumber	60	1.4%	20/42
27	Perpendicular linesCoordinate geometry	58	1.4%	15/42
28	The four operationsNumber	57	1.4%	17/42
29	Types of numberNumber	54	1.3%	17/42
30	HistogramsStatistics	52	1.2%	19/42
31	Ratio and proportionNumber	49	1.2%	17/42
32	Cumulative frequency diagramsStatistics	48	1.1%	8/42
33	Scale drawingsGeometry	46	1.1%	16/42
34	Area and perimeterMensuration	42	1%	14/42
35	ProportionAlgebra and graphs	41	1%	14/42
36	Length and midpointCoordinate geometry	41	1%	11/42
37	Introduction to probabilityProbability	40	1%	22/42
38	Fractions, decimals and percentagesNumber	36	0.9%	13/42
39	Vectors in two dimensionsTransformations and vectors	35	0.8%	18/42
40	Exponential growth and decayNumber	34	0.8%	11/42
41	Circle theorems IIGeometry	34	0.8%	9/42
42	Sketching curvesAlgebra and graphs	33	0.8%	10/42
43	Standard formNumber	32	0.8%	12/42
44	SurdsNumber	32	0.8%	7/42
45	Magnitude of a vectorTransformations and vectors	31	0.7%	13/42
46	Statistical charts and diagramsStatistics	30	0.7%	9/42
47	Conditional probabilityProbability	29	0.7%	9/42
48	Graphs in practical situationsAlgebra and graphs	26	0.6%	8/42
49	Indices INumber	25	0.6%	9/42
50	MoneyNumber	25	0.6%	9/42
51	Compound shapes and parts of shapesMensuration	25	0.6%	4/42
52	Equations of linear graphsCoordinate geometry	21	0.5%	8/42
53	Scatter diagramsStatistics	18	0.4%	6/42
54	TimeNumber	16	0.4%	10/42
55	Introduction to algebraAlgebra and graphs	16	0.4%	8/42
56	Gradient of linear graphsCoordinate geometry	16	0.4%	7/42
57	Geometrical constructionsGeometry	14	0.3%	5/42
58	SymmetryGeometry	13	0.3%	8/42
59	Pythagoras’ theoremTrigonometry	13	0.3%	4/42
60	Units of measureMensuration	11	0.3%	6/42
61	EstimationNumber	10	0.2%	5/42
62	Exact trigonometric valuesTrigonometry	10	0.2%	4/42
63	Relative and expected frequenciesProbability	9	0.2%	8/42
64	Using a calculatorNumber	6	0.1%	4/42
65	Geometrical termsGeometry	5	0.1%	4/42
66	Powers and rootsNumber	5	0.1%	4/42
67	CoordinatesCoordinate geometry	5	0.1%	2/42
68	Interpreting statistical dataStatistics	4	0.1%	3/42
69	Drawing linear graphsCoordinate geometry	4	0.1%	2/42
70	OrderingNumber	4	0.1%	2/42
71	Parallel linesCoordinate geometry	3	0.1%	1/42
72	Classifying statistical dataStatistics	1	0%	1/42

How this was counted

Each question part is filed under the one topic it mainly tests. Where a part also draws on a second topic, it counts only once, under the first — so these numbers slightly understate topics that mostly appear as support for others, and never double-count. Figures cover the 42 0580 papers Quanta has mapped, 2023–2025; they describe what those papers asked, not what a future paper will. What each paper needed for each grade →

Practise Mathematics against real mark schemes

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Common questions

What topic comes up most in 0580?

Equations, with 324 marks across 42 papers — 7.7% of the total — appearing on 40 of them. Non-right-angled triangles and Surface area and volume are next.

Is this the official Cambridge weighting?

No — Cambridge does not publish topic weightings. These are counted from real past papers, which makes them a measurement of what has been asked rather than an official rule. The pattern is stable year to year, which is what makes it useful for deciding where revision time goes.

Should I only revise the most common topics?

No — any syllabus topic can be examined. But the ranking tells you where marks have concentrated, and the topics near the top are the ones where being secure pays back most. The ones that appeared on every paper are the safest place to start.