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sample some gmat practice questions to see what the test is like, or treat this as a mini quiz to assess your current skills! here’s a broad look at what you’ll encounter (or see below for a more detailed preview):
- quantitative reasoning – 7 practice questions
- verbal reasoning – 7 practice questions
- data insights – 6 practice questions
for these 20 questions, we recommend setting aside 45 minutes. this means that this quiz is roughly one-third of a full gmat exam.
to be clear, unlike the real gmat, this quiz is not adaptive; it’s a predetermined set of question types and difficulties. on the actual gmat, future questions you encounter will become harder or easier based on your performance on previous ones. for a true adaptive experience, an estimated gmat score, and a more accurate measure of your abilities, we highly recommend that you take a full-length practice test.
but if you don’t have time for a full test, this quiz is a quick way to get a feel for the gmat focus and to see how you’re currently doing. at the end of the quiz, you can view text and video explanations for every question. plus, see the end of this article for advice on how to study based on your results!
table of contents
- more details about the gmat practice questions
- study advice based on your results
- where can i find more free gmat practice questions?
more details about the gmat practice questions
quantitative reasoning
here’s a breakdown of the 7 questions on the quant portion of the gmat quiz:
| question type | category | difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| pure context | algebra | easy |
| pure context | integer properties | medium |
| pure context | arithmetic & fractions | hard |
| pure context | power and roots | very hard |
| real context | word problems | medium |
| real context | statistics | medium |
| real context | combinatorics | hard |
the example gmat quant questions are a mix of the two main types. pure context questions focus on math itself (equations, expressions, number properties, etc.). real context questions, on the other hand, generally relate to real life in some way (“if suzie travels at 40 mph, then…”).
as far as math topics, gmat quant problems broadly test various algebraic skills. of course, algebra is a huge umbrella term, so that’s broken down further into categories such as statistics and integer properties. for a better idea of the kinds of algebra problems on the gmat, take a look at the different topics we cover on our lessons page.
and for more about the quant section in general—as well as additional practice problems—check out this article: gmat math – what kind of math is in the quantitative section?
also note that you cannot use a calculator on the quant section. thus, it’s best to practice under that constraint, especially if you’re taking these practice questions as a quiz.
verbal reasoning
these 7 questions make up the verbal portion of the quiz:
| question type | category | difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| critical reasoning | strengthening | easy |
| critical reasoning | conclusion | medium |
| critical reasoning | weakening | hard |
| reading comprehension | detail | medium |
| reading comprehension | main idea | medium |
| reading comprehension | inference | hard |
| reading comprehension | detail | very hard |
much like the gmat verbal section itself, these sample questions are (roughly) evenly split between the two main types: critical reasoning and reading comprehension.
strengthening and weakening are the most common categories of critical reasoning questions. however, there are many different kinds—8 in total. for more details about those, along with additional practice questions, read our introduction to critical reasoning article.
as for reading comprehension, this practice set includes a single long passage (several hundred words) with four corresponding questions. but know that the gmat also includes shorter passages that may only ask you two or three questions.
this quiz contains 3 of the more common categories of reading comprehension questions. however, there are additional kinds that you can learn about here: strategies for the 6 reading comprehension question types. (there’s another sample passage and question set in there, too!)
data insights
here are the details for the 6 data insights questions on the quiz:
| question type | category | difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| data sufficiency | word problems | medium |
| data sufficiency | percents and ratios | hard |
| data sufficiency | probability | very hard |
| integrated reasoning | graphics interpretation | easy |
| integrated reasoning | table analysis | medium |
| integrated reasoning | two-part analysis | hard |
data sufficiency questions make up roughly one-third of the data insights section. this is a question type that is unique to the gmat and also unique in general. you don’t actually have to solve the question; you just need to determine whether it can be solved based on the provided information.
integrated reasoning questions—of which there are four main categories—form the remainder of this section. these ask you to interpret (and possibly combine) data that’s presented in various visual or text formats. for example, you will encounter standard bar graphs and pie charts on the graphics interpretation questions. but there are also more complex data representations such as bubble charts.
the one category not included in this practice set is multi-source reasoning. this is actually a set of questions (usually 3) that go with a series of separate “cards” containing various pieces of information. see this article for such an example.
also be aware that two-part analysis comes in different forms. these can either be more like verbal questions (such as the example in this set) or quant questions.
the gmat focus throws a lot of different kinds of questions at you in the data insights section, so be sure to read all about those in our guide to data insights. note that you can use a calculator on this section but only the on-screen calculator that the test provides.
study advice based on your results
once you’ve finished all the gmat practice questions, you’ll get your overall score out of 20 and will be able to see your results on each individual question. the study recommendations here are for an individual section (quant, verbal, or data insights), so tally up the number of questions you answered correctly in each section first before reading the advice.
by the way, don’t be discouraged if you found the quiz difficult: the gmat is supposed to be hard! keep in mind that this is just a diagnostic to measure where you are in your gmat journey. use this tool as a gauge of your current level and not an absolute measure of your abilities.
no matter how you scored, we strongly recommend that you follow a study schedule. we generally suggest that students study for at least three months, but there are shorter and longer schedules available. in the advice below, there are some additional tips around study schedules, but for even more detail, check out the study schedules themselves.
section score: 0 – 1 right answers
many folks preparing for the gmat test will fall into this group, including most people who are at the very beginning stages of their studying. and that’s perfectly fine! yes, this is the “lowest” of the four groups in terms of diagnostic gmat scores, but this does not mean you are starting with any kind of disadvantage. i will emphasize that it is quite possible to start with these recommendations and get a 705+ score on the gmat test. it all depends on your commitment to excellence.
your results suggest that you need to learn academic material and not just go through practice sets. many students make the disastrous pedagogical mistake of binging on questions and ignoring lessons. watch the lessons! and watch the answer explanations under the questions you miss; these are essentially mini-lessons.
with that in mind, we recommend that you closely follow a study schedule to ensure that you’re both learning the foundational material you need as well as putting it into practice.
section score: 2 – 3 right answers
this, too, is a common scoring range to be in when starting out in your gmat prep, so don’t worry if you find yourself here. landing in this range on the gmat diagnostic quiz simply means that you’ve identified areas for improvement. and the good news is that you have plenty of room to grow your score. take note of the question types and subjects that you missed on the diagnostic, and plan to focus on improving in those areas.
results in this scoring range also suggest that you can pick up a lot of points by prioritizing lessons to gain a strong grasp of fundamental concepts. on magoosh, questions have a related lessons section beneath their explanations. if an approach is not making sense, it’s a good idea to review those lessons to ensure that you understand core strategies and concepts.
therefore, following a study schedule closely is a good strategy here as well. this way, you’re sure to get a good mix of lessons and practice in your studies.
section score: 4 – 5 right answers
you have a pretty solid grasp of both gmat question formats and concepts tested. however, keep in mind that these diagnostic quiz questions are just a small sampling of the gmat. they also do not reflect the gmat’s adaptive nature. you’ll need to sustain this performance on more questions and harder questions, so continued practice in your studies is essential. additionally, landing in this scoring range means that there’s still room to improve, so you you can push your score even higher!
you have a bit more flexibility in how to approach your studies. when following a study schedule, you can be a bit more choosy in the tasks that you complete. for example, you likely already have a good understanding of some lessons’ content. thus, you could view the summary of a lesson first to see if the lesson is something that’s already familiar to you or not. likewise, you could jump straight into a lesson quiz to gauge your knowledge before viewing a lesson. but don’t neglect this resource! if you don’t have full understanding of a topic, these are well worth your time.
lastly, you may want to do more targeted practice of the question types and topics that you struggle with the most. that’s where you’ll pick up the most points towards your overall score. but don’t neglect keeping your skills sharp in areas that you’re already doing well in. and since the gmat itself is a mix of questions types and topics, practicing in the same manner is crucial.
section score: 6 – 7 right answers
if you are in this group, then congratulations! you already have shown tremendous progress toward impressive gmat scores. now, having said that, i will caution you: getting complacent is the best way to fall short of your potential. so many people get to this point and then lose a sense of urgency. this is precisely why so few wind up with scores over 645. even though your prospects are good, the worst thing you could do would be to take anything for granted. in order to score high on all three sections, you still have to hunger for excellence. you still have to apply the habits of excellence assiduously.
challenge yourself to push to deeper and deeper levels of understanding of gmat concepts. one of the best ways to do this is to put yourself into a situation in which you have to explain a problem to someone else. it is one level of understanding to known how to do a problem and be able to do it cold. it is a higher level if you can walk someone who is confused through the problem step by step, answering all their questions so the problem makes complete sense to them. you really have to understand something deeply to teach it, and this is the kind of deep understanding that can get you a top gmat score.
where can i find more free gmat practice questions?
magoosh also offers a free gmat practice test. that’s 64 questions total, or you can also take a single section of the practice exam, which would be between 20 and 23 questions.
gmac—the creators of the gmat—also have several free resources. first of all, they, too, have a mini gmat quiz, which is 9 questions long (3 from each section).
additionally, in their store, they have a free gmat starter kit available with over 70 sample questions. furthermore, this includes 2 free practice tests (which we recommend that you save for later on in your studies to get the best estimated score).
closing thoughts
now that you have a good feel for what’s on the gmat and how you’d perform, keep that momentum up! these free gmat practice questions are a great starting point or checkpoint, but there’s still more you can do to improve and get a top score.
and with even more practice questions, tests, lessons, and explanations, a magoosh gmat premium plan is a great way for you to learn and prepare for the exam. get a year of access, or try us for free first with a 1-week trial!
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