IBPS SO 2026: what we know
As per the IBPS tentative calendar, the prelims were on 29 August 2026 and the Main exam is on 1 November 2026. This cycle uses a new pattern, with four tests in the prelims and a Mains of four objective tests plus a 30-minute paper. As of 12 October 2026, the prelims result (due September/October) had not been posted on IBPS’s CRP SPL-XVI page, and IBPS does not publish difficulty ratings or good-attempt figures.
What this page covers
Section-wise paper
Test names, questions, marks and timings are from the notification; each test is separately timed, and the Quant and banking-awareness tests depend on your post. IBPS publishes only test names, so the topic lists below are commonly studied areas, not an official syllabus.
Prelims · English Language
25 Q · 25 marks · 20 min · English only · all posts. Commonly studied: reading comprehension, error spotting, fillers and para jumbles.
Prelims · Reasoning
25 Q · 25 marks · 20 min · all posts. Commonly studied: puzzles and seating arrangement, syllogism, inequalities, blood relations and coding-decoding.
Prelims · Quantitative Aptitude
25 Q · 25 marks · 20 min · IT, AFO, HR and Marketing only. Commonly studied: simplification, number series, data interpretation and arithmetic.
Prelims · General Awareness (banking industry)
25 Q · 25 marks · 20 min · Law and Rajbhasha only. Officially “General Awareness with special reference to Banking Industry”.
Prelims · Professional Knowledge
25 Q · 50 marks · 20 min · in your own post’s field. IBPS gives only the test name, not a topic list.
Mains · English Language
30 Q · 30 marks · 25 min · English only · qualifying. Commonly studied: reading comprehension, vocabulary and sentence-level questions.
Mains · Reasoning
40 Q · 40 marks · 35 min · qualifying. Commonly studied: puzzles, data sufficiency, logical reasoning and input-output.
Mains · Quantitative Aptitude
30 Q · 30 marks · 25 min · IT, AFO, HR and Marketing only · qualifying.
Mains · General Awareness (banking industry)
30 Q · 30 marks · 20 min · Law and Rajbhasha only · qualifying.
Mains · Professional Knowledge (objective)
50 Q · 100 marks · 40 min (45 min for Law and Rajbhasha). The merit list is drawn up on Professional Knowledge scores.
Mains · 30-minute paper
2 Q · 25 marks · 30 min. A Descriptive Paper in English for IT, AFO, HR, Marketing and Law; a Professional Knowledge descriptive paper, in English and Hindi, for Rajbhasha.
What a wrong answer costs
Every objective test deducts one-fourth of a question’s marks for each wrong answer, in both prelims and Mains; a question left blank costs nothing. Professional Knowledge questions carry more marks, so a wrong answer there costs more. Worked out from the official marks and question counts:
| Test | Marks per question | Penalty per wrong answer |
|---|---|---|
| Prelims · English / Reasoning / Quant or General Awareness | 1.00 | 0.25 |
| Prelims · Professional Knowledge | 2.00 | 0.50 |
| Mains · English / Reasoning / Quant or General Awareness | 1.00 | 0.25 |
| Mains · Professional Knowledge (objective) | 2.00 | 0.50 |
These figures assume marks are spread equally across a test’s questions — IBPS states only test totals. The penalty applies to the objective tests only, not the 30-minute written paper. IBPS does not publish good-attempt numbers, so we don’t show any.
Normalisation & cut-offs
Scores from different sessions, if held, are normalised using the equi-percentile method, with scores taken up to two decimals. In the prelims you must qualify in each of the four tests, with cut-offs set by IBPS, before candidates are shortlisted for Mains category-wise. In the Mains you need a minimum score in each test and a sufficiently high Professional Knowledge score; the cut-offs depend on the vacancies, and Mains scores aren’t shared with shortlisted candidates until the interview process is complete. IBPS shows cut-offs in candidates’ result logins rather than in a separate document.
Crack IBPS SO with your own daily plan
Daily targets for Reasoning, English, Quant & banking awareness — plus date alerts.
Turn the paper structure into daily targets
Knowing where the marks and penalties sit helps only if you prepare to it. JobSafal doesn’t have IBPS SO mock tests or PYQ sets yet, and it doesn’t cover the post-specific Professional Knowledge test. What your IBPS SO plan does cover are the general sections — Reasoning, English, Quant and banking awareness — broken into daily targets.
Section-wise plan
Daily targets across Reasoning, English, Quant and banking awareness.
Small daily goals
Short, steady targets that leave room for your Professional Knowledge study.
Date alerts
Prelims result, Mains call letter and interview reminders.
Professional Knowledge
Not covered by JobSafal — study it from your own degree subjects.
