🔮 Inductive Reasoning Test

What an inductive reasoning test measures

Inductive reasoning is working from examples to a rule. You are shown cases that share something, you work out what that something is, and you apply it to new cases. Nothing depends on language or arithmetic, which is why this style of test travels well across roles and countries.

Employers often use abstract pattern tests for graduate, engineering, analyst and technology roles, where the work involves spotting structure in unfamiliar material. The tests look intimidating the first time and become much more manageable once you have a fixed checklist of rule families.

The format on Job Tests Portal

Each question shows two sample grids on the left that share a hidden rule, and four candidate grids on the right. Exactly two of the four follow the same rule, and you select both. The standard run is 20 questions in 15 minutes; the selectors offer 10, 15, 25 or 40 minutes and 10, 20, 30 or 50 questions.

• The first two questions are untimed practice examples with an explanation after each.
• Rules are consistent and positional — they never contain a logical NOT or OR.
• Difficulty rises as you go: shape-position rules first, then colour rules, then combined rules.
• You can ask for a step-by-step explanation of any question after the run.

Rule families, with worked examples

1. Position rules

Both sample grids have a circle in all four corner cells; everything else differs. Candidate A has circles in all four corners. Candidate B has circles in three corners and a square in the fourth.

Answer: Candidate A follows the rule; Candidate B does not.

Why: The rule is about which shape sits in which position, so one corner out of place breaks it. Three matches out of four is still a miss.

2. Row and column rules

In both samples, every cell in a row shares one colour, and the three rows use three different colours. Candidate C has a blue top row, a green middle row and a purple bottom row. Candidate D has a blue top row and a middle row mixing blue and green.

Answer: Candidate C follows the rule; Candidate D does not.

Why: Two conditions have to hold at once — uniform within each row, and different between rows. Candidate D fails the first. When a rule has two parts, test them separately rather than judging the grid as a whole.

3. Counting rules

Both samples use exactly two different shapes across the whole grid, in any arrangement. Candidate E uses stars and squares only. Candidate F uses stars, squares and one triangle.

Answer: Candidate E follows the rule; Candidate F does not.

Why: Counting rules ignore position entirely, which is why they are easy to miss after you have been staring at layouts. If no positional rule survives both samples, count shapes and colours instead.

A rule-checklist method

1. Describe sample one in a sentence. Say what you see: “four corners are circles, middle row is mixed.” A stated observation is testable; a vague impression is not.
2. Test that sentence against sample two. If it survives both samples, you have a candidate rule. If not, you have eliminated one and lost only a few seconds.
3. Run the checklist in order. Corners, then edges, then a specific row or column, then the diagonals, then symmetry, then how many shapes, then how many colours. Fixed order beats free-form staring.
4. Prefer position over colour. In this test colour and shape mostly distinguish objects, while the rule usually concerns where objects sit and how many there are.
5. Use the candidates as evidence. Exactly two of four must follow the rule. If your rule accepts three candidates, it is too loose; if it accepts one, it is too tight.
6. Bank the rule families you meet. Keep a running list after each session — most questions are variations on a small set.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

• Locking onto the first pattern you notice. Always confirm it against the second sample before you look at any candidate.
• Building a rule with an exception. The rules here have none, so “it works apart from that one cell” means the rule is wrong.
• Inventing compound logic. No rule uses NOT or OR, so a rule that needs one is a sign to start again.
• Selecting only one candidate. Exactly two of the four match, and a single selection cannot be a complete answer.
• Chasing colour first. Colour rules exist, but positional and counting rules are far more common in the earlier questions.

Where to go next

• Start the inductive reasoning practice test — two untimed examples first, then a timed run you configure
• Inductive reasoning tutorial — pattern-recognition strategies and the main question types
• How to solve inductive questions — the checklist method in full, with more rule families
• Deductive Reasoning Test — the mirror skill: applying a rule you are given
• Spatial Intelligence Test — visual reasoning in three dimensions
• All cognitive and aptitude tests — browse the full catalogue