Prime Factorization of 75

Find the prime factorization of 75. Express 75 as a product of prime numbers.

Prime factorization of
Answer: 75 = 3 × 5^2
Step-by-Step Solution
Step 1 Understand Prime Factorization

To find the prime factorization of 75, we need to express it as a product of prime numbers.


We do this by repeatedly dividing by the smallest prime that divides evenly, starting with 2.

A prime number is only divisible by 1 and itself (2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, ...).

Step 2 Check Divisibility by 2

75 is an odd number, so it is not divisible by 2.

We move on to check the next prime number: 3.

Step 3 Divide by 3

3 is a prime number that divides our current value. We can divide by 3 once:


75 ÷ 3 = 25

After dividing by 3, we have 25 remaining.

Step 4 Divide by 5

5 is a prime number that divides our current value. We can divide by 5 twice:


25 ÷ 5 = 5
5 ÷ 5 = 1

After dividing by 5, we have 1 remaining.

Step 5 Write the Prime Factorization

Now we combine all the prime factors we found:


Expanded form: 75 = 3 × 5 × 5


Exponential form: 75 = 3 × 5^2


We can verify: 3 × 5 × 5 = 75 ✓