The SBI PO exam is one of the most prestigious banking exams in India, and the reasoning ability section plays an important role in determining your success. Among the various types of reasoning questions, puzzles hold significant weight. They test your analytical thinking, decision-making, and ability to process complex information under time constraints. In this blog, we’ll cover the most important puzzle types for SBI PO 2025, along with preparation tips and a FREE PDF download containing practice questions and solutions.
This expertly crafted study material includes topic tests, sectional tests, rank boosters, mock tests, previous year questions, e-books, and much more. These tests are made based on the latest pattern and will help you clear the SBI PO Prelims as well as the Mains exam with good marks.
So, start preparing today!
The Reasoning Ability section of SBI PO Prelims and Mains includes puzzles as a major component. This is because of its weightage (15 to 20 questions), difficulty level, scoring potential, and time saving (if prepared well). You should try to solve a single puzzle set in less than 5 minutes.
The different types of puzzles asked in the SBI PO 2025 include linear seating arrangement puzzle, circular seating arrangement puzzle, box-based puzzle, schedule-based puzzle, and puzzles with a combination of blood relation and other topics. These types of puzzles are mostly asked in the exam, and to increase their difficulty level, the examiner adds more variables (profession, colour, people, etc.) to the question.
| Puzzle Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Linear Seating Arrangement | People sitting in a row (facing same/opposite directions) |
| Circular Seating Arrangement | People seated around a circular/hexagonal/square table |
| Box-Based Puzzle | Items/persons placed in boxes/floors/stacks – top to bottom |
| Month/Date/Day-Based Puzzle | Events/persons scheduled over months, weeks or specific dates |
| Floor-Based Puzzle | People living on different floors of a building |
| Designation/Profession Puzzle | Match names with professions, companies, cities, etc. |
| Blood Relation + Puzzle Combo | Relational info embedded within seating or box puzzles |
| Uncertain Number of People Puzzle | No fixed number of persons; requires assumption and elimination |
| Puzzle with Dual Variables | Two attributes per person – name + hobby, age + city, etc. |
Try solving the puzzle question given below by yourself, then check the solution in the PDF.
Directions: Answer the questions based on the information given below:
Six persons A, B, D, P, Q and S have different number of pens among 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 11. Each of them belongs to different states among MP, UP, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Haryana and Kerala. These persons like different colours among Yellow, Red, Black, Green, Pink and Blue.
As S is from MP and has three pens less than the person from Bihar. B has highest number of pens.
Person from Tamil Nadu has 5 pens and likes Red, so S has either 4 pens or 8 pens. Case I: S has 4 pens:
| Persons | States | No. of pens | Colour |
| S | MP | 4 | |
| Bihar | 7 | ||
| B | 11 | ||
| Tamil Nadu | 5 | Red | |
Case II: S has 8 pens:
| Persons | States | No. of pens | Colour |
| S | MP | 8 | |
| B | Bihar | 11 | |
| Tamil Nadu | 5 | Red | |
Person from Kerala has two pens more than the one, who likes Blue. Person from UP has at least two pens less than A.
A is not from Kerala, this is not possible in case I, so case I is rejected. And so A is from Haryana and has 7 pens and the person from UP has 4 pens.
| Persons | States | No. of pens | Colours |
| S | MP | 8 | |
| B | Bihar | 11 | |
| Tamil Nadu | 5 | Red | |
| A | Haryana | 7 | Blue |
| Kerala | 9 | ||
| UP | 4 |
Difference between the pens of the person from Haryana and the one, who likes Yellow is 1, so S likes Yellow colour.
P doesn’t have 9 pens but have more pens than Q, so P has 5 pens, Q has 4 pens and thus, D has 9 pens.
D likes Black colour.
| Person, who likes Green colour, has fewer pens than D, so Q likes Green colour and B likes Pink colour. The final table is given below: | ||||
| Persons | States | No. of pens | Colours | |
| S | MP | 8 | Yellow | |
| B | Bihar | 11 | Pink | |
| P | Tamil Nadu | 5 | Red | |
| A | Haryana | 7 | Blue | |
| D | Kerala | 9 | Black | |
| Q | UP | 4 | Green | |
Question 1: The person, who likes Yellow color, has ____ pens.
Question 2: D has _____ pens.
Question 3: Person with lowest number of pens, likes _____ color.
Question 4: Person, who likes Pink, is from ______ .
We’ve compiled a FREE PDF with 35+ most important puzzles, including:
Follow the tips provided below when you prepare this topic:
Follow the practice plan below for mastering the puzzle questions in less time.
| Day | Focus Area |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Linear & Circular Seating |
| Day 2 | Box & Floor Based |
| Day 3 | Month, Day & Date Based |
| Day 4 | Dual Variable & Profession Based |
| Day 5 | Mixed Puzzles + Timed Practice |
| Day 6 | Mains Level Puzzles |
| Day 7 | Full-Length Puzzle Section Mock |
Puzzles can be challenging and rewarding, and scoring is too, especially if you follow a smart approach for solving them. Practicing consistently with the right mix of speed and accuracy is an important step towards cracking the reasoning section of SBI PO 2025.
Don’t forget to download your free puzzle PDF and start solving today. Practice is the only way to gain the confidence needed for exam day!
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| SBI PO Syllabus 2025 | SBI PO Previous Year Question Paper |
| SBI PO Salary 2025 | SBI PO Cut Off 2025 |
| SBI PO Study Plan 2025 | SBI PO Preparation Strategy 2025 |
| SBI PO Exam Pattern 2025 |
Around 15–20 out of 35 questions in reasoning.
Yes, but with regular practice, you can solve one puzzle in under 5 minutes.
Yes. Mains puzzles are longer and multi-dimensional.
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