SBI Probationary Officers (PO)

Conducted by: State Bank of India, Central Recruitment & Promotion Department
Question paper languages: English, Hindi
Last checked against official sources: 2026-10-14

Notes and practice for SBI PO are coming soon. Until then, this guide has the official pattern, marking, syllabus and links.

Exam pattern and marking

Phase-I: Preliminary Examination60 minutes100 marks

Sections, questions and marking for Phase-I: Preliminary Examination
Section	Questions	Marks per question	Negative marking	Question types
English Language	40	1	1/4	MCQ
Quantitative Aptitude	30	1	1/4	MCQ
Reasoning Ability	30	1	1/4	MCQ

Phase-II: Main Examination (objective)180 minutes200 marks

Sections, questions and marking for Phase-II: Main Examination (objective)
Section	Questions	Marks per question	Question types
Reasoning and Computer Aptitude	40	—	MCQ
Data Analysis and Interpretation	30	—	MCQ
General Awareness / Economy / Banking Knowledge	60	—	MCQ
English Language	40	—	MCQ

Phase-II: Descriptive Paper (Communication Skills)30 minutes30 marks

Sections, questions and marking for Phase-II: Descriptive Paper (Communication Skills)
Section	Questions	Marks per question	Negative marking	Question types
Email, situation analysis, report or precis	3	—	0	DESCRIPTIVE

Phase-III: Psychometric Test, Group Exercise and Interview50 marks

SBI PO 2026 advertisement para 8. Phase-I prelims: 100 marks, 1 hour, three separately timed sections of 20 min (English 40, Quant 30, Reasoning 30); no sectional cut-off. Phase-II mains: objective 170 Q / 200 marks / 3 h (Reasoning & Computer Aptitude 40/60/50 min, DA&I 30/60/45 min, General Awareness/Economy/Banking 60/60/45 min, English 40/20/40 min) + descriptive communication skills 30 marks / 30 min (email, situation analysis, report or precis). Penalty 1/4 of the marks of the question. Phase-III psychometric test, group exercise (20) and interview (30). Final merit = mains 75 + phase-III 25.

MCQ = single correct answer · MSQ = one or more correct answers · NAT / numeric = type a number. Negative marking is the number of marks deducted for a wrong answer.

Syllabus

70 subjects, topics and subtopics from the official syllabus. Tap a subject to expand it.

Explore the syllabus map

English Language11
- Reading comprehension
  - Comprehension passages
  - Vocabulary in context
- Grammar
  - Error detection
  - Sentence improvement
  - Fillers (single and double)
- Verbal ability
  - Cloze test
  - Para jumbles / sentence rearrangement
  - Word usage, word swap, phrase replacement
Quantitative Aptitude and Data Interpretation19
- Arithmetic
  - Simplification and approximation
  - Number series (missing / wrong number)
  - Quadratic equations (comparison of roots)
  - Percentage
  - Ratio, proportion, partnership
  - Averages and ages
  - Profit and loss
  - Simple and compound interest
  - Time and work, pipes and cisterns
  - Time, speed and distance; boats and streams; trains
  - Mixture and alligation
  - Mensuration
  - Permutation, combination and probability
- Data interpretation and analysis
  - Tabular DI
  - Bar, line and pie chart DI
  - Caselet DI
  - Data sufficiency
Reasoning Ability21
- Puzzles and seating arrangement
  - Linear seating arrangement
  - Circular and square seating arrangement
  - Floor, box and scheduling puzzles
- Logical reasoning
  - Syllogism
  - Inequalities
  - Blood relations
  - Direction and distance
  - Order and ranking
  - Coding-decoding
  - Alphanumeric series
  - Input-output (machine)
  - Data sufficiency
- Verbal and critical reasoning
  - Statement and assumption / argument / course of action
  - Inference, cause and effect
- Computer aptitude (SBI mains)
  - Computer fundamentals, hardware, software, memory
  - Internet, networking, security
  - MS Office, shortcuts, database basics
General, Economy and Banking Awareness11
- Banking awareness
  - RBI: functions, monetary policy, circulars
  - Banking terms, products and regulation
  - Digital payments, UPI, fintech
- Economy and finance
  - Indian economy, budget, fiscal policy
  - Financial markets, SEBI, insurance
  - Government financial schemes
- Current affairs
  - National and international news
  - Static GK: organisations, capitals, currencies
Descriptive writing (English)3
- Email writing
- Situation analysis
- Report writing or precis writing

Official sources

Always confirm details on the official website before applying.