Question

Sean, an office manager, needs to find a courier to deliver a package. The first courier he is considering charges a fee of $20 plus $1 per pound. The second charges $8 plus $3 per pound. Sean determines that, given his package's weight, the two courier services are equivalent in terms of cost. How much will it cost to deliver the package? How much does Sean's package weigh?

Answer 1

It will cost $26 to deliver the package and Sean's package weighs 6 pounds.

Explanation:

Since you need to determine the weight of Sean's package given that he determined that the two courier services are equivalent in terms of cost, this means that you have to find the weight in which both courier services would charge the same amount. You can do this by writing an equation in which the price of the first courier is equal to the price of the second courier:

20+x=8+3x, where x is the weight of the package in pounds.

Now, you can solve for x to the determine the weight in which both courier services would charge the same amount:

20-8=3x-x

12=2x

x=12/2

x=6

Now, you can find the amount that it will cost to deliver a 6 pound package:

20+6=26

8+3(6)=26

According to this, the answer is that it will cost $26 to deliver the package and Sean's package weighs 6 pounds.