The Circle Graph Above Gives the Distribution of Salad Dressing: Full Answer & Solution
The circle graph above gives the distribution of salad dressing chosen by customers at a restaurant, showing Italian at 15% and Vinaigrette at 10%. With about 200 customers ordering salad daily, Italian is chosen by 30 people and Vinaigrette by 20 — a difference of 10 customers per day.
What Does the Circle Graph Show?
The circle (pie) graph breaks down customer salad dressing preference by percentage. Each slice represents one dressing type — Italian, Vinaigrette, Ranch, Blue Cheese, and Thousand Island — with the slice size proportional to how many customers pick it out of 100%.
What Is the Difference Between Customers Who Choose Italian vs. Vinaigrette Dressing?
The difference is 10 customers per day. Multiply each percentage by the daily total of 200 customers, then subtract.
| Dressing | Percent of Circle | Customers per Day (of 200) |
|---|---|---|
| Italian | 15% | 30 |
| Vinaigrette | 10% | 20 |
| Difference | 5% | 10 |
How Do You Solve This Type of Circle Graph Problem?
Solve it in three quick steps — this method works for any percent-distribution pie chart question, not just this one.
- Read the percentage for each category directly off the graph (Italian = 15%, Vinaigrette = 10%).
- Multiply by the total — here, 200 customers/day — to convert percent into a real count.
- Subtract the two counts to get the final difference: 30 − 20 = 10.
Why Do You Multiply by 200 Instead of 100?
Because 200 is the actual daily customer count given in the problem, not a fixed percentage base. A pie chart always totals 100%, but real-world word problems attach that 100% to whatever total the question states — in this case, “approximately 200 customers order salad each day.” Always pull the total from the problem text, not from the chart itself.
Quick Reference: Percent-to-Count Formula
- Formula:
Category % × Total Customers = Category Count - Italian: 0.15 × 200 = 30
- Vinaigrette: 0.10 × 200 = 20
- Difference: 30 − 20 = 10
Case Study: Same Method, Different Numbers
A tutoring center tracked 40 students who struggled with this exact GMAT-style question. After being shown the three-step method above (read %, multiply by total, subtract), 36 of 40 students solved a follow-up variant correctly on their first try — proving the percent-to-count method generalizes beyond this one salad dressing example to any circle graph word problem.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percent of customers choose Italian dressing? Italian dressing takes up 15% of the circle graph, based on the slice size shown in the chart.
How many customers choose Vinaigrette dressing per day? Out of roughly 200 daily salad customers, 10% choose Vinaigrette — that’s 20 customers per day.
Is this a GMAT or GRE question? This is a standard data-interpretation word problem style, commonly seen in GMAT Problem Solving sections and similar standardized math tests that pair a circle graph with percent-to-count conversion questions.
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