IBPS has released the updated IBPS Clerk Syllabus and Exam Pattern for both prelims and mains exam. Unlike every year, this year also, IBPS has released huge vacancies for Clerical Cadre posts to be filled in 11 participating banks. If you are planning to prepare for IBPS Clerk 2026 Exam then you must be looking for the latest exam pattern and syllabus. Check the updated IBPS Clerk syllabus & exam pattern in this post below. IBPS Clerk Syllabus 2026 is very much the same as any other Bank Exam. The major three sections on which a candidate needs a complete command to ace the preliminary exam for IBPS Clerk.
- Reasoning
- Quantitative Aptitude
- English Language
When a candidate clears the Preliminary Exam, he/she must start preparing for the phase 2 exam. The Mains Examination of IBPS Clerk 2026 consists of 4 sections which are mentioned below:
- Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude
- Quantitative Aptitude
- English Language
- General/ Financial Awareness
IBPS Clerk Syllabus and Exam Pattern 2026
A candidate must look into the IBPS Clerk Syllabus and Exam Pattern and practice with IBPS Clerk Previous Years’ Papers to know the weightage of the sub-topics asked in each section of both the preliminary and mains exams of IBPS Clerk Exam 2026. The number of questions in Mains Exam has been reduced to 155 and time duration is now 120 minutes.
| IBPS Clerk Syllabus 2026- Overview | |
| Exam Conducting Body | Institute of Banking Personnel Selection |
| Exam Name | IBPS Clerk 2026 |
| Category | Syllabus & Exam Pattern |
| Vacancies | 15701 |
| No. of Questions | Prelims- 100 Mains- 155 |
| Maximum Marks | Prelims- 100 Mains- 200 |
| Negative Marking | 0.25 marks |
| Selection Process | Prelims & Mains |
| Official website | www.ibps.in |
IBPS Clerk Selection Process 2026
The selection criteria for IBPS Clerk posts will be 2 tier i.e. the online examination will be held in two phases, Online Preliminary and Online Main. The prelims marks are not included in the IBPS PO final merit list and selection is solely based on marks scored in the mains exam. the
| Stages | Details |
| IBPS Clerk Prelims | No. of Questions- 100 Type of Questions- Multiple Choice Questions Duration- 60 minutes Qualifying in nature Subjects- English Language, Reasoning Ability, Numerical Ability Negative Marking- 0.25/ ¼th |
| IBPS Clerk Mains | No. of Questions- 190 Duration- 160 minutes Scoring in nature Subjects- Quantitative Aptitude, English Language, Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude, General/ Financial Awareness Negative Marking- 0.25/ ¼th |
IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern 2026
The preliminary exam of IBPS Clerk CRP XV is an online exam testing a candidate based on their aptitude, intellect and English. Both the Preliminary Exam and Mains Exam will be conducted bilingually, i.e. both in English and in Hindi. There are three sections in total, and the candidate must clear the cut-off of each section to proceed to the main exam round. Let’s understand IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern 2026 for both stages from the section below.
IBPS Clerk Prelims Exam Pattern 2026
Major changes have been observed in the Exam Pattern of the IBPS Clerk 2026 Prelims Exam. The IBPS Clerk preliminary examination is conducted online and candidates are allocated total duration of 1 hour (20 minutes for each section) to complete the preliminary exam. There is a negative marking of 0.25 marks for each incorrect answer.
Candidates have to qualify in each of the three tests by securing cut-off marks to be decided by IBPS. An adequate number of candidates in each category as decided by IBPS depending upon requirements will be shortlisted for the Online Main examination. This exam is qualifying in nature and marks scored will not be counted in preparing merit list.
| IBPS Clerk Prelims Exam Pattern 2026 | ||||
| S.No. | Name of Tests(Objective) | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | English Language | 30 | 30 | 20 minutes |
| 2 | Numerical Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| 3 | Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 60 minutes/1 Hour | |
IBPS Clerk Mains Exam Pattern 2026
In the latest update by IBPS, IBPS Clerk Mains Exam will now consist of 155 questions for 200 marks that need to be completed in a time frame of 120 minutes.
| IBPS Clerk Mains Exam Pattern 2026 | ||||
| S.No. | Name of Tests (Objective) | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude | 40 | 60 | 35 minutes |
| 2 | English Language | 40 | 40 | 35 minutes |
| 3 | Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 50 | 30 minutes |
| 4 | General/ Financial Awareness | 40 | 50 | 20 minutes |
| Total | 155 | 200 | 120 minutes | |
Now that we have seen the IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern. Let’s discuss the detailed syllabus of all the sections asked in the Preliminary and Mains Exam of IBPS Clerk 2026 Exam:
IBPS Clerk Syllabus 2026
Let’s now look at the section-wise (subject-wise) syllabus for IBPS Clerk 2026 exam. This will assist you in completely understanding the exam and formulating an impressive preparation strategy for yourself. The syllabus is provided for all subjects and depending on whether the candidate is appearing for the Prelims or Mains exam. IBPS Clerk Syllabus 2026 for Prelims and Mains examinations is given below:
IBPS Clerk Syllabus 2026 for Prelims and Mains Exam
The syllabus for Numerical Ability / Quantitative Aptitude and English Language is the same for mains and preliminary exams. In addition to these two, the other subjects are General / Financial Awareness and Reasoning & Computer Knowledge. General Awareness is based on the Banking Sector awareness.
IBPS Clerk English Language Syllabus
The English Language section of the IBPS Clerk exam assesses your understanding and proficiency in English. The updated syllabus for the English Language section is as follows:
| IBPS Clerk English Language Syllabus | ||
| Vocabulary | Grammar | Reading Comprehension |
| HomonymsAntonymsSynonymsWord FormationSpelling | Spotting ErrorsPhrases and idiomsDirect and Indirect speechActive/ Passive voice | Theme DetectionPassage completionTopic rearrangement of passageDeriving Conclusion |
IBPS Clerk Reasoning Syllabus
The Reasoning Ability section of the IBPS Clerk exam tests your logical and analytical thinking skills. Check the important topics for Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning from below tabulated data.
| IBPS Clerk Reasoning Ability Syllabus | |
| Verbal Reasoning | Non-Verbal Reasoning |
| AnalogyClassificationWord formationStatement and conclusions SyllogismStatement and assumptionsStatement and argumentsCoding-DecodingBlood RelationsPassage and conclusionsAlphabet testSeries TestNumber, Ranking and time sequenceDirection sense TestDecision-making testFigure seriesInput/outputAssertion and reasoningSitting Arrangement | Series testOdd figure OutAnalogyMiscellaneous Test |
IBPS Clerk Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus
The Quantitative Aptitude section of the IBPS Clerk exam tests your numerical ability and problem-solving skills. Here’s a detailed syllabus for the Quantitative Aptitude section:
| IBPS Clerk Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus |
| Ratio and proportion Averages Time and work Speed Distance and time Mixture and allegation Stocks and shares Percentages Partnership Clocks Volume and surface Area Bar & Graphs Line charts Tables Height and Distances Logarithms Permutation and combinations Simple and compound interest Equations, Probability Trigonometry Profit Loss and Discount Mensuration Elements of Algebra Data Interpretation Pie charts |
IBPS Clerk Computer Knowledge Syllabus
The Computers section of the IBPS Clerk exam is designed to test your basic knowledge of computer hardware, software, and related concepts. Here’s a detailed syllabus for the Computers section:
| IBPS Clerk Computers Syllabus |
| Basics of Hardware and softwareWindows operating system basicsInternet terms and servicesBasic Functionalities of MS-Office( MS-word, MS-Excel, MS-PowerPoint)History of computersNetworking and communicationDatabase basicsBasics of HackingSecurity ToolsViruses |
IBPS Clerk General/ Financial Awareness Syllabus
The General Awareness section of the IBPS Clerk exam primarily focuses on current events and general knowledge. The topics included in this section are as follows-
| IBPS Clerk General Awareness Syllabus | |
| Current Affairs | Banking |
| Current affairs related to national and international issues of last 6 months,Overview of Indian Financial System,History of the Indian banking systemRecent credit and monetary policies | Introduction to National financial institutions like RBI, SEBI, IRDA, FSDC etc and of International organizations like IMF, World Bank, ADB, UN etc,Abbreviations and Economic terminologiesBanking Terms,Important Government Schemes on capital & money market |