O Level and IGCSE
Cambridge 4024 vs 0580 Extended
4024 is O Level Mathematics (Syllabus D). 0580 Extended is the IGCSE tier that matches it: two long papers, grades A* to E. The topic lists are close. They are not the same qualification, and the paper numbers are not the same.
Syllabuses for exams in 2028, 2029 and 2030. Revise the code on your statement of entry.
Exam pattern
Both routes are two written papers, externally marked, 2 hours and 100 marks each, 50% each. Grades are A* to E. One paper bans the calculator. The other requires a scientific calculator. There is no topic split between the two papers.
Same job, different paper numbers. The non-calculator papers are 4024 Paper 1 and 0580 Extended Paper 2.
The calculator papers are 4024 Paper 2 and 0580 Extended Paper 4. A scientific calculator is required. Algebraic or graphical calculators are not permitted.
Cambridge O Level
4024 Mathematics (Syllabus D)
Paper 1 · Non-calculatorOn this route
- Calculator
- Not allowed.
- Questions
- Structured and unstructured questions on the whole 4024 subject content. Paper 1 has no topic list of its own.
- Working
- Write answers on the question paper and show the working.
Paper 2 · CalculatorOn this route
- Calculator
- A scientific calculator is required. Trigonometric functions are strongly recommended. Algebraic or graphical calculators are not permitted.
- Questions
- Same subject content as Paper 1. The difference is the calculator, not a second syllabus.
- Working
- Write answers on the question paper and show the working.
Cambridge IGCSE
0580 Extended
Paper 2 · Non-calculator, ExtendedOn this route
- Calculator
- Not allowed.
- Questions
- Extended subject content only. Extended Paper 2 has no topic list of its own.
- Working
- Write answers on the question paper and show the working.
Paper 4 · Calculator, ExtendedOn this route
- Calculator
- A scientific calculator is required. Trigonometric functions are strongly recommended. Algebraic or graphical calculators are not permitted.
- Questions
- Extended subject content only. Not Core, and not 4024 Paper 2.
- Working
- Write answers on the question paper and show the working.
Shared rules
- Each paper is 50%. About 40 to 50% of the qualification is AO1 (techniques) and about 50 to 60% is AO2 (analyse, interpret, communicate).
- A list of formulas is printed on page 2 of the papers. Not every formula you need is on it.
- Bring a pair of compasses, a protractor and a ruler. Tracing paper is not yours to bring; you may request it.
- Open a paper card for the calculator rule. Then use Topics to see what Extended adds.
What does not match
- 4024 Papers 1 and 2 are not 0580 Extended Papers 2 and 4. The length matches. The mark scheme does not.
- 0580 Extended questions are set on the Extended subject content. 4024 questions are set on the 4024 list.
- 4024 has no Core and Extended choice. Every 4024 candidate sits both papers.
Topic comparison
Both syllabuses use the same nine strands. The chips are the headings that matter when someone says the courses are identical. Open a chip for the syllabus line it comes from.
No numbered topic in the 4024 syllabus for 2028 to 2030 is missing from 0580 Extended. The extra headings sit on the Extended side.
No topic matches that search. Clear the box or switch filter.
Number · types, sets, standard form
Types of number, sets and Venn diagrams, powers and roots, fractions and recurring decimals, ratio, percentages including reverse percentages, and standard form are headings in both syllabuses.
Surds
Simplifying surds and rationalising the denominator are in 4024 section 1.18 and 0580 Extended E1.18.
Exponential growth and decay
Both include exponential growth and decay, such as depreciation. Knowledge of e is not required on either syllabus.
Algebraic fractions and quadratics
Algebraic fractions, factorising, completing the square, the quadratic formula, changing the subject, and linear simultaneous equations are in both.
Inequalities, sequences, proportion
Number-line and region inequalities, nth term of sequences, and direct and inverse proportion (including square and cube) are in both.
Functions
Domain, range, function notation, inverse functions and composite functions are in 4024 section 2.12 and 0580 Extended E2.13.
Coordinate geometry
Length, midpoint, and parallel and perpendicular lines are in both. 4024 section 3 and 0580 Extended E3 use the same headings.
Geometry and circle theorems
Constructions, scale drawings, bearings, similarity (including area and volume), and circle theorems I and II are in both.
Mensuration
Arcs and sectors, surface area and volume (including cone, sphere and pyramid), and compound solids are in both. A frustum is named in the notes of each.
Trigonometry, including 3D
Pythagoras, right-angled trigonometry, the sine and cosine rules, the area formula, and 3D trigonometry are in both. The sine and cosine rules are on the formula list.
Transformations and vectors
Reflection, rotation, enlargement, translation, vector arithmetic, magnitude and vector geometry are in both.
Probability of combined events
The probability scale, relative frequency, and combined events by sample space, Venn diagram and tree diagram are in both.
Cumulative frequency and histograms
Cumulative frequency diagrams, and histograms with frequency density, are in both. Quartiles read from a cumulative frequency diagram are in both section 9.6 and E9.6.
Tangent to a curve
Estimating a gradient by drawing a tangent is in 4024 section 2.10. The same skill is the first line of 0580 Extended differentiation (E2.12). The calculus that follows is not in 4024.
Linear and non-linear simultaneous equations
0580 Extended E2.5 adds simultaneous equations with one linear and one non-linear equation, powers no higher than two. 4024 section 2.5 stops at two linear equations.
Differentiation
0580 Extended E2.12 asks for derivatives of ax^n (n a positive integer or zero), sums of up to three such terms, stationary points, and maxima and minima. 4024 has no derivative heading. The dy/dx notation is expected on 0580.
Exact trigonometric values
0580 Extended E6.3: exact sin and cos of 0°, 30°, 45°, 60° and 90°, and exact tan of 0°, 30°, 45° and 60°. This is not a 4024 heading.
Trigonometric graphs and equations
0580 Extended E6.4: sketch y = sin x, cos x and tan x for 0° to 360°, and solve simple equations in that range. This is not a 4024 heading.
Conditional probability
0580 Extended E8.4: conditional probability from Venn diagrams, tree diagrams and tables. Notation P(A|B) and the conditional-probability formulas are not required. 4024 has no conditional-probability heading.
Quartiles from a raw list
0580 Extended E9.3 includes quartiles and the interquartile range for individual data. 4024 section 9.3 lists mean, median, mode and range, plus an estimated mean for grouped data. Both still ask for quartiles read from a cumulative frequency diagram.
Stem-and-leaf diagrams
0580 Extended E9.4 includes stem-and-leaf diagrams with ordered data and a key. 4024 section 9.4 lists bar charts, pie charts, pictograms and simple frequency distributions, not stem-and-leaf diagrams.
Exam dates
Cambridge publishes series, then a zone timetable. Do not plan a flight or a leave request from this page.
4024 series
- June series Cambridge’s early-summer series. The zone timetable has the day; papers are not all sat in June.
- November series Cambridge’s autumn series. The zone timetable has the day.
- March series Not offered. The 4024 syllabus for 2028 to 2030 lists June and November only.
4024 is not available in every administrative zone. Check the syllabus page before assuming a school can enter it.
0580 series
- June series Cambridge’s early-summer series. The zone timetable has the day.
- November series Cambridge’s autumn series. The zone timetable has the day.
- March series Offered for schools in India. Use that series timetable for the day.
These are series, not dates. The day and the morning or afternoon session come from the timetable for your administrative zone.
Pros and cons
These follow the structure of the two syllabuses. They are not a claim about which one universities prefer.
4024
Benefits
- Every candidate sits the same two papers and the same subject content. There is no tier to choose.
- The sitting matches 0580 Extended on length: two papers, 2 hours, 100 marks, 50% each.
- Grades on this syllabus are A* to E.
- Calculator and non-calculator skills are both examined, one paper each.
Drawbacks
- The 2028 to 2030 list has no topic that 0580 Extended lacks. Differentiation, trig graphs, exact trig values, conditional probability, stem-and-leaf diagrams, and quartiles from a raw list are Extended headings 4024 does not have.
- June and November series only. No March series in this syllabus.
- Not available in every administrative zone.
- It is an O Level code. A 0580 past paper is the wrong timed mock even when the topic name matches.
0580 Extended
Benefits
- Same two-paper pattern as 4024, plus the Extended-only headings listed in Topics.
- June and November series, and a March series for schools in India.
- Extended entry is graded A* to E.
- Extended Paper 2 is non-calculator and Extended Paper 4 requires a scientific calculator. Algebraic and graphical calculators are not permitted.
Drawbacks
- More named topics than 4024, including differentiation of ax^n and stationary points.
- The entry has to be Extended Papers 2 and 4. A different 0580 entry is not this comparison.
- The Extended papers are Paper 2 and Paper 4, so a 4024 Paper 1 mock is the wrong paper.
- It is an IGCSE code, not an O Level code. Local recognition is a question for the school, not a ranking this page makes.
Which one am I sitting?
Use the statement of entry, or ask the exams officer. The code on a textbook cover is not the entry.
You sit Paper 1 and Paper 2. Revise 4024 only. Start with the 4024 hub.
Do not guess. Ask the exams officer which code and which papers are on the entry, then come back to the matching pair.
That is 0580 Extended, the route this page compares with 4024. Use Extended Papers 2 and 4 only. Hub: 0580 hub.
That is Core, for candidates entered for Core Papers 1 and 3 and eligible for grades C to G. It is not the comparison on this page. Revise Core papers only.
Revise the code you are entered for
4024 hub 0580 hub 4024 Paper 1 yearly 0580 Extended Paper 2 yearly All guides
Sources: Cambridge O Level Mathematics 4024 and Cambridge IGCSE Mathematics 0580. Topic differences on this page are headings in those 2028 to 2030 syllabuses.
Common questions
Why compare 4024 with 0580 Extended and not Core?
Extended is the matching demand: two papers of 2 hours and 100 marks, 50% each, grades A* to E. Core Papers 1 and 3 are 1 hour 30 minutes and 80 marks, grades C to G. This page names Core once so it is not confused with Extended.
What does Syllabus D mean?
It is the name of Cambridge O Level Mathematics, code 4024. Use 4024 papers for the year on your statement of entry.
Which topics are only on 0580 Extended?
For 2028 to 2030 the Extended-only headings are: simultaneous equations with one linear and one non-linear equation; differentiation of ax^n with stationary points; exact sine, cosine and tangent values; graphs of sine, cosine and tangent and simple trig equations from 0° to 360°; conditional probability; quartiles and interquartile range from a list of individual data; and stem-and-leaf diagrams.
Which topics are only on 4024?
None. No numbered topic in the 4024 syllabus for 2028 to 2030 is missing from 0580 Extended. Estimating a gradient by drawing a tangent is in both.
Can my friend and I share past papers?
Share the method, not the mock. A timed paper has to match the entry: 4024 Paper 1 and Paper 2, or 0580 Extended Paper 2 and Extended Paper 4.
When are 4024 and 0580 examined?
4024 is examined in the June and November series, and not in every administrative zone. 0580 is examined in the June and November series, and in the March series for schools in India. Exact days are on the Cambridge timetable for your zone.