The IBPS RRB PO Prelims 2025 Shift 4 exam, held on 22nd November 2025, is now complete, wrapping up the last round of the day’s testing schedule. The overall feedback from candidates who appeared in this shift indicates that the difficulty level was easy to moderate, similar to the earlier shifts.
However, some sections like Puzzles in Reasoning and Data Interpretation in Numerical Ability took a bit more time than expected due to their tricky nature.
Let’s break down the exam in detail, covering section-wise difficulty, types of questions asked, and a range of good attempts to help those who are preparing for upcoming shifts.
Overview
The IBPS RRB PO Prelims exam is a qualifying stage with only two sections: Numerical Ability and Reasoning Ability. With 80 questions to solve in 45 minutes, the paper tests candidates on both speed and accuracy.
Shift 4 Exam Timing: 3:45 PM to 4:30 PM
Overall Difficulty: Easy to Moderate
Let’s first take a look at the overall difficulty and good attempts for each section:
IBPS RRB PO Shift 4: Difficulty & Good Attempts
| Section | Difficulty Level | Good Attempts |
|---|---|---|
| Numerical Ability | Easy to Moderate | 29-34 |
| Reasoning Ability | Easy to Moderate | 25-30 |
| Overall | Easy to Moderate | 57-64 |
The overall good attempts indicate that candidates with around 60+ accurate attempts should consider themselves in a competitive position, especially if accuracy is on point.
Reasoning
The Reasoning section had a blend of standard topics and a few challenging puzzles. While many questions were straightforward, puzzle-based questions consumed time due to their complexity and the need for proper sequencing.
Here’s the breakdown of topics and number of questions:
| Topics | No. of Questions |
|---|---|
| Pair Formation (number-based) | 1 |
| Odd One Out (3-letter word) | 1 |
| Comparison Puzzle (Height) | 3 |
| Seating Arrangement (Uncertain) | 5 |
| Puzzle (Month & Date Based) | 5 |
| Puzzle (Box Stack Based + Variable) | 5 |
| Puzzle (Floor Based – 9 Floors) | 5 |
| Chinese Coding | 5 |
| Direction and Distance | 3 |
| Inequalities | 3 |
| Meaningful Word | 1 |
| Miscellaneous | 3 |
| Total | 40 |
As you can see, puzzles dominated the section, accounting for over 50% of the questions. Mastering puzzles and practicing variable-based arrangements is clearly crucial for success.
Numerical
This section also followed a predictable pattern with questions from Arithmetic, Data Interpretation (DI), Quadratic Equations, and Approximation. Though the difficulty level was moderate, time management became key, especially for caselet and table-based DI sets.
Here’s the detailed topic-wise breakdown:
| Topics | No. of Questions |
|---|---|
| Caselet DI | 5 |
| DI (Table – Male/Female Scholarship-based) | 5 |
| DI (Single Line) | 5 |
| Approximation | 4 |
| Quadratic Equation | 6 |
| Arithmetic (Profit-Loss, Time-Speed, etc.) | 15 |
| Total | 40 |
The Arithmetic questions were mostly moderate in difficulty and included common topics like profit-loss, time and work, and ratio. DI questions needed careful calculations, especially the table-based ones that included comparative analysis.
Strategy
If you’re appearing in upcoming shifts, here’s what you can take away from today’s analysis:
- Focus on Puzzles and DI – they carry weight and can eat up your time
- Brush up quick-solving methods for Quadratic Equations and Approximations
- Time management and accuracy go hand-in-hand – don’t let one ruin the other
- Avoid guesswork because of the negative marking
- Practice directional sense and coding-decoding for a quick score boost
This exam analysis shows that while the paper wasn’t tough, it wasn’t a walk in the park either. It required strategic selection of questions, time management, and quick decision-making. Candidates who struck the right balance will likely have the upper hand.
FAQs
What was the Shift 4 exam difficulty?
The difficulty level was easy to moderate.
How many good attempts in Shift 4?
57 to 64 good attempts are considered safe.
Which section was more time-consuming?
Puzzles in Reasoning took the most time.
Was Data Interpretation asked?
Yes, multiple DI sets were part of the exam.
Is there negative marking in RRB PO?
Yes, 0.25 marks are deducted for wrong answers.
