Test formats and question types

Numerical reasoning practice > Test formats and question types

The wrapper varies between employers, but the questions inside are drawn from a small and stable set. Recognising the type is most of the work.

1. Common formats

Numerical reasoning tests are usually delivered online and timed. Beyond that, the arrangements differ:

• Fixed-length, timed — a set number of questions in a set time. The most common shape
• Adaptive — the difficulty adjusts to your answers, so two candidates see different questions
• Per-question timing — each question has its own limit, so you cannot bank time by rushing

⚠️ Which of these you will face, and the exact timings, are set by the employer and the test provider. Assume nothing from a practice site, including this one — read the instructions you are sent.

2. The question types

Almost everything reduces to six shapes. Each links to a full walk-through:

• Reading a data table — totals, differences, finding a maximum
• Reading a chart — bar, line and pie
• Percentage change and growth — including index numbers
• Ratios and shares — "how many times", share of total
• Per unit figures — price per item, output per person
• Projections — continuing a trend at the same rate

A test will mix them, and harder questions combine two — for example, work out a share and then project it forward.

3. How the wrong options are built

The incorrect options are not random. They are the answers you get from specific, predictable mistakes:

• Dividing the wrong way round (the reciprocal)
• Using the absolute increase when the percentage was asked for
• Applying a growth rate to the earlier year instead of the later one
• Ignoring the unit note, giving an answer out by a factor of a thousand

This is useful to know for a practical reason: finding your answer in the list is not confirmation that it is right. It usually means you made one of the mistakes the writer anticipated.

4. A note on test providers

Employers buy these tests from a small number of assessment companies, and you will see their names mentioned in preparation material.

This site does not reproduce any provider's questions and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any assessment company. Product and company names mentioned anywhere on this site are the property of their respective owners.

⚠️ Preparation material that claims to contain a particular provider's real questions should be treated with suspicion. Question banks are confidential, and the specifications change.