Overview
Profit and Loss is a highly practical and frequently tested topic in the **SSC CGL** Quantitative Aptitude section. You can expect **2-3 direct questions** per shift, plus additional questions where P&L concepts are embedded in other problems. This topic builds directly on Percentage concepts, so a strong foundation in percentages will make P&L much easier.
In SSC CGL Tier 1, questions range from straightforward profit/loss calculations to tricky problems involving dishonest dealers, successive discounts, and marked price scenarios. The good news is that most P&L problems follow predictable patterns that can be solved with standard formulas.
Key Concepts
### Basic Terminology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| **Cost Price (CP)** | The price at which an article is purchased |
| **Selling Price (SP)** | The price at which an article is sold |
| **Marked Price (MP)** | The price displayed/labeled on the article (also called List Price) |
| **Profit** | SP - CP (when SP > CP) |
| **Loss** | CP - SP (when CP > SP) |
| **Discount** | MP - SP (reduction from marked price) |
| **Profit %** | (Profit/CP) × 100 |
| **Loss %** | (Loss/CP) × 100 |
| **Discount %** | (Discount/MP) × 100 |
### Critical Point: Profit and Loss percentages are ALWAYS calculated on Cost Price, while Discount percentage is calculated on Marked Price.
Detailed Explanation
### Core Formulas
**When there is Profit:**
- SP = CP × (100 + Profit%)/100
- CP = SP × 100/(100 + Profit%)
- Profit% = [(SP - CP)/CP] × 100
**When there is Loss:**
- SP = CP × (100 - Loss%)/100
- CP = SP × 100/(100 - Loss%)
- Loss% = [(CP - SP)/CP] × 100
### Marked Price, Discount, and Selling Price
**Relationship**: MP × (100 - Discount%)/100 = SP
**If both MP and CP are known:**
- Overall Profit% = [(MP × (100-d%)/100 - CP)/CP] × 100
### Successive Discounts
Two successive discounts of a% and b% are equivalent to:
**Single discount** = (a + b - ab/100)%
**Example**: Successive discounts of 20% and 10%:
= 20 + 10 - (20×10)/100 = 30 - 2 = **28%** (NOT 30%)
### Dishonest Dealer Problems
A dealer who uses false weights:
**Profit%** = [(True Weight - False Weight)/False Weight] × 100
**Example**: A dealer sells at CP but uses 900g instead of 1000g:
Profit% = [(1000-900)/900] × 100 = 100/900 × 100 = **11.11%**
**If he also marks up the price:**
Total gain = [(1 + markup/100) × (True weight/False weight) - 1] × 100%
### Buy X Get Y Free
**Effective Discount%** = [Y/(X+Y)] × 100
**Example**: Buy 3 Get 1 Free:
Effective discount = [1/(3+1)] × 100 = **25%**
### Selling at Different Rates
If a person sells one item at a% profit and another at a% loss (both on CP):
- **Net Loss** = a²/100 %
- This is ALWAYS a loss, never a profit!