TITLE: Subtraction when second number is bigger than first number
QUESTION [23 upvotes]: I'm a bit new to this. I'm trying to figure out how subtraction works pen and paper wise.
I have a bit of a program where I can't seem to find any answers online. What I want to do is use the borrowing method of subtraction. I have a:
1) I'm trying subtract:
   6526
-  8437

All websites I test and calculator says the answer is 1911 but I'm getting -2089. I'm using the borrowing method, but shouldn't the number be negative?
Thanks so much.

REPLY [3 votes]: Subtracting this way will give you a negative number, the easiest way to solve a problem like this is to just switch the two numbers around, so that the big number is on top, then subtract, and add a negative sign in front of the result, or like some people suggested, multiply by -1. It is the same answer either way.