Starbucks Assessment Tests

Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026) Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a stock control assistant at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). A weekly count shows three hundred units fewer than the system expects on one line. The trading team needs a figure this afternoon to decide what to order for next week, and they have asked you whether the count can be relied on. Investigating the gap properly means pulling the movement history, which takes about two hours. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it, say the cause is not yet known, and start on the movement history straight away.
   2. Assure the trading team that the counted figure is sound and the gap is a scanning error, and look at the movement history later in the week if anybody comes back to you.
   3. Hold the figure back until the movement history is finished, and tell the trading team they will have something reliable by the end of the day.
   4. Give the trading team the figure the system holds rather than the counted one, since the system is what their ordering tool reads from in any case.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it, say the cause is not yet known, and start on the movement history straight away.

   Least effective: B. Assure the trading team that the counted figure is sound and the gap is a scanning error, and look at the movement history later in the week if anybody comes back to you.

   B: Gives an assurance you have not earned: nothing yet distinguishes a scanning error from three hundred missing units, and next week's order is placed on a cause that was invented to close the question.

   C: Delays the decision: the order has to be placed this afternoon, so a reliable number tomorrow is worth less to them than an honest one now.

   D: Substitutes the convenient source for the checked one: the count is the only evidence anybody has looked at, and it is the number being set aside.

   The most effective response is to give the trading team the counted figure with the gap stated alongside it and start on the movement history at once: they get a number in time to order, they know exactly how much weight it carries, and the work that settles the cause begins immediately. It beats holding the figure until the history is finished, because the decision is this afternoon and an honest number now beats a certain one tomorrow. It beats handing over the system figure instead, because the count is the only thing anybody has actually observed. The least effective response is assuring them the count is sound and the gap is a scanning error: no work has been done that could support either claim, and stating a cause you have not established is a different kind of wrong from being slow or from choosing the wrong source. The principle: report what you know and what you do not, rather than supplying the certainty the person asking would prefer.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are an availability analyst at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). By four o’clock you owe the trading team a report on what will be short this weekend, and you have also promised a colleague you would rebuild her forecast template today. At two o’clock a site tells you a delivery has been turned away and two hundred cases are sitting on a vehicle with nowhere to go. Only the report has a stated deadline. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Sort the turned-away delivery first, tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why, and let your colleague know the template moves to tomorrow.
   2. Finish the report for four o'clock as promised and then deal with the vehicle, since the report is the only piece of work today that has a stated deadline attached to it.
   3. Start all three, moving between the report, the vehicle and the template so that everybody sees progress before the end of the afternoon.
   4. Hand the vehicle problem to a colleague on the supply desk without saying what has already been tried, and carry on with the report and the template.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Sort the turned-away delivery first, tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why, and let your colleague know the template moves to tomorrow.

   Least effective: D. Hand the vehicle problem to a colleague on the supply desk without saying what has already been tried, and carry on with the report and the template.

   B: Treats a stated deadline as the only claim on your time: the report is delivered on the hour and two hundred cases spend the afternoon on a vehicle that could have been redirected.

   C: Splits effort so nothing finishes: the delivery needs a decision in one go, and three part-finished jobs at five o'clock help nobody.

   D: Passes the problem on without owning it: the colleague restarts from nothing while the vehicle waits, and the person who took the call keeps the easier two jobs.

   The most effective response is to sort the turned-away delivery first and tell the trading team the report will be twenty minutes late and why: the vehicle is the only item that gets worse by the hour, twenty minutes is a cost the reader can plan around once they are told, and nothing is dropped silently. It beats finishing the four o’clock report before touching the vehicle, because a stated deadline is not the same as the most urgent thing and two hundred cases are stranded meanwhile. It beats starting all three at once, because the delivery needs one uninterrupted decision and three half-finished jobs serve nobody. The least effective response is handing the vehicle problem to the supply desk without saying what has been tried: the colleague starts from nothing, the vehicle waits longer than under any other response, and the person who owns the problem keeps the two jobs that suit them. The principle: order the work by what degrades, and where something slips, say so to the person waiting for it.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a service recovery assistant at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). Last week a colleague took a case of yours to the team leader because you had missed a reply date, rather than mentioning it to you first. You were annoyed: you would have fixed it in an hour. The two of you cover each other’s queues at lunchtime, and today is your turn to cover hers. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Cover her queue as normal and let it go, since raising it now would make the rest of the week awkward and the missed date was real enough in any case.
   2. Cover her queue as normal and mention to the team leader that you would rather hear about your own missed dates before she does.
   3. Cover her queue as normal, and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time.
   4. Stop covering her queue at lunchtime after that, and let her arrange cover with the team leader she went to, since that is evidently how she prefers to work.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Cover her queue as normal, and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time.

   Least effective: D. Stop covering her queue at lunchtime after that, and let her arrange cover with the team leader she went to, since that is evidently how she prefers to work.

   A: Prioritises harmony over honesty: the cover continues and so does an arrangement where a problem with your work goes to your team leader first.

   B: Answers a colleague through a manager: the same route that annoyed you is used to complain about it, and the person concerned is not part of the conversation.

   D: Withdraws a working arrangement in retaliation: her customers wait at lunchtime because of something that happened between the two of you last week.

   The most effective response is to cover her queue as normal and ask her at lunchtime why she went to the team leader first and what the two of you should do next time: the cover is unaffected, the question is put to the person who can answer it, and the two of you leave with an agreement rather than a grievance. It beats letting it go, because the same thing happens next time and the resentment stays. It beats raising it with the team leader, because that answers a colleague by going round her, which is the thing you objected to. The least effective response is stopping the lunchtime cover because she evidently prefers to work through the team leader: customers wait because of a disagreement they have no part in, and withdrawing an arrangement to make a point is a different kind of wrong from staying silent or from complaining upwards. The principle: settle a working arrangement with the person you have it with, and keep the people it serves out of the argument.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a people team graduate at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). Weekly hours returns are due from each team by Friday, and one team’s return reached you on Monday morning. The hours in it are correct. The log you enter it into records the date it was received, and the lateness of returns is reported to the site’s managers each month. Your manager has asked you to get the returns entered today. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Amend the entry in the hours log to show the return arrived on Friday, which leaves the hours themselves exactly as the team submitted them.
   2. Enter the return with Monday's date and raise the lateness with the team's manager yourself, so that he hears it from you before the monthly report reaches him.
   3. Enter the return with Monday's date and say nothing further, since the monthly report will show the lateness in due course and it is not your job to comment on other teams.
   4. Enter the return with the date it actually arrived and tell your manager that this team has now been late twice, so that she can decide whether to raise it with them.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Enter the return with the date it actually arrived and tell your manager that this team has now been late twice, so that she can decide whether to raise it with them.

   Least effective: A. Amend the entry in the hours log to show the return arrived on Friday, which leaves the hours themselves exactly as the team submitted them.

   A: Alters a record to say something that did not happen: the monthly report on lateness is built from exactly this field, and it now describes a Friday that never existed.

   B: Takes on a conversation that is not yours: the entry is honest, and a graduate telling a manager his team is late is a message that carries better from your own manager.

   C: Records correctly and stops there: nothing is untrue, and a repeat offender is left to be discovered by a report a month from now.

   The most effective response is to enter the return with the date it arrived and tell your manager the team has now been late twice: the log says what happened, and the pattern reaches the person who decides what to do about other teams. It beats entering it honestly and raising the lateness with the team’s manager yourself, because that conversation belongs to your own manager and lands better from her. It beats entering it and saying nothing, because a second late return is information somebody should have before the monthly report. The least effective response is amending the entry to show a Friday arrival: the field being changed is the one the lateness report is built from, so the record is made to describe something that did not happen, which is a different kind of wrong from over-stepping or from staying quiet. The principle: a date field is a fact, not a courtesy, and a small correction to it is still a false record.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a marketing graduate at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). A launch pack cannot go out until the legal team’s sign-off is recorded in the tracker. The lawyer who reviewed it told you verbally on Friday that she was happy with it, but she is away this week and has not sent the written confirmation. The pack has to go to the printers this afternoon, and your manager is chasing you for the tracker to be updated. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Record the sign-off as received in the tracker so the pack can go this afternoon, and chase the written confirmation from her when she is back next week.
   2. Hold the pack until she is back next week and can send the confirmation herself, and tell the printers that this afternoon's slot will not be used after all.
   3. Ask your manager to make the call on whether her verbal agreement is enough, and update the tracker to whatever he decides this afternoon.
   4. Tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker as it is until one of them does.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker as it is until one of them does.

   Least effective: A. Record the sign-off as received in the tracker so the pack can go this afternoon, and chase the written confirmation from her when she is back next week.

   A: Enters something in a record that has not happened: the tracker is the only evidence anybody downstream has, and it is being made to say the opposite of the truth.

   B: Treats the deadline as the only thing that can move: a week is lost without anybody asking whether another lawyer could confirm what she said on Friday.

   C: Passes a recording decision upwards to have it made quickly: he can decide about the pack, and the tracker still has to say what actually happened.

   The most effective response is to tell your manager the written sign-off has not arrived, ask the legal team whether a colleague can confirm it today, and leave the tracker until one of them does: the deadline is attacked in the only way that keeps the record honest, and everybody making decisions this afternoon knows exactly where things stand. It beats holding the pack until next week, because nobody has asked whether another lawyer can confirm what was said on Friday. It beats asking your manager to rule on whether a verbal agreement is enough, because the tracker still has to record what happened rather than what was decided about it. The least effective response is recording the sign-off as received: the tracker is the only evidence anybody downstream has, and making it say something that has not happened is a different kind of wrong from losing a week or from escalating a decision. The principle: a record says what happened, and a deadline is a reason to find another route, never to write one in.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a customer care assistant at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). A customer says she rang three weeks ago and was told her order would be replaced free of charge. You can see the call on her record and a short note that matches what she describes. Replacing it free now would cost more than your team usually allows, and the colleague who took that call has since left. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her you can see the call and the note and apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today since honouring it is above your own limit.
   2. Tell her you have no record of the earlier call and offer the standard remedy instead, since the colleague who took it has left and cannot be asked what was said.
   3. Tell her the note exists but that a free replacement is above what the team allows, and offer the standard remedy as the most you are able to do today.
   4. Tell her you will look into what was said on the call and come back to her next week, since the colleague concerned has left and the note is brief.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Tell her you can see the call and the note and apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today since honouring it is above your own limit.

   Least effective: B. Tell her you have no record of the earlier call and offer the standard remedy instead, since the colleague who took it has left and cannot be asked what was said.

   B: Denies something you can see in front of you: the note is on her record, and she is told it does not exist by the one person looking at it.

   C: Treats your own limit as the end of the matter: the promise was made by the business, and nobody with the authority to honour it has been asked.

   D: Delays behind an inquiry that cannot happen: the colleague has gone, the note is all there will ever be, and she waits another week for the same facts.

   The most effective response is to tell her you can see the call and the note, apologise that nothing followed, and put the case to your team leader today: the evidence is acknowledged, the decision goes to somebody who can honour a promise the business made, and it happens now rather than next week. It beats saying the note exists but the cost is above your limit, because that treats your own authority as the last word. It beats promising to look into the call next week, because there is nothing more to find. The least effective response is telling her there is no record of the earlier call: the note is on her record and she is told it does not exist by the person reading it, which is a different kind of wrong from under-reaching or from stalling. The principle: never deny what your own screen shows, and take a promise you cannot honour to somebody who can.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are an insight assistant at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). You and a colleague share the monthly customer survey write-up: she pulls the data and you write the commentary. In last week’s team meeting she said the commentary was what had held the report up, which is not how you saw it. The next report is due on Friday and her data has just landed in your inbox. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Write the commentary and put a note at the top of the report setting out how long each stage took this month, so that the team can see where the time actually goes.
   2. Write the commentary and let last week go, since Friday matters more than a remark in a meeting and there is nothing to gain from picking it up now.
   3. Write the commentary for Friday, and ask her for ten minutes today to agree who needs what by when, so that next month's timings are not a matter of opinion.
   4. Stop drafting the commentary after that remark and leave her to write this month's herself, since she has a clear view about which part of the work takes the time.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Write the commentary for Friday, and ask her for ten minutes today to agree who needs what by when, so that next month's timings are not a matter of opinion.

   Least effective: D. Stop drafting the commentary after that remark and leave her to write this month's herself, since she has a clear view about which part of the work takes the time.

   A: Answers a private remark in a public document: the timings are accurate and the report becomes the place a disagreement between two colleagues is conducted.

   B: Prioritises harmony over honesty: the deadline is met and the same account of who slows the report down is left standing for next month.

   D: Withdraws your half of a shared job after a disagreement: Friday's report is put at risk to make a point, and the point is made to a colleague rather than about the work.

   The most effective response is to write the commentary for Friday and ask her for ten minutes to agree who needs what by when: the report still goes out, and the thing the two of you actually disagree about, which is where the time goes, gets settled in advance instead of in the next meeting. It beats putting a note about this month’s stage timings at the top of the report, because that argues with her in front of readers who have no part in it. It beats letting last week go, because the account she gave stands and the same thing happens next month. The least effective response is stopping the drafting and leaving her to write this month’s herself: the shared deadline is put at risk in order to answer a remark, which is a different kind of wrong from arguing in public or from staying quiet. The principle: a complaint about how shared work runs is fixed by agreeing how it will run, never by removing your part of it.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a service recovery assistant at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). A customer’s case has sat untouched for a fortnight because the colleague who had it before you left the details in a note nobody picked up. The customer is on the phone, calm but tired of explaining herself, and wants to know why it has taken so long. You can put the case right this week. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Acknowledge the fortnight briefly and move straight on to what happens next, since what she needs most is the case actually settled.
   2. Explain that the case sat with a colleague who left the details in a note nobody picked up, so that she can see the delay was not caused by anybody she has spoken to.
   3. Apologise for the fortnight, say plainly that the case was not picked up when it should have been, and set out what you will do this week and when she will hear from you.
   4. Tell her the case was held up by the way work is passed between colleagues, and that a change to how notes are handled is being looked at.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Apologise for the fortnight, say plainly that the case was not picked up when it should have been, and set out what you will do this week and when she will hear from you.

   Least effective: B. Explain that the case sat with a colleague who left the details in a note nobody picked up, so that she can see the delay was not caused by anybody she has spoken to.

   A: Answers the question in passing: the apology is real, and she is moved on before she has heard why it happened.

   B: Blames a named colleague to the customer: the explanation buys your own standing with her at another person's expense, and tells her the business is a set of individuals rather than one organisation.

   D: Answers a personal question with a process description: it is accurate and it leaves her with a policy explanation instead of an apology and a date.

   The most effective response is to apologise for the fortnight, say plainly that the case was not picked up when it should have been, and set out what happens this week: it answers what she asked, it takes responsibility on behalf of the business rather than for yourself alone, and it gives her a date to hold you to. It beats acknowledging the fortnight briefly and moving on, because she asked why and a passing apology is what has tired her out. It beats describing how work is passed between colleagues, because a process answer is not an apology and gives her nothing to expect. The least effective response is telling her which colleague left the note nobody picked up: it buys your own credibility with her by handing her a person to be angry with, which is a different kind of wrong from dodging the question or from answering it bureaucratically. The principle: own the failure as the organisation’s, and never make a customer a witness against a colleague.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are an availability analyst at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). You and a colleague are presenting a joint piece of analysis on Thursday. You have done the numbers and he has done the site interviews. Two of your sections are unfinished and you have a separate deadline on Wednesday. He has said he is happy to present alone if that helps. Thursday’s audience will ask about the numbers. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell him today which two sections are unfinished, agree what you can realistically have ready by Thursday, and split the presenting so that you take the numbers.
   2. Present together as planned and finish the two sections on Wednesday night after the other deadline, since they are nearly done and nobody else needs to know they were late.
   3. Ask to move Thursday's presentation to next week, since two unfinished sections and a Wednesday deadline is not a position to present a joint piece of work from.
   4. Give the presentation to your colleague to deliver on his own, without telling him which two sections you have not finished.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Tell him today which two sections are unfinished, agree what you can realistically have ready by Thursday, and split the presenting so that you take the numbers.

   Least effective: D. Give the presentation to your colleague to deliver on his own, without telling him which two sections you have not finished.

   B: Keeps a risk to yourself: if Wednesday night goes wrong, the first anybody hears about two missing sections is in the room on Thursday.

   C: Moves the date before trying the day: two sections and a colleague who has offered help make Thursday reachable, and the audience is assembled for it.

   D: Hands over a job with a hole in it: he stands in front of an audience that will ask about numbers he did not build, unaware that two sections are missing.

   The most effective response is to tell him today which sections are unfinished, agree what is realistic by Thursday, and split the presenting so you take the numbers: he can plan around the true position, the Wednesday deadline is accounted for, and the part of the audience’s questions only you can answer is answered by you. It beats presenting as planned and finishing on Wednesday night, because a private risk becomes everybody’s problem if the night goes badly. It beats moving the presentation, because Thursday is reachable and the audience is already assembled. The least effective response is handing him the presentation without saying two sections are missing: he faces questions about numbers he did not build, not knowing what is absent, which is a different kind of wrong from carrying the risk quietly or from postponing. The principle: a colleague can only cover for you against the truth, so tell them what is actually missing.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a supply chain graduate at Starbucks Application Tests: Free Practice Questions (2026). You produce a weekly report that a planner uses to set orders. For three weeks running one line has come out short of what the sites asked for, and you have corrected it by hand each time without saying so. The planner reads the corrected number and is happy with it. Sending this week’s report is a five-minute job. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Correct the line by hand again this week and start keeping a note of each correction, so that there is a record to show somebody if it happens for a fourth or fifth week.
    2. Send the report with the pattern set out in the covering note, and take the three weeks of corrections to the planner today, since he is the one setting orders from that line.
    3. Send the report with the line corrected as usual, without mentioning that the same line has now been short three weeks running.
    4. Stop correcting the line and send the raw figure this week, so that the shortfall shows up in the planner's own numbers and he raises it himself.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: B. Send the report with the pattern set out in the covering note, and take the three weeks of corrections to the planner today, since he is the one setting orders from that line.

    Least effective: C. Send the report with the line corrected as usual, without mentioning that the same line has now been short three weeks running.

    A: Gathers evidence instead of raising it: the pattern is already three weeks old, and the planner keeps setting orders from a number somebody is quietly repairing.

    C: Withholds a pattern the reader is entitled to: the number looks trustworthy precisely because the repair is invisible, and the person who could fix the cause does not know there is one.

    D: Makes a point by letting something fail: the planner sets an order from a figure you know to be wrong, and learns about a three-week problem the hard way.

    The most effective response is to send the report with the pattern set out in the covering note and take the three weeks of corrections to the planner today: he is setting orders from that line, the repeated shortfall is the actual finding, and a five-minute job does not become a reason to keep it to yourself. It beats correcting it again and starting a note, because the evidence needed to raise it has existed for three weeks already. It beats sending the raw figure so the problem shows itself, because that teaches the planner by damaging his order. The least effective response is sending the corrected report and saying nothing about three weeks of shortfalls: the correction makes the number look sound, so nobody investigates a cause that is still there, which is a different kind of wrong from gathering evidence too long or from proving a point. The principle: a problem you have quietly worked around is still a problem, and the person relying on the output owns it with you.