Put the right sign between two fractions. Pairs are chosen so the answer needs reasoning rather than a glance, and equal pairs appear often enough to matter.
Grade 3–Grade 6 · every refresh draws a new set · answer key included
Comparing fractions worksheets
Write <, > or = between each pair of fractions.
Comparing fractions worksheets — answer key
Write <, > or = between each pair of fractions.
24 problems · US Letter · answer key — 2 sheets, page breaks marked in the preview
Comparing fractions is where the difference between a number and its notation becomes obvious: three eighths looks bigger than a third because both its digits are bigger, and it is not. Pupils need a method — common denominators, comparison to a half, or reasoning about the size of the pieces — and a page of pairs is how the method gets practised. Pairs here include some that are genuinely equal, because a sheet where the answer is never = teaches pupils to stop considering it.
Grade 3 to Grade 6, ages eight to twelve. Same-numerator pairs suit Grade 3, where the reasoning is about the size of the pieces. Unlike pairs needing a common denominator belong in Grade 4 and up.
Keep the largest denominator low while a method is being learned, because comparing sixths with eighths is a reasoning question, and comparing sevenths with elevenths is an arithmetic one. Use the page alongside the equivalent fractions sheet: rewriting both fractions with a common denominator is the method most classes settle on, and it is the same skill.
Comparing numerators alone is the headline error, followed by comparing denominators alone — and the second is worse, because with the same numerator the larger denominator means the smaller fraction, which feels backwards. Equal pairs written as < or > reveal pupils who are guessing from the shape of the numbers rather than working anything out.