What is IBPS Clerk?
The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) conducts the Common Recruitment Process (CRP) for Clerk posts across 11 participating public sector banks, including Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India, Canara Bank, and others. IBPS Clerk is the entry-level banking exam and an excellent starting point for a career in the banking sector.
IBPS Clerk 2026: Notification typically released in June–July. Around 5,000–8,000 vacancies across 11 banks. Eligibility: Graduation in any discipline, Age 20–28 years with category-wise relaxations. Basic proficiency in the official language of the state is required.
IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern
Prelims (Online Objective — 1 Hour)
- English Language — 30 questions, 30 marks, 20 minutes
- Numerical Ability — 35 questions, 35 marks, 20 minutes
- Reasoning Ability — 35 questions, 35 marks, 20 minutes
There is no negative marking for unattempted questions, but each wrong answer carries a penalty of 0.25 marks. Sectional cutoffs apply — you must clear both individual section cutoffs and the overall cutoff.
Mains (Online Objective — 2 Hours 40 Minutes)
- General/Financial Awareness — 50 questions, 50 marks, 35 minutes
- General English — 40 questions, 40 marks, 35 minutes
- Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude — 50 questions, 60 marks, 45 minutes
- Quantitative Aptitude — 50 questions, 50 marks, 45 minutes
Subject-Wise Preparation Strategy
Numerical Ability / Quantitative Aptitude
For Prelims, focus on speed and accuracy in Simplification, Number Series, Approximation, and basic Arithmetic (percentages, profit-loss, simple/compound interest, time-work, time-speed). For Mains, add Data Interpretation (tables, bar graphs, pie charts) and Data Sufficiency. Target 30+ attempts in the numerical section during Prelims.
Reasoning Ability
Puzzles and Seating Arrangements are the most important topics — practice at least 2 sets daily. Cover Syllogism, Inequalities, Alphanumeric Series, Coding-Decoding, Blood Relations, and Direction Sense. In the exam, skip difficult puzzle sets and attempt easier questions first to maximise your score within the time limit.
English Language
Reading Comprehension carries the most marks. Practice RC from newspapers and editorial sections. Cover Error Spotting, Sentence Correction, Fill in the Blanks, Para Jumbles, and Cloze Test. For Mains, also prepare Word Usage and Match the Column type questions which have appeared in recent years.
General / Financial Awareness (Mains only)
This section differentiates serious candidates from those who just clear Prelims. Cover banking terminologies (REPO rate, CRR, SLR, MCLR), recent mergers of public sector banks, RBI's key announcements, government financial schemes (PM Jan Dhan, Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana, Credit Guarantee Schemes), and the last 3–6 months of current affairs focused on banking and economy.
Best Books and Resources for IBPS Clerk 2026
- Quantitative Aptitude: R.S. Aggarwal — Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations
- Reasoning: R.S. Aggarwal — A Modern Approach to Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning
- English: SP Bakshi — Objective General English, Wren & Martin for grammar rules
- Banking Awareness: Arihant — Banking Awareness, Oliveboard free daily PDFs
- Mock Tests: Oliveboard, Adda247, Testbook — take at least 15 full-length mocks before the exam
- Previous Year Papers: IBPS Clerk previous year question papers (2020–2025) from official sources
2-Month Preparation Plan
- Week 1–2: Complete all Quantitative Aptitude chapters systematically. Focus on Simplification, Approximation, and Number Series. Start Reasoning basics: inequalities, syllogism, series.
- Week 3–4: Cover Arithmetic topics in Quant (percentage, ratio, averages, SI/CI). Complete Reasoning puzzles and seating arrangements. Start English RC and error detection.
- Week 5–6: Start taking sectional tests. Begin Mains-level DI and Computer Aptitude topics. Start daily banking awareness reading (15–20 minutes).
- Week 7–8: Full-length Prelims mocks every day. Analyse each test. Revise weak topics. Take at least 5 Mains-level mock tests in the final week.
Important Tips for Exam Day
- Attempt easier questions first — do not get stuck on difficult ones
- English section is usually the quickest — attempt it first if you are confident, it saves time for Quant
- For Reasoning, skip complex puzzles if you are stuck for more than 3 minutes and come back later
- Maintain the sectional time limits strictly — missing a section cutoff eliminates you regardless of overall score
- Do not leave any section completely unattempted — even guessing on a few questions can help
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