State Bank of India (SBI)

SBI Clerk Syllabus 2026 – Overview

The State Bank of India (SBI) conducts the SBI Clerk (Junior Associate - Customer Support & Sales) examination in two main phases: Phase-I Preliminary Examination (qualifying) and Phase-II Main Examination (merit-deciding). A thorough understanding of the detailed syllabus, section-wise topic weightage, and exam pattern is essential to crack this competitive banking examination.

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SBI Clerk Exam Pattern 2026 – Quick Summary

Phase	Sections	Questions	Marks	Duration	Negative Marking
Phase-I (Prelims)	English Language	30	30	20 Minutes	0.25 Mark
	Numerical Ability	35	35	20 Minutes	0.25 Mark
	Reasoning Ability	35	35	20 Minutes	0.25 Mark
Prelims Total		100 Questions	100 Marks	60 Minutes (1 Hour)	0.25 per wrong answer
Phase-II (Mains)	General / Financial Awareness	50	50	35 Minutes	0.25 Mark
	General English	40	40	35 Minutes	0.25 Mark
	Quantitative Aptitude	50	50	45 Minutes	0.25 Mark
	Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude	50	60	45 Minutes	0.25 Mark
Mains Total		190 Questions	200 Marks	160 Minutes (2h 40m)	0.25 per wrong answer

* Note: Prelims is qualifying in nature. Final merit is prepared solely on marks scored in Phase-II Mains Examination. Both exams feature individual sectional timings.

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SBI Clerk Prelims Syllabus 2026 – Section-Wise Breakdown

1. English Language (30 Questions, 30 Marks, 20 Minutes)

Topic	Expected Questions	Difficulty Level
Reading Comprehension (RC)	5–10 Qs	Moderate
Cloze Test	5–7 Qs	Moderate
Error Detection / Spotting	3–5 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Fill in the Blanks (Single/Double)	3–5 Qs	Easy
Para Jumbles / Sentence Rearrangement	3–5 Qs	Moderate
Sentence Improvement / Phrase Replacement	3–5 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Vocabulary (Synonyms / Antonyms)	2–4 Qs	Easy
Word Swap / Misfit Word	0–3 Qs	Moderate

2. Numerical Ability (35 Questions, 35 Marks, 20 Minutes)

Topic	Expected Questions	Difficulty Level
Simplification / Approximation	5–10 Qs	Easy
Number Series (Missing / Wrong Series)	3–5 Qs	Moderate
Data Interpretation (Bar, Line, Pie, Tabular)	5–10 Qs	Moderate
Quadratic Equations	3–5 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Arithmetic: Percentage & Profit/Loss	4–6 Qs	Moderate
Arithmetic: Simple & Compound Interest (SI/CI)	2–3 Qs	Moderate
Arithmetic: Ratio, Proportion & Partnership	2–3 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Arithmetic: Time & Work, Pipes & Cisterns	2–3 Qs	Moderate
Arithmetic: Speed, Time, Distance, Trains & Boats	2–3 Qs	Moderate
Arithmetic: Mixture, Alligation & Average	2–3 Qs	Moderate

3. Reasoning Ability (35 Questions, 35 Marks, 20 Minutes)

Topic	Expected Questions	Difficulty Level
Puzzles & Seating Arrangement (Circular, Linear, Floor, Box)	10–15 Qs	Moderate to Hard
Syllogism (Only a Few, Possibility)	3–5 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Inequality (Direct & Coded)	3–5 Qs	Easy
Blood Relations	2–3 Qs	Easy to Moderate
Direction & Distance Sense	2–3 Qs	Easy
Coding-Decoding	3–5 Qs	Moderate
Alphanumeric / Number / Symbol Series	3–5 Qs	Easy
Order & Ranking	2–3 Qs	Easy

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SBI Clerk Mains Syllabus 2026 – Section-Wise Breakdown

1. General / Financial Awareness (50 Questions, 50 Marks, 35 Minutes)

• Current Affairs (Last 6 Months): National & international news, appointments, awards, sports, summits, government schemes, and bilateral agreements.
• Banking Awareness: RBI monetary policies, banking terms (NPA, CRR, SLR, Repo Rate, MSF), Basel norms, digital banking platforms (UPI, NEFT, RTGS, IMPS, CBDC).
• Financial & Economic Awareness: Union Budget, Economic Survey, GDP forecasts, inflation rates, stock markets, SEBI, IRDAI, and PFRDA regulations.
• Static GK: World capitals, currencies, headquarters of international organizations (UN, IMF, World Bank, WTO), national parks, tiger reserves, power plants, and stadiums.

2. General English (40 Questions, 40 Marks, 35 Minutes)

• High-Level Reading Comprehension: Multiple passages based on banking, economy, geopolitical events, and technology.
• Advanced Grammar: Error spotting, sentence correction, phrase replacement, inversion, conditional statements.
• Vocabulary & Contextual Usage: Cloze test, fillers (single/double/triple), idiom usage, word replacement.
• Sentence Structure: Paragraph completion, connectors, sentence rearrangement (Para Jumbles).

3. Quantitative Aptitude (50 Questions, 50 Marks, 45 Minutes)

• Advanced Data Interpretation (15–20 Qs): Caselets, missing value DI, radar graphs, arithmetic-based DI, mixed charts.
• Arithmetic Word Problems (15–20 Qs): Comprehensive coverage of all business maths concepts.
• Data Sufficiency (3–5 Qs): Statement 1 & 2 analysis.
• Quantity Comparison (3–5 Qs): Quantity I vs. Quantity II.
• Advanced Number Series & Quadratic Equations: Complex patterns and roots comparison.

4. Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude (50 Questions, 60 Marks, 45 Minutes)

• Advanced Reasoning: High-level multi-variable puzzles, coded blood relations, coded directions, machine input-output, reverse syllogisms, and critical reasoning (assumptions, inferences, course of action).
• Computer Aptitude: Database Management Systems (DBMS), Networking (OSI Model, IP, Protocols), Cyber Security (viruses, malware, firewalls, encryption), Internet technologies, and Banking & Tech Abbreviations.

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Section-Wise Topic Weightage (Prelims & Mains)

Section	High-Weightage Topics	Moderate-Weightage Topics
Prelims English	Reading Comprehension, Cloze Test, Error Detection	Fillers, Para Jumbles, Word Swap
Prelims Quant	Data Interpretation, Simplification, Percentage, SI/CI	Number Series, Quadratic Equations, Time & Work
Prelims Reasoning	Puzzles & Seating Arrangement (15 Qs), Syllogism	Inequality, Coding-Decoding, Blood Relations
Mains General Awareness	Current Affairs (6 Months), RBI & Banking Awareness	Financial Schemes, Static GK, Economic Survey
Mains Quantitative	Data Interpretation (Caselets & Charts), Arithmetic	Data Sufficiency, Quantity Comparison
Mains Reasoning & Computer	Multi-Variable Puzzles, Input-Output, Critical Reasoning	Coded Inequalities, DBMS, Networking, Cyber Security

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Recommended Books & Study Resources

Subject	Book Title	Author / Publisher
Quantitative Aptitude	Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations	R.S. Aggarwal / Rajesh Verma (Arihant)
Reasoning Ability	Modern Approach to Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning	R.S. Aggarwal / M.K. Pandey
English Language	Objective General English & Wren and Martin Grammar	S.P. Bakshi (Arihant)
General Awareness	Lucent's General Knowledge & Banking Awareness	Lucent Publications / Arihant
Computer Aptitude	Objective Computer Awareness	Arihant Experts / R.S. Aggarwal

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Target Attempts & Exam Day Time Strategy

Phase-I Preliminary Exam (60 Minutes – 100 Questions)

• English Language: 18–20 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 22–25 Questions
• Numerical Ability: 20–22 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 25–28 Questions
• Reasoning Ability: 18–20 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 28–32 Questions
• Overall Good Attempts: 75–85 Questions with 90%+ Accuracy

Phase-II Main Exam (160 Minutes – 190 Questions)

• General Awareness: 25–30 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 35–40 Questions
• General English: 30–35 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 28–32 Questions
• Quantitative Aptitude: 40–45 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 35–40 Questions
• Reasoning & Computer: 45–50 Minutes $ ightarrow$ Target: 40–45 Questions
• Overall Good Attempts: 138–157 Questions with high precision