🧠 Only a Few People Get This Store Riddle Right on the First Try… Can You?

Some riddles seem so simple that you expect to solve them in seconds. Yet somehow, they leave millions of people scratching their heads. One of the most famous examples is the classic “store riddle” involving a stolen $100 bill, a purchase, and some change.

It looks like a basic math problem, but its real challenge has nothing to do with arithmetic. Instead, it tests your ability to follow a sequence of events without counting the same money twice.

This puzzle has been shared across social media for years, generating thousands of comments from people who confidently defend completely different answers. Some insist the answer is $200, others argue it’s $170 or $130, while many believe the correct answer is only $100.

So why does such a short riddle create so much confusion?

Let’s walk through it carefully.

The riddle goes like this:

A man steals a $100 bill from a store register.

Later that day, he returns to the same store and uses that very same $100 bill to buy $70 worth of merchandise.

The cashier accepts the bill as payment and gives the customer $30 in change.

The question is simple:

How much money did the store actually lose?

At first glance, many people immediately begin adding numbers together.

Some think:

“The thief stole $100.”

“Then he took another $70 worth of merchandise.”

“And he also received $30 in change.”

They quickly calculate:

$100 + $70 + $30 = $200.

It sounds reasonable.

But there’s one important detail that completely changes everything.

The stolen $100 bill eventually comes back into the cash register when the thief pays for the merchandise.

That means the store recovers the original bill.

Once you recognize that fact, the puzzle becomes much easier.

Let’s examine each step carefully.

Step One

The thief steals $100.

At that moment, the store is missing $100 in cash.

Step Two

The thief returns.

He buys merchandise worth $70.

Instead of using his own money, he pays with the same $100 bill he previously stole.

The cashier has no idea the bill originally belonged to the store.

The cashier places the bill back into the register.

Now the stolen cash has returned.

The register once again contains the $100 bill.

Step Three

Since the purchase totals only $70, the cashier gives the customer $30 in change.

Now let’s examine what the store has actually lost.

The cash register still contains the same $100 bill that disappeared earlier.

So the store no longer has a cash shortage from the theft itself.

However…

The thief leaves with:

• $70 worth of merchandise
• $30 in legitimate change

That equals:

$70 + $30 = $100.

Therefore, the store’s total loss is exactly $100.