SHL is the world's largest psychometric test provider, used by over 10,000 companies in 150+ countries. If you've applied to a large corporation — particularly in the UK, Europe, or India — there's a strong chance you'll face an SHL test.
This guide covers everything you need to know to pass in 2026, including the latest SHL Verify Interactive format.
Data tables, charts, percentages, and ratios. 18-25 questions in 17-25 minutes. The time pressure is the real challenge — you get roughly 40 seconds per question. Read our dedicated numerical reasoning tips guide for detailed strategies.
True/False/Cannot Say format based on reading passages. 30 questions in 17 minutes. The key is distinguishing between what the passage says and what you think you know. Read our verbal reasoning guide for the complete framework.
Visual pattern recognition — sequences, matrices, and shape transformations. 24 questions in 24 minutes. This is the hardest section for most candidates because you can't prepare with formulas. Read our inductive reasoning guide for pattern identification strategies.
Logical rules, scheduling constraints, and syllogisms. 18 questions in 20 minutes. Less common than the three above, but used by some employers for analytical roles.
Workplace scenarios where you rank responses from best to worst. No time pressure. Used heavily by Deloitte, PwC, KPMG, and the UK Civil Service. Read our SJT guide.
SHL has been rolling out its Verify Interactive format, which replaces static multiple-choice with drag-and-drop, hotspot clicking, and interactive chart reading. The underlying skills tested are the same, but the interface requires more screen interaction. Key differences:
Questions may require you to click on a specific part of a chart rather than selecting A/B/C/D. Some questions present data in a scrollable format, so you need to scroll to see all the information. Time limits remain similar, but the interaction adds a few seconds per question.
SHL uses normative scoring — your raw score is compared to a reference group (usually graduates or professionals in your region). You receive a percentile: scoring in the 70th percentile means you performed better than 70% of the comparison group.
Most employers set a minimum percentile threshold. Common cutoffs: Big Four accounting firms typically require 50th-60th percentile. Investment banks often require 70th+. Top-tier consulting firms may require 80th+. Your recruiter usually won't tell you the cutoff in advance.
Many employers now use SHL's two-stage process: an unsupervised online test followed by a shorter supervised verification test. The verification test is taken under controlled conditions (often at an assessment centre) to confirm your unsupervised score. If your verification score is dramatically lower than your online score, it raises a red flag.
2 weeks before: Take a full practice test to identify your weakest section. Focus your preparation time there.
1 week before: Do 2-3 timed practice sessions focusing on speed, not just accuracy. Get comfortable with the time pressure.
Day before: Do one light practice session. Get a good night's sleep. Prepare your test environment — quiet room, stable internet, calculator if allowed.
Test day: Read each question carefully. Use the answer options to guide your calculations. Skip difficult questions and return to them. Don't leave anything blank — there's no negative marking in SHL tests.
The following major employers use SHL assessments as part of their recruitment process:
Big Four: Deloitte, PwC, EY, KPMG
Banking: Barclays, HSBC, Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank
India IT: Cognizant, Wipro, Infosys, TCS, HCL
SHL doesn't tell you "you got 14 out of 18 right." It tells you "you scored in the 62nd percentile of the Graduate norm group." Understanding what that means — and which norm group you're scored against — is critical to interpreting practice results and predicting whether you'll pass.
What a norm group is. A norm group is a reference population whose performance defines what an "average" score looks like. SHL maintains several:
Why this matters for your pass mark. The same raw score (say, 14 out of 18 correct on a numerical test) maps to different percentiles depending on the norm group:
Big Four firms (PwC, Deloitte, EY, KPMG) typically use the Graduate norm group for entry-level hiring and require you to be in the top 50th percentile, sometimes top 30th for competitive service lines. Goldman Sachs and McKinsey-tier firms set the bar at top 25th percentile. Operational roles often require only the top 60th percentile of the Operational norm group — significantly easier in raw-score terms.
Practical implication for practice. When you do a practice test from SHL Direct, JobTestPrep, or AssessmentDay, the percentile they report often uses an Operational norm group by default — which inflates your scores. If you're applying for a graduate scheme, mentally subtract 10-15 percentile points from any unverified practice result. The shift from Operational to Graduate norms is the most common reason candidates feel "ready" after practice and then fail the real test.
Most generic prep advice tells you to "practice regularly" — useless. Below is a structured 4-week plan calibrated to roughly 8-10 hours per week, the volume that consistently moves candidates from below-graduate-median to above it in real applications.
Candidates who follow a structured 4-week plan typically gain 15-25 percentile points against their week-1 baseline. That's enough to lift most below-median candidates above the Graduate-norm-group cutoff for Big Four and adjacent firms.