Our detailed IBPS Clerk Shift 1 exam analysis for 10th October 2026 is now live. Explore the overall difficulty level, recommended good attempts, and a comprehensive breakdown of questions by section.
The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) is currently conducting the IBPS Clerk Prelims Exam 2026 (CRP CSA XVI) on 10th and 11th October 2026. With 11,663 vacancies to be filled, this recruitment drive is highly competitive. Candidates who successfully qualify in the Prelims round will progress to the Mains examination.
With the first shift of the 10th October exam now concluded, we have aggregated student feedback to provide a reliable and accurate IBPS Clerk exam analysis. Read on to see how today's paper measured up against expectations.
IBPS Clerk Prelims Exam Analysis 2026: Shift 1 Overview
The IBPS Clerk Prelims Shift 1 took place from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM, adhering to the 60-minute duration. The paper comprised three distinct sections—Reasoning, English, and Quantitative Aptitude—each with a dedicated 20-minute sectional timer. Overall, candidates reported an easy-to-moderate difficulty level; find the specific sectional analysis below.
Exam Section Sequence: English ⇒ Quantitative Aptitude ⇒ Reasoning
IBPS Clerk Shift 1 Difficulty Level 2026
| Section | Difficulty Level |
| English Language | Easy |
| Reasoning Ability | Easy To Moderate |
| Numerical Ability | Easy To Moderate |
| Total | Easy to Moderate |
IBPS Clerk 1st Shift 2026: Expected Good Attempts
| Section | No. of Questions | Good Attempts |
| English Language | 30 | 25-27 |
| Numerical Ability | 35 | 26-28 |
| Reasoning Ability | 35 | 28-20 |
| Total | 100 | 79-86 |
IBPS Clerk Prelims 2026: Section-wise Detailed Analysis
The Prelims paper follows a structured pattern across three sections. While Reasoning and Quantitative Aptitude hold an equal share of questions, the English Language section includes 30 questions. Despite the 60-minute total duration, strict sectional timing applies. Below, we detail the exam pattern and key topics covered.
IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern Structure
| Section | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Time |
| English Language | 30 | 30 | 20 minutes |
| Numerical Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 60 minutes |
Download IBPS Clerk Admit Card 2026
Check IBPS Clerk Question Paper 2026
Shift 1 Reasoning Ability Analysis
The Reasoning section leaned towards easy-to-moderate. The 7-floor puzzle proved to be the most time-consuming task, whereas the 2-row parallel puzzle (5 persons per row) was found to be quite manageable for most candidates.
| Topic | Number of Questions |
| Floor-based puzzle (7) | 5 Qs |
| Inequalities (Non-comma) | 4 Qs |
| 2 Parallel Rows (Horizontal) (5 on each) | 5 Qs |
| Direction and Distance | 3 Qs |
| Sequence Based (8 person) | 1 Q |
| Chinese Coding | 5 Qs |
| Meaningful word (THIN, HINT) | 1 Q |
| Pair Formation (Letter-based) | 1 Q |
| Digit+Symbol | 5 Q |
| Word based | 1 Q |
| Total | 35 Qs |
Shift 1 Quantitative Aptitude Analysis
The Quantitative Aptitude section was also rated easy-to-moderate. Simplification and Approximation questions were the primary scoring areas. Additionally, candidates encountered two Caselets (Tubs & Buckets and Table-based) along with Data Interpretation (DI) sets.
| Topic | Number of Questions |
| Simplification/Approximation | 10 Qs |
| Data Interpretation (Table) | 5 Qs |
| Data Interpretation (Bar Graph) | 5 Qs |
| Caselet (Tubs & Buckets) | 3 Qs |
| Caselet (Table-based) | 4 Qs |
| Arithmetic | 8 Qs |
| Total | 35 Qs |
Shift 1 English Language Analysis
The English section was the most scoring component of the exam. The Reading Comprehension passage was story-based and straightforward. Questions regarding Sentence Rearrangement, Cloze Test, and Error Detection were direct, allowing many students to complete this section ahead of time.
| Topic | Number of Questions |
Reading Comprehension (Fictional Store, Martha age old)
|
8-10 Qs |
| Sentence Rearrangement | 5 Qs |
| Cloze Test (A to F) (Exhibition related) | 6 Qs |
| Sentence-Based Error Detection | 4 Qs |
| Word Usage (lesson, lose) | 2 Qs |
| Word Swap | 4-5 Qs |
| Total | 30 |
Performance in the Prelims determines eligibility for the Mains; however, these marks are not counted toward final merit. The official cut-off will be released post-examination, with results expected on the official IBPS portal by November 2026.
Official IBPS Clerk Exam Shift Timings
| Shift | Timing | Difficulty Level |
| Shift 1 | 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM | Easy To Moderate |
| Shift 2 | 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM | Will be updated soon |
| Shift 3 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM | Will be updated soon |
| Shift 4 | 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM | Will be updated soon |
Essential IBPS Clerk 2026 Exam Day Tips
- Attempt RC first, since it is easy and builds confidence.
- In Quant, finish Simplification before moving to DI and Caselets.
- Skip long puzzles if they take more than 6-7 minutes, and come back if time remains.
- Keep a close watch on the clock, because each section has its own 20-minute limit.