Bank PO · IBPS & SBI · Reasoning Ability

Probationary Officer

Same number of questions as quant. Ten more marks.

In the IBPS PO prelims, Reasoning Ability is 35 questions worth 40 marks — the highest-scoring section of the three — and you get exactly twenty minutes before it closes.

For graduates preparing for IBPS and SBI Probationary Officer posts.

Each test is separately timed, and each has its own cut-off. Twenty minutes for reasoning, then it closes — and a strong quant score cannot rescue a weak reasoning score. Source: IBPS, Detailed Notification CRP PO/MT-XVI, sections D and E.

Reasoning in the PO exam

40
marks in prelims — the highest of the three
20 min
on the clock, then it closes
60
marks in mains, from 40 questions
~34 sec
per question in prelims
A tree growing inside a mind Why start now

Twenty minutes. Thirty-five questions. Then the section closes.

That's about thirty-four seconds a question, and there is no borrowing time from the English section to finish. Each test in the prelims is separately timed and each carries its own cut-off, so the exam is really three small exams — and reasoning is the one worth the most marks.

Thirty-four seconds is recognition time, not working-out time. You either see the structure of a question or you spend ninety seconds discovering it. The gap between those two candidates is months of practice, not talent.

And the same skill returns in mains, worth sixty marks. Start early enough for it to compound.

Notify me on WhatsAppNotify me by email
What · the exam

Reasoning is asked twice, and both times it is the biggest block.

Prelims screens, mains ranks. Across the two stages a PO candidate answers 75 reasoning questions worth 100 marks.

Prelims · the gate

Reasoning Ability

35 questions · 40 marks · 20 minutes
  • 35 quant questions carry 30 marks; the same 35 reasoning questions carry 40
  • 100 questions and 100 marks across the paper, in 60 minutes
  • Set in English and Hindi, as the quantitative test is
  • 0.25 of the question's marks deducted for a wrong answer
The highest-scoring section of the three, and each has its own cut-off.
Mains · the merit

Reasoning

40 questions · 60 marks · 45 minutes
  • 170 objective questions and 200 marks, in 160 minutes
  • One of the three 60-mark sections, with Data Analysis and Awareness
  • A 25-mark descriptive paper follows, in 30 minutes
  • 0.25 deducted for a wrong answer here too
These are the marks that build your rank, and then comes the interview.
How · train the section

The highest-scoring section, trained the way a skill is trained.

Reasoning Ability isn't a syllabus you can read. It's a thinking skill, built by practising the right questions, the right amount, over time. That's exactly what Master Mental Ability does — and on a twenty-minute sectional clock, the trained reflex is worth more than anything you could revise the night before.

◎

Adapts to you

Harder as you improve, easier when you slip. No time wasted on what you've already got.

↻

Back before you forget

Spaced repetition returns a question right as it's about to fade — so it's still there on exam day.

✎

Solve first, then see

You reason it out before the answer shows. That effort is where recognition gets built.

☁

Calm before the clock

A moment to settle before each session. The same calm a sectional timer takes away.

What this doesn't cover: bank PO is reasoning, quantitative aptitude, English and banking and financial awareness, plus a descriptive paper and an interview. We train reasoning. Quant, English, the awareness section and the descriptive paper each need their own preparation, and nothing on a phone prepares an interview panel. Inside reasoning, what the app builds is the foundation the rest of the section sits on — series, analogies, classification, coding, syllogisms, inequalities, blood relations and directions.
Works offline on Android

Practice anywhere. No data needed on Android.

On Android, all questions live securely on your phone — so after install, daily practice costs zero data. On desktop or laptop, solve in any browser with an active connection. A quiet check-in about once a week syncs your progress.

Android works offline Full-screen web practice Progress saved online Zero data during practice
Launching soon

The Android app is still in build. Tell us which exam you are preparing for and we will message you the day it opens.

Notify me on WhatsAppNotify me by email

Built by

In 2007, in his second year at IIT Delhi, Vineesh wrote a book — Master Mental Ability in 30 Days. It has sold year after year ever since, without the publisher ever marketing it.

In the years since, he built other learning products and spent a decade working with children of every background in a holistic learning centre.

This app goes far beyond that book — everything he's learned about how people actually learn, built into something you practise, not just read.

No risk to you

Don't trust us. See it work.

1

Try free

Solve a full session, no registration. Decide nothing yet.

2

Register

Like it? Sign up for 2 more days free. No payment, no auto-debit.

3

Practise daily

Fifteen minutes a day on inequality chains, 'only a few' syllogisms and rapid blood relations — 40 marks in prelims, the highest of the three, and 60 in mains.

4

Share to keep learning free

Invite a friend preparing for bank exams — you both earn more free days.

Your questions

Common questions

Is it really free? Will money get taken from my account?

Free to try — no signup to start, no card, no auto-debit, nothing taken silently. When you want the full library there are three plans, by length: ₹499 for three months, ₹699 for six, ₹999 for a year. Each is a single payment for that period, not a subscription — when it ends we ask you, and nothing is ever taken automatically. You can also keep learning free by sharing the app, and you can always try before paying anything.

Is this app enough to clear bank PO?

No — and no single app is. Bank PO is reasoning, quantitative aptitude, English, banking awareness, a descriptive paper and an interview. We train the reasoning, which is the highest-scoring section of the prelims and one of the three biggest in mains. The rest needs its own preparation. What we do, we do properly.

Isn't quant the section that decides bank exams?

Not by marks. IBPS's own table gives 35 quantitative questions 30 marks, and 35 reasoning questions 40 marks. Reasoning is the highest-scoring section of the prelims — and in mains it carries 60 marks, one of the three sections at that mark, well ahead of English at 20.

I have very little time before my exam. Is this any use?

Some. Practice always beats no practice. But be honest with yourself about what 34 seconds a question means: recognition is built over months, not in a week. Start anyway — the next cycle is closer than it feels.

Is the app in Hindi?

Yes — fully. Choose Hindi and the whole app is Hindi: the questions themselves, the options, and the explanation after each one — not an English app with Hindi labels around it. Worth knowing either way: IBPS sets the reasoning and quantitative tests in English and Hindi, in both prelims and mains. The English Language test is in English only.

How much internet does it need?

Almost never. The questions are on your phone, so you can practise on a train, in a village with no signal, on a phone with no data pack. The app checks in with us about once a week to confirm your access is still active — a few seconds, a few kilobytes. That's also when your progress is saved online and when replies to any questions you've asked come through. If you're offline for longer than that, nothing is lost — you just reconnect when you can.

When is the next bank PO exam, and where do I apply?

Only on IBPS's own website, ibps.in — never through an agent and never through us. IBPS published its detailed notification for the CRP PO/MT-XVI cycle on 30 June 2026, with the registration window and tentative exam months inside it. SBI advertises its own Probationary Officer recruitment separately, at sbi.co.in/careers. Check those two sites for the current cycle.

Still have a question about bank PO or the app? Message us on WhatsApp →

Start now

Seventy-five reasoning questions. A hundred marks.

Start training the highest-scoring section today — free.

Notify me on WhatsAppNotify me by email

Free to try.

www.mastermentalability.in/bank-po