What is Cramer’s rule?

Cramer’s rule is a formula-based method for solving small systems of linear equations using determinants. It works for square systems, where the number of equations equals the number of unknowns, and the determinant of the coefficient matrix is nonzero. This calculator focuses on the most practical cases: 2×2 and 3×3 systems.

Write a system of n equations in matrix form as:

$A \cdot x = b$

Here, $A$ is the coefficient matrix, $x$ is the column vector of unknowns, and $b$ is the column vector of constants on the right-hand side.

If the determinant of $A$ , written $det (A)$ , is not zero, Cramer’s rule gives each unknown as a ratio of determinants. For a 3×3 system with variables $x, y, z$ , the formulas are:

$x = \frac{D}{D}, y = \frac{D_{y}}{D}, z = \frac{D_{z}}{D}$

where $D$ is the determinant of the original coefficient matrix, and $D_{x}$ , $D_{y}$ , and $D_{z}$ are determinants of matrices where the corresponding column has been replaced by the constants vector $b$ .

How this Cramer’s rule solver works

The calculator expects your system in the following standard form:

For a 3×3 system: a11 x + a12 y + a13 z = b1
a21 x + a22 y + a23 z = b2
a31 x + a32 y + a33 z = b3

The entries a11, a12, etc., are the coefficients that multiply each variable; b1, b2, and b3 are the constants on the right-hand side. The solver:

Builds the coefficient matrix $A$ from the aij values you enter.
Computes the determinant $det (A)$ .
Constructs the replacement matrices for each variable by swapping in the constants b1, b2, and b3 into the corresponding column.
Computes the determinants of those replacement matrices.
Divides each replacement determinant by the main determinant to produce the solution.

If the main determinant is exactly zero (or numerically extremely close to zero), the solver will report that there is no unique solution and Cramer’s rule does not apply.

Using the solver for 2×2 systems

For a 2×2 system with variables $x$ and $y$ , write your equations as:

a11 x + a12 y = b1
a21 x + a22 y = b2

In the form:

Fill in a11, a12, and b1 from the first equation.
Fill in a21, a22, and b2 from the second equation.
Leave a13, a23, a31, a32, a33, and b3 as zero or blank. The solver will treat the missing third row and column appropriately for a 2-variable system.

For a 2×2 system, Cramer’s rule simplifies to the familiar formulas:

$x = \frac{b a_{22} - b a_{12}}{a_{11} a_{22} - a_{12} a_{21}}, y = \frac{a_{11} b - a_{21} b}{a_{11} a_{22} - a_{12} a_{21}}$

The calculator handles these determinant computations for you automatically.

Using the solver for 3×3 systems

For three variables $x, y, z$ , arrange your equations as:

a11 x + a12 y + a13 z = b1
a21 x + a22 y + a23 z = b2
a31 x + a32 y + a33 z = b3

Then map each coefficient directly into the corresponding field. All nine aij entries and the three bi entries may be nonzero for a fully 3-dimensional problem.

Worked 2×2 example

Consider the system:

3x + 4y = 7
2x − y = 1

Map this into the form:

a11 = 3, a12 = 4, b1 = 7
a21 = 2, a22 = -1, b2 = 1

Leave the remaining fields blank or zero. The determinant of the coefficient matrix is:

det(A) = 3 ⋅ (-1) − 4 ⋅ 2 = -11.

Replacing the first column with b gives det(A_x) = -11, and replacing the second column gives det(A_y) = -11. So:

x = det(A_x) / det(A) = (-11)/(-11) = 1

y = det(A_y) / det(A) = (-11)/(-11) = 1

If you enter these numbers into the calculator, it will display the same solution.

Worked 3×3 example (applied)

Suppose three products share a common resource, and we model their relationships as:

2x + y + z = 4
x + 3y - z = 3
3x - y + 2z = 7

Enter the coefficients and constants as:

a11 = 2, a12 = 1, a13 = 1, b1 = 4
a21 = 1, a22 = 3, a23 = -1, b2 = 3
a31 = 3, a32 = -1, a33 = 2, b3 = 7

The calculator builds the 3×3 matrix, computes its determinant and the three replacement determinants, then reports the unique solution for x, y, and z. You can change a single coefficient (for example, adjust a23) to see how sensitive the solution is to that entry.

Interpreting the results

The output gives the numerical values of the variables, along with information about the determinant:

If the determinant is nonzero and reasonably sized, the system has a unique solution, and Cramer’s rule is reliable.
If the determinant is exactly zero, there is no unique solution. The equations are either inconsistent (no solution) or dependent (infinitely many solutions).
If the determinant is very small in magnitude (for example, |det(A)| < 10⁻⁶), the system is nearly singular and the solution can be extremely sensitive to rounding or measurement noise.

In sensitive cases, consider rescaling your variables, using higher-precision arithmetic, or solving the system with a more numerically stable method such as Gaussian elimination.

Comparison with other methods

Method	Best for	Advantages	Limitations
Cramer’s rule (this solver)	2×2 and 3×3 systems	Direct formulas; conceptually simple; good for hand calculations and teaching determinants.	Computationally expensive for large systems; unstable if the determinant is very small.
Gaussian elimination	Medium to large systems	Scales efficiently; foundation of many numerical solvers for linear equations.	More algorithmic; less transparent as a closed-form formula.
Matrix inversion	Repeatedly solving systems with the same matrix	Once $A^{-1}$ is known, solving new right-hand sides is fast.	Computing the inverse can be expensive and is unnecessary if you only need a single solution.

Assumptions and limitations

Square system only: The tool assumes the number of equations equals the number of unknowns (2 or 3). It does not handle overdetermined or underdetermined systems.
Nonzero determinant: Cramer’s rule requires $det (A) ≠ 0$ . If the determinant is zero, the system has no unique solution.
Numerical sensitivity: When the determinant is extremely small in magnitude, the system is ill-conditioned. Small errors in input can produce large changes in the output.
Size of the system: The method is most practical for 2×2 and 3×3 problems. Larger systems are better handled with elimination or factorization methods.
Floating-point arithmetic: The calculator uses standard floating-point operations, so results may include rounding error, especially for very large or very small coefficients.

For larger systems or more advanced numerical work, consider using a general linear systems solver based on Gaussian elimination or an LU decomposition method, and a dedicated determinant calculator when you only need determinants.

Cramer's Rule Solver

What is Cramer’s rule?

How this Cramer’s rule solver works

Using the solver for 2×2 systems

Using the solver for 3×3 systems

Worked 2×2 example

Worked 3×3 example (applied)

Interpreting the results

Comparison with other methods

Assumptions and limitations

Embed this calculator

Cramer's Rule Solver

What is Cramer’s rule?

How this Cramer’s rule solver works

Using the solver for 2×2 systems

Using the solver for 3×3 systems

Worked 2×2 example

Worked 3×3 example (applied)

Interpreting the results

Comparison with other methods

Assumptions and limitations

Embed this calculator

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