Computers add exactly the way you learned in grade school — one column at a time, carrying the one. Watch the carry ripple through an 8-bit adder.
Binary Ripple-Carry AdderLive
how computers add
01010011
+ 00111010
01110010
= 10001101
amber = carry chain
Controls
Presets
A ripple-carry adder chains full-adders: each bit adds A, B, and the carry from the bit below, passing its own carry upward. That carry ripple is why simple adders slow down as they get wider. Educational tool.
Reading this result: A carry is generated in 4 of the 8 columns, and each one must wait for the column below it — that wait is why wide ripple adders slow down.
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How it works
A ripple-carry adder chains full-adders, one per bit. Each stage sums its two input bits plus the carry from below and passes a carry upward. The carry must propagate through every stage, which is why wide ripple adders are comparatively slow. Educational tool.
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The math, the assumptions, real-world uses, or a code translation — explained for this exact simulation.
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