In this guide
Most candidates can solve an IBPS PO puzzle if they have fifteen minutes. The exam does not give fifteen minutes. The prelims reasoning section is 35 questions in 20 minutes, and a puzzle set of five questions may need to be done in five or six. In the mains, puzzles are longer and still share the clock with everything else.
So speed is not a trick. It is a set of habits: picking the right puzzle, reading once, putting clues down in a sensible order, and handling "it could be this or that" without starting again. This guide shows those habits on a real-sized puzzle.
1. Choose before you start
In the prelims, spend ten seconds looking at every puzzle before solving any. Start with the one that has:
- a simple frame: floors, days, one straight row;
- several definite clues ("B lives on floor 5", "J attends on Thursday");
- fewer variables: one list of people plus one attribute, not three.
A puzzle that opens with "Only three people sit between…" and has no fixed position anywhere is the one to leave for last.
2. Read every clue once, then draw
Read all the clues once, fast, before you draw anything. As you read, tick the clues that fix a position outright and circle the ones that link two people. You are not solving yet; you are deciding where to begin.
Then draw the frame. Keep it small and neat, because you will be adding a second case beside it.
| Puzzle | Frame |
|---|---|
| Floors, boxes | A numbered vertical column, 1 at the bottom |
| Days, months | A vertical list in calendar order |
| Linear row | A numbered line with the facing direction marked |
| Circle or square | A shape with seats marked and the facing direction noted |
3. Put clues down in this order
- Definite positions ("B lives on floor 5").
- Clues that link to someone already placed ("E lives immediately below A", once A is fixed).
- "Between" and "adjacent" clues, which usually create two cases.
- Negative clues ("G does not live on an odd floor"). These rarely start a puzzle but usually finish it.
Skipping around the clue list is not a waste. Reading clues in the printed order is the slow way, because the setter shuffles them on purpose.
4. Run cases side by side
When a clue allows two positions, draw two narrow columns next to each other. Carry both forward with each new clue. The moment a clue breaks one case, strike it out and continue with the other. Never redraw the whole grid.
A worked puzzle: seven floors, seven fruits
Seven people, A, B, C, D, E, F and G, live on the seven floors of a building, one on each floor. Floor 1 is the bottom and floor 7 is the top. Each likes a different fruit: apple, banana, cherry, grape, kiwi, mango and orange.
- B lives on an odd-numbered floor above floor 3.
- Three people live between B and the person who likes cherry.
- The person who likes cherry lives immediately below E.
- E lives immediately below A.
- F lives immediately above A.
- The person who likes grape lives immediately below B.
- Neither A nor F lives above floor 4.
- G lives on an even-numbered floor.
- D lives above G.
- A likes orange.
- The person who likes apple lives immediately above the person who likes kiwi.
- E does not like mango.
- The person who likes kiwi lives on an odd-numbered floor.
Step 1: split on B. Clue 1 gives floor 5 or 7. Open two columns.
Step 2: follow the chain in each case. Clues 2 to 5 link one after another.
| Clue | Case 1 (B on 5) | Case 2 (B on 7) |
|---|---|---|
| 2: cherry four floors from B | Cherry on 1 | Cherry on 3 |
| 3: E just above cherry | E on 2 | E on 4 |
| 4: A just above E | A on 3 | A on 5 |
| 5: F just above A | F on 4 | F on 6 |
| 6: grape just below B | Grape on 4 (F) | Grape on 6 (F) |
| 7: A and F not above floor 4 | Holds | Broken: A is on 5 |
Case 2 dies at clue 7, a negative clue, which is typical.
Step 3: finish case 1. C, D and G remain for floors 1, 6 and 7. G is on an even floor (clue 8), so G is on 6. D is above G (clue 9), so D is on 7. C takes floor 1.
Step 4: fruits. Cherry is on floor 1, so C likes cherry. F likes grape, and A likes orange. Apple, banana, kiwi and mango remain for E (2), B (5), G (6) and D (7). Kiwi is on an odd floor (clue 13), so B or D. If D (floor 7) liked kiwi, apple would need floor 8, which does not exist. So B likes kiwi and G, just above, likes apple (clue 11). E does not like mango (clue 12), so E likes banana and D likes mango.
| Floor | Person | Fruit |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | D | Mango |
| 6 | G | Apple |
| 5 | B | Kiwi |
| 4 | F | Grape |
| 3 | A | Orange |
| 2 | E | Banana |
| 1 | C | Cherry |
Questions
- Who likes mango? D.
- How many people live between C and B? Three (E, A and F).
- Which fruit does the person immediately above F like? Kiwi (B).
- Who lives on floor 6? G.
This arrangement is the only one that satisfies all thirteen clues. Notice how little writing it took: two narrow columns, one struck out, then a seven-row grid.
5. Answer from a partial grid
Sometimes two cases survive every clue you have used and you are running short of time. Look at the questions before grinding on. If both cases give the same answer to a question, for example both put the same person on the top floor, mark that answer. You may be able to answer three of five questions without ever settling the puzzle.
6. Know when to leave
- Prelims: if a puzzle has not taken shape in about four minutes, mark your best partial answers and move on. A fresh puzzle often gives three quick marks where the stuck one gives none.
- Mains: allow more, but set a ceiling, say eight to ten minutes for a long puzzle, and keep to it in every mock so the limit becomes a habit.
Speed habits worth building
| Habit | Why it saves time |
|---|---|
| Single-letter notation (A, B…; "ch" for cherry) | Less writing, cleaner grid |
| Writing a negative clue beside the grid ("G ≠ odd") | You do not reread the question to find it |
| Striking out used clues | You never re-apply the same clue |
| Filling every forced cell before branching | Fewer cases survive to the next step |
| Checking the final grid against two random clues | Catches a misread in ten seconds |
Timed practice: six days
Set a timer for four minutes.
Six people, J, K, L, M, N and O, attend a workshop on six consecutive days, Monday to Saturday, one person each day.
- J attends on a day after Wednesday, but not on Saturday.
- Two people attend between J and N.
- K attends on the day immediately after N.
- O attends on the day immediately before J.
- L attends on some day after M.
- M attends on some day after O.
Questions: (a) Who attends on Wednesday? (b) How many people attend between K and M? (c) Who attends on Saturday? (d) Who attends on the day immediately after J?
Answers
- Arrangement: Monday N, Tuesday K, Wednesday O, Thursday J, Friday M, Saturday L.
- How: J is on Thursday or Friday. If J is on Thursday, N is on Monday, K on Tuesday and O on Wednesday. If J is on Friday, N is on Tuesday, K on Wednesday and O on Thursday, so M and L share Monday and Saturday. M must come after O, which puts M on Saturday and leaves no later day for L. So J is on Thursday, and M and L fill Friday and Saturday in that order.
- (a) O. (b) Two (O and J). (c) L. (d) M.
If you finished in under four minutes, try the same puzzle type with eight people. If not, note which step cost you the time.
What to do next
- Solve two puzzles a day for a week using the clue order above, even if it feels slower at first.
- From week two, time every puzzle and log the type and minutes in a notebook.
- Practise the types you are slowest at: floor puzzles, scheduling puzzles and circular seating.
A note on dates and numbers. Exam patterns, vacancies and schedules change from year to year. Always confirm the current details in the latest notification on the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection website .
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