Rules of Differentiation of Functions in
Calculus
The basic rules of Differentiation of functions in calculus are presented along with
several examples.
1 - Derivative of a constant function.
The derivative of f(x) = c where c is a constant is given by
f '(x) = 0
Example f(x) = - 10 , then f '(x) = 0
2 - Derivative of a power function (power rule).
The derivative of f(x) = x r where r is a constant real number is given by
f '(x) = r x r - 1
Example f(x) = x -2 , then f '(x) = -2 x -3 = -2 / x 3
3 - Derivative of a function multiplied by a constant.
The derivative of f(x) = c g(x) is given by
f '(x) = c g '(x)
Example f(x) = 3x 3 ,
let c = 3 and g(x) = x 3, then f '(x) = c g '(x)
= 3 (3x 2) = 9 x 2
4 - Derivative of the sum of functions (sum rule).
The derivative of f(x) = g(x) + h(x) is given by
f '(x) = g '(x) + h '(x)
Example f(x) = x 2 + 4
x 2 and h(x) = 4, then f '(x) = g '(x) + h '(x) = 2x + 0 = 2x
let g(x) =
5 - Derivative of the difference of functions.
The derivative of f(x) = g(x) - h(x) is given by
f '(x) = g '(x) - h '(x)
Example f(x) = x 3 - x -2
let g(x) = x 3 and h(x) = x -2, then
f '(x) = g '(x) - h '(x) = 3 x 2 - (-2 x -3) = 3 x 2 + 2x -3
6 - Derivative of the product of two functions (product
rule).
The derivative of f(x) = g(x) h(x) is given by
f '(x) = g(x) h '(x) + h(x) g '(x)
Example f(x) = (x 2 - 2x) (x - 2)
let g(x) = (x 2 - 2x) and h(x) = (x - 2), then
f '(x) = g(x) h '(x) + h(x) g '(x) = (x 2 - 2x) (1) + (x - 2) (2x - 2)
= x 2 - 2x + 2 x 2 - 6x + 4 = 3 x 2 - 8x + 4
7 - Derivative of the quotient of two functions (quotient
rule).
The derivative of f(x) = g(x) / h(x) is given by
f '(x) = ( h(x) g '(x) - g(x) h '(x) ) / h(x) 2
Example f(x) = (x - 2) / (x + 1)
let g(x) = (x - 2) and h(x) = (x + 1), then
f '(x) = ( h(x) g '(x) - g(x) h '(x) ) / h(x) 2
= ( (x + 1)(1) - (x - 2)(1) ) / (x + 1) 2
= 3 / (x + 1) 2
Updated: 26 November 2007 (A Dendane) Elementary
differentiation
rules of
Unless otherwise stated, all functions will be functions from R to R, although more generally, the
formulae below make sense wherever they are well defined.
Differentiation is linear
Main article: Linearity of differentiation
For any functions f and g and any real numbers a and b.
In other words, the derivative of the function h(x) = a f(x) + b g(x) with respect to x
Special cases include:
The constant multiple rule
The sum rule
The subtraction rule
The product or Leibniz rule
For any functions f and g,
In other words, the derivative of the function h(x) = f(x) g(x) with respect to x is
The chain rule
This is a rule for computing the derivative of a function of a function, i.e., of the composite
of two functions f and g:
In other words, the derivative of the function h(x) = f (g(x)) with respect to x is
In Leibniz's notation this is written (suggestively) as:
The polynomial or elementary power rule
Calculus with polynomials
If f(x) = xn, for some natural number n (including zero) then
Special cases include:
Constant rule: if f is the constant function f(x) = c, for any number c, then for all x
The derivative of a linear function is constant: if f(x) = ax (or more generally, in view of the
constant rule, if f(x)=ax+b ), then
Combining this rule with the linearity of the derivative permits the computation of the
derivative of any polynomial.
The reciprocal rule
For any (nonvanishing) function f, the derivative of the function 1/f (equal at x to 1/f(x)) is
In other words, the derivative of h(x) = 1/f(x) is
The inverse function rule
Inverse functions and differentiation
This should not be confused with the reciprocal rule: the reciprocal 1/x of a nonzero real number x is its
inverse with respect to multiplication, whereas the inverse of a function is its inverse with respect to
function composition.
If the function f has an inverse g = f1 (so that g (f(x)) = x and f (g(y)) = y) then
Further rules of differentiation
The quotient rule
If f and g are functions, then:
Wherever g is nonzero.
This can be derived from reciprocal rule and the product rule. Conversely (using the constant rule) the
reciprocal rule is the special case f(x) = 1.
Generalized power rule
The elementary power rule generalizes considerably. First, if x is positive, it holds when n is any real
number. The reciprocal rule is then the special case n = -1 (although care must then be taken to avoid
confusion with the inverse rule).
The most general power rule is the functional power rule: for any functions f and g,
Wherever both sides are well defined.
Logarithmic derivatives
The logarithmic derivative is another way of stating the rule for differentiating the logarithm of a function
(using the chain rule):
Wherever f is positive.
See also
Mathematics reference
Rules for differentiation
Essential rules for differentiation.
Legend.
Operator.
Basic.
(d/dx) (a u) = a du/dx
equation 1
(d/dx) (u +- v) = du/dx +- dv/dx
equation 2
(d/dx) (u v) = u dv/dx + du/dx v
equation 3
(d/dx) (u/v) = (v du/dx - u dv/dx)/v2
equation 4
(d/dx) a = 0
equation 5
(d/dx) x = 1
equation 6
(d/dx) xn = n xn - 1
equation 7
(d/dx) x1/2 = (1/2) x-1/2
equation 8
(d/dx) |x| = x/|x|, x != 0
equation 9
(d/dx) ex = ex
equation 10
(d/dx) ln x = 1/x
equation 11
Trigonometry.
(d/dx) sin x = cos x
(d/dx) cos x = -sin x
equation 12
Rules of Differentiation
"Civilization advances by extending the number of important operatons which can be performed without
thinking about them." --- A.N. Whitehead
Rule name (if any)
The Sum rule
The Product rule
The Quotient rule
The Chain rule
The Power rule
