Faq/Math/005/en

How do I align my equations at the equal sign?
Normally Math centers each line of a formula. To align each line at an equal sign you can use  , as shown in the following example.

The empty braces around the equal sign are necessary because = is a binary operator that needs an expression on each side.

The space around the = can be reduced by changing the spacing between columns of the matrix:
 * Select.
 * Click [Category] and choose Matrices from the drop down menu.
 * Enter 0% for Column spacing.

Sometimes you need to "reserve" some space on the left of the equal sign in multi-line equations. Use   as shown below.

The   markup indicates that there should be a space the same length as "3(x+4)-2(x-1)". This results in the equal signs lining up properly.

Note: The "" can also be replaced with  .