Google Home is better at math than you are. 12 useful questions it can instantly answer

Google Home ($100 at Best Buy) plays your favorite music, reminds you not to burn your casseroles and even turns your lights off before bed, but did you know it can also crunch numbers? Yep, Google Home’s onboard AI, Google Assistant, is an expert mathematician. I use it practically every day to make complex conversions and calculate problems I could never do in my head, and so will you once you learn how.

Google Assistant’s super math skills do more than just make Google Home an entertaining party guest (although it’s that, too). I routinely ask my Google Home to solve math equations when I’m cooking, shopping or just goofing around. And once you realize how quickly and easily Google Home can do hands-free calculations and conversions, you’ll find yourself relying on it much more than your phone’s touchscreen calculator.

Counting down the days, weeks and months

Off the cuff, do you know which day of the week rent is due next month? Or if your birthday falls on a weekend this year? How many days until New Years Eve? Calendars are hard to keep track of in your head. But not for Google Assistant.

Here are some questions you can ask Google Home (after starting with “Hey, Google” or “OK, Google”):

• “What day of the week does July 1 fall on?” (The answer is Wednesday, by the way.)
  
  
• “What will the date be 30 days from now?”
  
  
• “How many days has it been since Jan. 1?”
  
  

Convert recipe units in a flash

I cook a lot, and I like leftovers, but if I followed the exact quantities for every recipe, like this slow cooker pulled pork recipe that calls for a 5-pound. pork shoulder, well, I’d be eating barbecue for a month. So, a lot of times I find myself cutting recipes in half, or even (in the case of the pulled pork) one-fifth. I know a lot of conversions off the top of my head — three teaspoons per tablespoon, two tablespoons in an eighth of a cup — but I still find myself asking the Google Home Mini ($30 at Best Buy) in my kitchen to do it for me. This is also where the hands-free Google Home interface shines, since my digits are usually covered at this point in barbecue sauce or other ingredients.

Hey, Google or OK, Google…

• “How many cups is one-fourth of three cups?” (The answer is three quarters.)
  
  
• “How many ounces is 385 grams?” (13.58 ounces.)
  
  
• “How many cups is 24 teaspoons?” (Half a cup.)
  
  

Going the distance

I was looking at furniture online recently and all the measurements were in centimeters. Although I know there’s 2.54cm in every inch (and 12 inches in every foot), I can’t visualize how tall a 78cm table actually is. I also have a dog who I like to walk as much as possible, but sometimes I’m unsure if a destination, such as the nearby dog park, is actually walkable or not. Enter Google Home, and questions like these:

Hey, Google or OK, Google…

• “How many feet is 78cm?” (2 feet, 6.709 inches.)
  
  
• “How far away is the nearest park?”
  
  
• “How many miles per hour is 200 kilometers per hour?” (124.274 mph.)
  
  

Hands-free calculations on everything else

No matter what kind of numbers you’re dealing with, Google Home’s got your mathematical back. Calculate the cost of an item with tax, figure out how many push-ups you’d do in a year if you did 20 a day or how many donuts you’d get if you ordered 18 dozen. Again, the best part is you don’t have to switch to another app (like a calculator) or otherwise take your eyes off what you’re doing to get hands-free answers to these questions from Google Home:

Hey, Google or OK, Google…

• “How much is $47.99 times 1.06?” (This assumes sales tax where you live is 6%. The answer is $50.8694, or $50.87.)
  
  
• “What’s 20 times 365?” (7,300.)
  
  
• “How many is 18 times a dozen?” (216.)
  
  

Calculating math problems and doing conversions are just some of the ordinary tasks a smart assistant can take care of for you. Here’s how to streamline your routines to get the most out of Google Home all day long. Get Google Home to do more for you hands-free with these commands. And turn your smart speaker into the perfect bedside companion, with these five ways Google Home can help you sleep like a baby.