Number Line Generator

Make a printable number line with any start, end and step. Handles negatives, decimals and exact fractions, with a blank practice mode and up to 12 lines per sheet.


Download SVG
Start, end and step accept whole numbers, decimals and fractions, so 1/4, 0.25 and 1 1/2 all work, and any of them can be negative. Marks between adds unlabelled ticks inside each step. Set Numbers to blank for a line the class fills in.
Numbered marks
11
Divisions
10
Step
1
Last mark
10
012345678910

What a number line is for

A number line turns arithmetic into distance. Adding moves you right, subtracting moves you left, and the size of a jump is the size of the number, which is why it is usually the first place children meet negatives and the first place fractions stop being pieces of pizza and start being positions. The line is also the honest picture of density: between any two marks there is always room for another, and a child who has drawn thirds and quarters on the same line has seen why 1/3 sits between 1/4 and 1/2 rather than just been told.

Fractions and decimals on the same line

Type the step as a fraction and you get a fraction line: a step of 1/4 from 0 to 2 labels every mark as 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, 1, 1 1/4 and so on, with improper values written as mixed numbers. Type 0.25 instead and the same line is labelled in decimals. Because the positions are worked out as exact fractions rather than as decimal approximations, thirds and sevenths land where they belong: seven steps of 1/7 finish precisely on 1, which they would not if the tool were adding 0.142857 seven times.

Blank lines for practice

Set Numbers to only at the ends and the class gets a line with the two endpoints given and everything in between to work out. Set it to blank and even those go, which is the version for asking pupils to place a value themselves. Raise Lines per sheet and the same line repeats down the page, so one sheet becomes a set to cut up or a page of ten questions. The marks stay in exactly the same places whether they are labelled or not, so a blank sheet and a labelled sheet line up if you want to hand out both.

Negative numbers

Put a negative in the start box and the line crosses zero. A line from -5 to 5 is the standard picture for teaching that subtracting a larger number takes you left past zero, and it is the reason a number line beats a row of counters once negatives appear. Zero is not treated specially, so a line from -1 to 1 in steps of 1/2 puts marks at -1, -1/2, 0, 1/2 and 1, with zero written as plain 0 rather than as a signed value.

Worth knowing

  • The step can be a fraction, so 1/3 and 1/8 lines are as easy as counting in ones.
  • The drawing is measured in millimetres, so printing at 100% gives a true size sheet.
  • Marks between adds smaller unlabelled ticks, useful for showing tenths inside each unit.
  • Labelled and blank versions of the same settings have their marks in identical places.
  • Nothing is stored. The line is drawn on our server and the result is discarded once it is sent.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Type the step as a fraction, for example 1/4 or 1/3, and every mark is labelled as a fraction, with values over 1 shown as mixed numbers like 1 3/4. Start and end accept fractions too, so a line from 1/2 to 2 1/2 is fine.

Yes, put a negative value in the start box. A line from -10 to 10 crosses zero in the middle. Negatives work with fractional steps as well, so -1 to 1 in steps of 1/4 is available.

Set Numbers to blank, and the marks are drawn with nothing written under them. Only at the ends is the middle option, giving the first and last values so pupils can work out the rest. The marks sit in the same places either way.

It adds smaller unlabelled ticks inside each step. With a step of 1 and 9 marks between, each unit is divided into tenths, which is the usual way to show decimals sitting inside whole numbers without cluttering the line with labels.

Because the step does not divide the range evenly. From 0 to 1 in steps of 0.3 the marks are 0, 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9, and 1.2 would be past the end, so the line stops at 0.9. A note under the line tells you when this happens. Change the step if you need it to finish exactly.

Up to 12. They repeat down an A4 page with the same settings, which is handy for cutting into strips or for setting several questions on one page.

Yes, the drawing is dimensioned in millimetres. As long as your printer is set to 100% and not to fit to page, the line comes out at the size shown. Download SVG saves the same drawing as a vector for editing or dropping into a worksheet.

Exact. Positions are held as fractions all the way through rather than as decimals, so seven steps of 1/7 land precisely on 1 and three steps of 0.1 land precisely on 0.3. Adding those as ordinary computer decimals does not, which is why lines built that way drift slightly off their end value.

How do you make a printable number line?

Enter a start, end and step, then print or download as SVG. The step can be a whole number, a decimal or a fraction such as 1/4, and any value can be negative. Set the numbers to blank for practice, add unlabelled marks between, and repeat up to 12 lines per sheet.