Question

How does distance affect magnets

Answer 1

attraction or repulsion increases, the close you bring the 2 magnets together

you can test this with 2 magnets(not refrigerator magnet)

or if you only have a refrigerator magnet, then hold that close to metal vs far away

Answer 2

The strength of a dipole magnet is inversely proportional to the cube of the distance between the magnet and the object it is attracted to/repelled from. Basically the relationship is \[F \propto \frac{1}{r^3}\]As a practical example, if you double the distance the strength decreases by a factor of 8.