Is 59 a prime number?
59 is a prime number. Here is how to check it, one division at a time.
The answer
Yes. 59 is a prime number: its only factors are 1 and 59.
How to check that 59 is prime
Try dividing 59 by the prime numbers, starting with 2. You only need primes: if 4 went into 59, then 2 would too.
- 59 ÷ 2 = 29 remainder 1, so 2 is not a factor.
- 59 ÷ 3 = 19 remainder 2, so 3 is not a factor.
- 59 ÷ 5 = 11 remainder 4, so 5 is not a factor.
- 59 ÷ 7 = 8 remainder 3, so 7 is not a factor.
Stop at 11: 11 × 11 = 121, which is more than 59. Any factor bigger than that would need a partner smaller than 11, and you have already tried those. So 59 is prime.
Where 59 comes among the primes
59 is the 17th prime number. The prime just before it is 53.
There are 25 prime numbers up to 100: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89 and 97.
Around 59
- 59 is not in any times table from 2 to 12. The answers either side of it are 56 (7 × 8 and 8 × 7) and 60 (5 × 12, 6 × 10, 10 × 6 and 12 × 5).
- The nearest square number is 64 (8 × 8), 5 above it.
59 at a glance
Optional extra number facts:
- In words
- fifty-nine
- In Roman numerals
- LIX
- Odd or even
- Odd: it ends in 9
- Its factors add up to
- 60, or 1 without 59 itself. 59 is deficient: Deficient means this sum is less than the number.
Related pages
More numbers
Questions parents ask
Is 59 one of a pair of twin primes?
Yes. Twin primes are two primes 2 apart, and 59 pairs with 61.
What is the next prime number after 59?
61, which is 2 more than 59. Every number in between has a factor other than 1 and itself.
What is 59 × 59?
59 × 59 = 3481. The square of a prime has exactly three factors: 1, 59 and 3481.
Continue your number practice
Explore the diagnostic for another set of practice questions.