If you were balancing a chemical equation that contained the substance sodium nitrate, NaNO3, composed of a sodium ion, Na+1, and a nitrate ion, (NO3)-1, what number or numbers could you change in order to balance the equation?

Answer 1

I assume this is not a redox equation.
Na^+ + NO3^- is what it contained.
You may NOT change any subscript; therefore, Na⁺₁ must stay the same and the 1 after N in NO3^- and the 3 for O must not change. You MAY change the coefficients, such as
2Na^+ and/or 2NO3^-.