Psychometric test questions and answers, with worked examples
See what psychometric test questions and answers really look like across the main test types, with original example questions and the reasoning that gets you to each answer.
Most people searching for psychometric test questions and answers want two things: to see what the questions actually look like, and to understand how to reach the correct answer rather than memorise it. This guide walks through the four families of question you are most likely to meet, numerical, verbal, logical or abstract, and situational judgement, with short original examples built purely to illustrate the format.
The psychometric test examples below are our own generic constructions, not items from any real test, and no assessment publisher's questions are reproduced. Treat them as a way to learn the reasoning method. Once you can see how each question type is built, unfamiliar wording on the day stops being a surprise.
Numerical reasoning questions and answers
Numerical reasoning questions test whether you can read data and draw the right conclusion under time pressure, not whether you can do advanced maths. You are usually given a table, chart or short passage of figures, then asked a question with four or five answer options. A calculator is normally allowed, so the difficulty lies in choosing the right operation and reading the data accurately.
Illustrative example: a company's monthly revenue rises from £4.0m to £4.6m. By what percentage did revenue increase? Find the change (£0.6m), divide it by the original figure (£4.0m), and convert to a percentage: 0.6 divided by 4.0 = 0.15, or 15%. The common trap is dividing by the new figure instead of the original, which quietly produces a wrong option that has been deliberately included in the choices.
The reliable method is always the same: identify exactly what is being asked, locate only the figures you need, and check the units before you calculate. Distractor options are usually built from predictable mistakes, so a quick sensible estimate first will often rule out two or three of them.
- Percentages and percentage change
- Ratios and proportions
- Reading tables, charts and graphs
- Currency conversion and rates
- Averages, totals and simple trend reads
Verbal reasoning: true, false or cannot say
Verbal reasoning questions in the true, false or cannot say format give you a passage of text and a statement, and ask whether the statement follows. The single most important rule is that you judge the statement only against the passage in front of you, never against what you already know to be true in the wider world.
Illustrative example: suppose a passage states, 'The Kingsway library extended its weekday opening hours in 2023, and visitor numbers rose over the following year.' The statement 'The library is open longer on weekdays than it was before 2023' is True, because the passage says the hours were extended. The statement 'The longer hours caused the rise in visitors' is Cannot say, because the passage reports that both happened but never claims one caused the other. The statement 'The library cut its weekday opening hours' is False, because it extended them, not reduced them.
Cannot say is the option candidates get wrong most often, because it feels safer to commit to True or False. If a statement introduces any information the passage does not support, even something that is obviously true in reality, the answer is Cannot say.
- Decide true, false or cannot say
- Identify the main argument
- Distinguish stated fact from inference
- Spot unsupported assumptions
- Work only from the passage given
Logical and abstract reasoning questions
Logical, abstract and inductive reasoning questions strip out language and numbers to test pattern recognition directly. A typical item shows a sequence or grid of shapes governed by hidden rules, and asks which figure comes next or which one completes the set. Because there are no words, these questions are often used to compare candidates fairly across different first languages.
Illustrative example: imagine a row of four boxes. In each box a single arrow rotates 90 degrees clockwise, while a small dot moves one corner clockwise and alternates between black and white. To find the fifth box you track each feature separately: rotate the arrow one more step, advance the dot one more corner, and set its colour by the alternating pattern. The correct option is the one figure that satisfies all three rules at once.
The method that works is to isolate one feature at a time, rotation, position, shading, count or size, rather than trying to see the whole pattern in a single glance. Note the rule for each feature, then apply every rule to the answer options and eliminate any figure that breaks even one.
- Next figure in a sequence
- Complete the grid or matrix
- Odd one out
- Shape rotation and reflection
- Changes in count, shading or size
Situational judgement questions and answers
Situational judgement questions present a realistic workplace scenario and several possible responses. You are usually asked to pick the most and least effective action, or to rate each response, rather than to find a single correct answer. These tests measure judgement and behaviour against the specific competencies an employer values, so the same response can score differently for different roles.
Illustrative example: you are part-way through an urgent task due at 5pm when a colleague asks for help with something due tomorrow. The most effective response is usually to explain your deadline and offer to help once it is met, or to point the colleague to someone free now, because it protects the urgent work while keeping the relationship intact. Dropping your own deadline, or ignoring the request outright, would typically score as less effective.
There is rarely a trick, but there is a house style: employers tend to reward taking ownership, communicating clearly, respecting priorities and involving others appropriately. Read each option as an action with consequences, and choose the response a calm, reliable colleague would take rather than the most dramatic one.
- Rank most and least effective
- Rate each response
- Workplace and customer scenarios
- Competency-based scoring
- No single universally right answer
Working through example psychometric questions under time pressure
Almost every psychometric test is timed tightly on purpose, so speed and accuracy matter as much as the reasoning itself. Working through example psychometric questions beforehand is less about learning specific answers and more about making the format automatic, so that on the day you spend your seconds thinking about the problem rather than the layout.
Set a rough per-question pace and stick to it. If a question is not coming together within your budget, mark your best estimate, move on, and return only if time allows, because one hard item is not worth three easy ones. Read the actual question before you study the data, since it tells you which figures or features you can safely ignore.
Practise the reasoning method for each type generically, in realistic timed conditions, using whatever official example material the test provider gives you. That builds reflexes that survive real pressure. If the assessment is imminent and the stakes are high, some candidates choose a different route entirely.
- Set a per-question time budget
- Answer the question that is actually asked
- Estimate before you calculate
- Flag a hard item and move on
- Sit under realistic timed conditions
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Common questions
What types of questions are on a psychometric test?
Most psychometric tests draw from four families: numerical reasoning (data and figures), verbal reasoning (usually true, false or cannot say), logical or abstract reasoning (shape and pattern sequences), and situational judgement (workplace scenarios). Personality questionnaires are also common but have no right or wrong answers.
Are these real psychometric test sample questions?
No. Every example on this page is our own original construction, written only to illustrate the format. We do not reproduce copyrighted questions from any test publisher, and the aim is to teach the reasoning method rather than supply answers to memorise.
What does 'cannot say' mean in verbal reasoning?
It means the passage does not give you enough information to judge the statement as true or false. If a statement relies on anything the text does not state, even something that is true in the real world, the correct answer is cannot say.
How are psychometric test questions scored?
Ability tests such as numerical and verbal reasoning are usually marked as a raw number correct, then converted to a percentile that compares you against a relevant norm group rather than a fixed pass mark. Situational judgement tests are scored against the employer's competency model, and personality questionnaires are profiled rather than scored.
Can I just memorise answers to pass a psychometric test?
No, because the specific figures, passages and scenarios change every time. What transfers is the method: how to calculate a percentage change, how to apply the cannot say rule, how to isolate each feature in a pattern. Practise the reasoning rather than individual answers.
Is it allowed to have someone else sit my psychometric test?
Whether a sitting service is permitted depends entirely on the individual employer's or test provider's own rules, and checking those terms is your responsibility. TakeMyTests offers a discreet done-for-you sitting to a deadline you choose, but it cannot and does not guarantee that any given assessment permits it.