The most useful logical reasoning test tips are to find out which format you will face, practise it under timed conditions, and work every question with the same method: identify the type, state the rule, test it against every element, then eliminate the options that break it. Accept only conclusions the information forces, not ones that merely sound reasonable. Review every mistake afterwards to find the habit that caused it.
Start by trying a free logical reasoning test, which shows the main formats and gives a worked solution for every question. If you want a reminder of what the skill involves first, read what logical reasoning is.
Before the test
1. Find out exactly what you are taking
“Logical reasoning” covers several formats: deductive questions, inductive and abstract sequences, diagrammatic flowcharts and critical reasoning arguments. Publishers each have their own mix, style and time limit. Check your invitation, or ask the recruiter, which format you will sit, how long it lasts, and whether wrong answers lose marks.
2. Practise realistic, timed questions
Practice familiarises you with the format, so on the day you spend your time on the logic rather than on working out what the question wants. Take most of your practice under timed conditions, in one sitting, somewhere quiet, without help. That is the only way to learn the pace the real test needs.
3. Review every answer, not just your score
You learn more from the questions you get wrong than from the ones you get right. After each practice session, go through the solutions and note why each mistake happened. Useful categories are: misread the question, wrong rule, rule applied inconsistently, and rushed. Then drill the category that costs you most.
4. Make a short study plan
Work out how much time you have before the test and split it up. A short daily drill on one question type, with a full timed test two or three times a week, works better than a single long session the night before.
5. Use puzzles to build the habits
Logic puzzles, sudoku and similar games train the same habits as test questions: taking conditions literally, recording what you know and eliminating options. Our guide on how to solve logic puzzles shows the method.
During the test
6. Name the question type first
Ask whether you are finding a rule (inductive) or applying one (deductive). That decides your whole approach, and it takes a second.
7. Change one feature at a time in pattern questions
Sequence and matrix questions usually combine two or three simple rules. Isolate them by checking one feature at a time: the number of shapes, their position or rotation, their colour or shading, and their size. For example, if the first frame has 4 triangles and the count rises by 2 at every step, the sixth frame has 4 + (5 × 2) = 14. Confirm a rule against every frame you are given, not just the last two.
8. Trace diagrammatic questions step by step
Treat a diagrammatic question as a small machine. Use the examples to work out what each symbol does, confirm each rule on a second example, then apply the symbols in order to the input, noting the result after each step.
9. In deductive questions, look for what must be true
Accept only a conclusion the statements make certain. The wrong options are usually built by reversing a statement or adding a fact nobody gave you. If all footballers are fit and all famous sports players are footballers, it follows that all famous sports players are fit. It does not follow that all fit people are footballers. Before you accept a conclusion, point to the statements that prove it.
10. Judge arguments on relevance, not opinion
In critical reasoning questions you may be asked whether an argument is strong or weak. A strong argument bears directly on the question and gives a reason that would actually change the conclusion. A weak one is off the point, relies on a generalisation, or just restates the claim. Set aside whether you agree with it.
11. Predict, then eliminate
Work out what the answer should look like before you read the options, so a plausible distractor does not lead you. Then eliminate options that break a rule. If you are stuck, working backwards from the options is often faster than solving from scratch.
12. Watch your pace
Do not let one hard question take time from several easier ones. If a question resists you, make your best choice, flag it if the test allows, and move on. If wrong answers do not lose marks, answer every question rather than leaving blanks.
13. Verify before you commit
Before confirming an answer, check it against every condition once more. If one is left unchecked, or your reasoning needed something the question never stated, choose again. This habit removes most avoidable errors without slowing you down noticeably.
On the day
Get a good night’s sleep, eat beforehand, and take the test at a time when you are alert. Check your connection and equipment, and close anything that might interrupt you. Read the instructions properly, even if you have practised the format, in case anything differs.
Put the tips into practice
Tips only help once they are habits. Work through our logical reasoning examples with answers to see each one applied, then take a timed logical reasoning practice test and use your error log to decide what to drill next.
