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Is 58 a prime number?

58 is not a prime number. Here is the quickest way to see it.

The answer

No. 58 is not a prime number: 2 × 29 = 58.

How to see that 58 is not prime

58 is even, and every even number can be divided by 2, so 2 is a factor as well as 1 and 58.

58 has four factors: 1 and 58, plus one pair in between, 2 and 29.

Split 58 into prime factors

58 splits straight into two primes, 2 × 29, so its factor tree has only one branch.

58 in the times tables

No fact from the 2 to 12 times tables, up to × 12, makes 58. Its smallest pair, 2 × 29, needs the 29 times table, which goes past 12.

Quick checks that catch 58

  • The last digit, 8, is even, so 2 goes in.

58 at a glance

In words
fifty-eight
In Roman numerals
LVIII
Odd or even
Even: it ends in 8
Its factors add up to
90, or 32 without 58 itself, which makes 58 a deficient number

The numbers either side of 58

  • 57 is not prime. Its digits add up to 5 + 7 = 12, which is a multiple of 3. That means 57 is a multiple of 3 too, so 3 is a factor. Check 57 in full
  • 59 is prime: 2, 3, 5 and 7 do not go into it, and 11 × 11 is already past 59. Check 59 in full

Turn the digits round

58 backwards is 85. 85 is not prime. 85 ends in 5, and every number ending in 5 or 0 is in the 5 times table, so 5 is a factor. Check 85 in full

Related pages

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Questions parents ask

Which prime numbers are either side of 58?

53 below it and 59 above it, a gap of 6.

What is 58 squared?

58 × 58 = 3364.

What is the smallest number with as many factors as 58?

6. It has 4 factors, the same as 58.

Number facts are the base of 11+ maths

Factors, multiples, primes and square numbers come up all over 11+ maths, from simplifying fractions to ratio. The free diagnostic checks maths, English and both kinds of reasoning, and shows what to practise next. No card is required.