IB Maths Formula Booklet: What's Actually In It?

The booklet itself isn't tested directly — every IB Maths exam question is written assuming you have it open. What's actually assessed is whether you can spot which formula applies, substitute the right values, and interpret the result. According to the IB, a clean copy is issued for Papers 1, 2 and (HL only) Paper 3.

Prior Learning covers formulae you're assumed to know before starting the DP: area and volume of standard 2D/3D shapes, the distance and midpoint formulas, arithmetic and geometric sequence/series formulas, laws of exponents and logarithms, and the quadratic formula. It sits at the very front of the booklet, before Topic 1.

No — Analysis & Approaches and Applications & Interpretation each get their own booklet, though the layout (Prior Learning, then Topics 1–5, SL content followed by AHL content) is identical. AA's booklet leans into calculus and algebraic proof; AI's leans into statistics, modelling and technology-driven methods like regression and Voronoi diagrams.

No — SL and HL students within the same course (AA or AI) share one booklet. Each topic section lists SL content first, then a clearly labelled 'AHL' (Additional Higher Level) block underneath for formulas only HL students need, like Maclaurin series in AA or non-linear regression models in AI.

Basic trig ratios (SOHCAHTOA), Pythagoras' theorem, circle theorems, and exact trig values for 30°, 45°, 60° aren't listed — you're expected to know these cold. Process-based skills like completing the square, proof by induction, and integration by substitution also aren't in there; only the resulting standard integrals are given.

Yes, constantly — this is one of the most common Paper 1 traps I see marking scripts. Examiners know you can't look up SOHCAHTOA or Pythagoras, so short, one-mark starter questions often hinge on exactly that missing content, especially in Section A where speed and recall matter more than booklet navigation.

Confusing notation between similar formulas — mixing up population standard deviation (σ) with sample standard deviation (sₙ₋₁), or grabbing an Applications & Interpretation regression formula out of habit on an Analysis & Approaches paper after cross-practising past papers. I've marked scripts where the working was flawless but the wrong variable definition cost the final marks.

Yes — you get a clean, unannotated copy from the invigilator for Paper 1, Paper 2, and Paper 3 if you're doing HL. You can't bring in your own copy with tabs, highlighting or notes added beforehand; every student sits with an identical, blank booklet issued on the day.

Speed comes from knowing the booklet's structure before you open it in the exam hall, not from reading it for the first time under pressure. Practise past papers with the actual booklet beside you, and time how long it takes to locate a formula — anything over ten seconds means you need more repetition.

Some, yes — even though they're listed, flipping pages costs time you don't have on Paper 1's short, sharp starter questions. I tell every class I teach to know the quadratic formula, sine and cosine rules, and the standard derivatives of xⁿ, sin x and cos x by heart, booklet or not.

Statistics and probability, by a distance — normal distribution, binomial and (at HL) Poisson formulas are dense and easy to misremember. Calculus comes second, especially standard integrals and, for AA HL, Maclaurin series. Geometry and trigonometry lean on it too, particularly the sine rule's ambiguous case and vector formulas.

The IB publishes the current Mathematics: analysis and approaches and applications and interpretation formula booklets through its official DP subject documentation, and your school's IB coordinator has the exact version used for your exam session. Practising past papers with a printed copy from early in the DP is the most useful habit to build.

It matters less than most parents assume — the booklet won't rescue a student who doesn't understand when to apply a formula. Grade 7 boundaries typically sit around 80-85% of raw marks across AA and AI (exact boundaries shift slightly each session), and that's earned through interpretation and method, not lookup speed.