The Trachtenberg System is a system of rapid mental calculation, somewhat similar to Vedic mathematics. It was developed by the Ukrainian engineer Jakow Trachtenberg in order to keep his mind occupied while being held in a Nazi concentration camp.

The system consists of a number of readily memorized patterns that allow one to perform arithmetic computations very quickly.

The rest of this article presents some of the methods devised by Trachtenberg. These are for illustration only. To actually learn the method requires practice and a more complete treatment.

The most important algorithms are the ones for general multiplication, division and addition. In addition, the method includes some specialized methods for multiplying small numbers between 5 and 13.