IBPS Clerk 2026: exam date, pattern, syllabus and how to apply
IBPS Clerk is the common recruitment of Customer Service Associates, the clerical cadre, for eleven public sector banks, run by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS). The current round is CRP-CSA-XVI, notified on 1 August 2026 for vacancies of 2027-28, and you apply for one State or Union Territory only. Registration closed on 21 August 2026. By IBPS's tentative schedule the preliminary exam is in October 2026 and the main exam in December 2026, so for most candidates this is the last stretch before Mains. Below are the dates, the IBPS Clerk exam pattern and syllabus, how to apply, and a plan.
IBPS Clerk at a glance
| Conducting body | Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) |
| What it is for | Customer Service Associate (clerk) in participating public sector banks |
| Stages | Preliminary exam, Main exam; no interview |
| Mode | Online, at an examination centre |
| Prelims | 100 questions, 100 marks, 60 minutes, three tests of 20 minutes each |
| Mains | 160 questions, 200 marks, 125 minutes, four separately timed tests |
| Marking | One fourth of a question's marks deducted for a wrong answer; blanks score 0 |
| Languages | English, Hindi and, in many States, a regional language; English tests in English only |
| Eligibility | A graduate in any discipline, working knowledge of computers, age 20 to 28 on 1 August 2026, with relaxations |
| Official website | ibps.in |
IBPS Clerk 2026 exam date
The CRP-CSA-XVI notification gives this tentative schedule (checked 20 October 2026):
| Stage | Tentative schedule |
|---|---|
| Online registration and fee payment | 1 to 21 August 2026 |
| Pre-Examination Training | September 2026 |
| Prelims call letters | September 2026 |
| Preliminary exam | October 2026 |
| Prelims result and Mains call letters | November 2026 |
| Main exam | December 2026 |
| Provisional allotment | March 2027 |
These are months. Your exact date, session and venue are on the call letter you download from ibps.in. As of 20 October 2026 the CRP-CSA-XVI page lists the notification and a corrigendum of 29 September 2026, which updated the indicative vacancies and left every other term unchanged. Our IBPS Clerk exam dates page follows that page.
How to apply for IBPS Clerk
Registration for XVI is closed. For the next round, the current notice's steps are:
- Read the notification on ibps.in, including the State-wise vacancies and the local language each State requires.
- On the CRP CSA page, click "Click here for new registration" and note the provisional registration number and password sent to you.
- Fill in the form and choose your State or UT. That choice cannot be changed later.
- Upload a photograph, signature, left thumb impression, a handwritten declaration and your Class 10 certificate, and capture a live photo by webcam or phone during registration.
- Pay online. The XVI fee was ₹175 for SC/ST/PwBD/ESM/DESM candidates and ₹850 for all others, including GST; check the new notice.
- Check every page with "Save and Next", then click "Complete Registration". Nothing can be changed after that.
Keep ready your degree marks, a category certificate if you claim one, and the Class 10 certificate showing the local language if you studied it, since that decides whether you take the Local Language Proficiency Test.
IBPS Clerk exam pattern
Preliminary exam
| Test | Questions | 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 |
You must clear IBPS's cut-off in each of the three tests to reach Mains. Prelims marks are not used for the final list.
Main exam
| Test | Questions | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| General / Financial Awareness | 40 | 50 | 20 minutes |
| General English | 40 | 40 | 35 minutes |
| Reasoning Ability | 40 | 60 | 35 minutes |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 40 | 50 | 35 minutes |
| Total | 160 | 200 | 125 minutes |
The order of the Mains tests is not fixed. You need a minimum in each test and in the total. Only Mains marks make the final merit list; they are converted out of 100 for allotment. Candidates without a Class 10 or higher certificate in the State's language then take a qualifying language test before joining.
IBPS Clerk syllabus
The notice gives test names, not topics. The types of question these tests have long used:
- English: reading comprehension, cloze test, error spotting, fillers, sentence improvement, para jumbles, vocabulary.
- Numerical Ability / Quantitative Aptitude: simplification, number series, quadratic equations, data interpretation, percentage, profit and loss, interest, ratio, average, time and work, time and distance.
- Reasoning: puzzles and seating, syllogisms, inequalities, coding-decoding, blood relations, direction, ranking; in Mains also input-output and data sufficiency.
- General / Financial Awareness (Mains): banking and financial awareness and current affairs.
The full list is on our IBPS Clerk syllabus page.
A plan for the weeks until Mains
With Mains tentatively in December, a candidate who has sat the October prelims has about six to eight weeks. Do not wait for the result to start.
| Weeks | Focus | Practice |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Financial awareness: banking terms, RBI and government schemes, current affairs of recent months, 45 minutes daily | Daily 35-minute Reasoning and Quant sets |
| 3-4 | Mains-level puzzles and data interpretation; English reading speed | One full sectional set per test each week |
| 5-6 | Timed tests in random order, since Mains order is not fixed | Two full timed sets a week, reviewed next day |
| Last week | Revision notes and awareness only | One light timed set |
If you are aiming at the next round's Prelims instead, take one full IBPS Clerk mock test now to see which of the three 20-minute tests is weakest, and then one mock a week rising to three a week in the final month. Each test has its own cut-off, so a weak English score cannot be covered by strong Reasoning. Read how to analyse a mock test before your first review.
Useful links
- IBPS official website, for notifications, call letters and results
- CRP-CSA-XVI notification, 1 August 2026 (PDF)
- CRP-CSA-XVI page on ibps.in
- Free IBPS Clerk mock tests
- IBPS Clerk syllabus
- IBPS Clerk exam dates
- Negative marking: when to guess
- IBPS PO 2026: exam date and how to apply
Frequently asked questions
Is there negative marking in IBPS Clerk?
Yes. A wrong answer costs one fourth of the marks of that question, in both Prelims and Mains. In Prelims, where each question is worth 1 mark, that is 0.25; a blank costs nothing.
What is the IBPS Clerk 2026 exam date?
The notification gives October 2026 for the preliminary exam and December 2026 for the main exam. Exact dates and sessions are on the call letters on ibps.in.
Is there an interview in IBPS Clerk?
No. The final merit list uses only the main exam marks. Some candidates also take a qualifying Local Language Proficiency Test before joining.
Can I apply for more than one State in IBPS Clerk?
No. You apply for vacancies in one State or Union Territory only, and the choice cannot be changed after you submit.
What is the IBPS Clerk age limit?
20 to 28 years on 1 August 2026 for the XVI round (born not earlier than 2 August 1998 and not later than 1 August 2006), with the relaxations listed in the notice.
Are your IBPS Clerk mock tests official papers?
No. They are practice papers written for this site on the XVI Prelims pattern, in English and Hindi, with the quarter-mark penalty.