Most pages that promise an "IBPS PO syllabus" give a long topic list and call it official. It is not. This page separates two things: what IBPS has notified for CRP PO/MT-XVI (the newest cycle as of 13 November 2026), and our working topic list, which is our own reading of what each test name covers. Use the first as fact and the second as a study checklist.
What IBPS has actually notified
The detailed notification dated 1 July 2026 specifies the tests, not the topics. This is everything it says about content:
| Stage | Test, as named by IBPS | Questions | Marks | Medium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prelims | English Language | 30 | 30 | English |
| Prelims | Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 30 | English and Hindi |
| Prelims | Reasoning Ability | 35 | 40 | English and Hindi |
| Mains | Reasoning | 40 | 60 | English and Hindi |
| Mains | General / Economy / Banking Awareness / Digital / Financial Awareness including RBI circulars | 50 | 60 | English and Hindi |
| Mains | English Language | 40 | 20 | English |
| Mains | Data Analysis and Interpretation | 40 | 60 | English and Hindi |
| Mains | Descriptive Paper (Essay and Comprehension) | 2 | 25 | English |
Three more statements in the notification matter for the syllabus:
- The descriptive paper "may be broadly based on Economic and Social issues, emerging trends in Banking and Technology, Current events, Ethics etc."
- "Other detailed information regarding the examination will be given in an Information Handout", which candidates download with the call letter. That handout is where IBPS shows sample question types. We could not open it, so nothing on this page is taken from it.
- Any change in the structure will be announced on ibps.in.
Timing, the penalty for wrong answers and the cut-off rules are on the exam pattern page.
What the test names tell you
Read closely, the notified names already narrow the syllabus.
- Prelims has no awareness test. General, banking and financial awareness appear only in Mains.
- The Mains awareness test names its parts: general awareness, economy, banking awareness, digital awareness, financial awareness, and RBI circulars. The last item is specific: the regulator's own circulars are named as a source.
- Quantitative Aptitude becomes Data Analysis and Interpretation in Mains. The name signals data-led sets and analysis more than stand-alone arithmetic.
- The Mains reasoning test is named only "Reasoning". The CRP-XVI notification does not name a computer aptitude component. We do not list one as notified.
- English appears three times: a Prelims test, a Mains objective test and the descriptive paper.
Working topic list: English Language (Prelims and Mains)
This and the following lists are ours, not IBPS's. They cover what the test name ordinarily includes at graduate level.
| Area | Topics to cover |
|---|---|
| Reading | Reading comprehension on business, economy, banking and social themes; inference, tone, vocabulary in context |
| Grammar in use | Error spotting, sentence improvement, sentence correction, phrase replacement |
| Vocabulary | Fillers, word usage, word swap, idioms and phrases, synonyms and antonyms in context |
| Sentence and paragraph skills | Para jumbles, sentence rearrangement, cloze test, sentence completion, connectors, odd sentence out |
In Mains the same skills are tested with longer passages. Note the weight: 40 questions for 20 marks, which is half a mark per question on average (arithmetic from the notified table).
Working topic list: Quantitative Aptitude (Prelims)
| Area | Topics to cover |
|---|---|
| Calculation | Simplification and approximation, number series (missing and wrong term), quadratic equations and comparison of quantities |
| Arithmetic | Percentage, ratio and proportion, average, ages, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, time and work, pipes and cisterns, time, speed and distance, boats and streams, trains, mixtures and alligation, partnership |
| Measurement and chance | Mensuration (2D and 3D), permutation and combination, probability |
| Data interpretation | Tables, bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, caselets |
Working topic list: Reasoning Ability (Prelims) and Reasoning (Mains)
| Area | Topics to cover |
|---|---|
| Puzzles and arrangements | Linear and circular seating, floor and flat puzzles, box, day, month and year based puzzles, scheduling, comparison-based puzzles |
| Verbal and symbolic logic | Syllogism, inequalities (direct and coded), coding-decoding, blood relations, direction and distance, order and ranking, alphanumeric series |
| Data and decisions | Data sufficiency, input-output, logical sequencing |
| Analytical reasoning (mainly Mains) | Statement and assumption, statement and conclusion, cause and effect, course of action, strengthening and weakening arguments, inference |
The Mains test gives 45 minutes for 40 questions worth 60 marks, so expect longer, multi-condition sets there.
Working topic list: Data Analysis and Interpretation (Mains)
| Area | Topics to cover |
|---|---|
| Data interpretation sets | Tables, bar, line, pie, radar and mixed graphs, caselets, missing-data sets |
| Arithmetic-based sets | Sets built on percentage, ratio, profit and loss, interest, time and work, speed, mixtures and mensuration |
| Analysis | Data sufficiency, quantity comparison, series, quadratic equations, probability and permutation-combination applied to data |
Working topic list: General, Economy, Banking, Digital and Financial Awareness (Mains)
This is the one test where the notified title itself is a syllabus outline. We group it under the six parts IBPS names.
| Part named by IBPS | What to prepare (our list) |
|---|---|
| General awareness | National and international current events, government schemes, appointments, awards, sports, reports and indices, important days |
| Economy | Budget and Economic Survey basics, inflation, GDP and national income terms, fiscal and monetary policy, external sector terms |
| Banking awareness | Structure of Indian banking, types of banks and accounts, priority sector lending, NPAs and recovery, Basel norms in outline, negotiable instruments, banking terms and abbreviations |
| Digital awareness | Payment systems such as UPI, NEFT, RTGS and IMPS, cards and wallets, digital banking channels, cyber safety basics |
| Financial awareness | Financial markets and regulators (RBI, SEBI, IRDAI, PFRDA, NABARD), insurance and pension basics, financial inclusion schemes |
| RBI circulars | Recent Reserve Bank of India policy statements, policy rates, and major circulars and master directions in the news |
The time window for current events is not stated in the notification. Any claim that IBPS asks "the last six months" is a habit of the preparation market, not a rule we can source.
Descriptive Paper (Mains)
| Item | As notified |
|---|---|
| Questions | 2: an essay and a comprehension |
| Marks | 25 |
| Time | 30 minutes |
| Medium | English |
| Themes | May be broadly based on economic and social issues, emerging trends in banking and technology, current events, ethics |
| Evaluation | May be evaluated by an automated scoring mechanism that identifies features related to writing proficiency |
Two practical points follow. The essay themes overlap with the awareness test, so the same reading serves both. The notification names a comprehension, not a letter; older guides that describe "letter and essay" do not match this notification.
Personality test and interview
Neither has a syllabus. The personality test is a self-report test and is non-qualifying, though appearing is mandatory. The interview carries 100 marks and is conducted by the participating banks. The notification lists the documents you must carry, not topics.
How to use this syllabus
Our advice, not IBPS's.
- Start from the notified table, not from a topic list. Three Prelims tests decide whether you reach Mains, and only Mains marks count for merit.
- Cover the overlap first. Arithmetic, data interpretation, puzzles and reading comprehension serve both Prelims and Mains.
- Begin awareness early. It has no Prelims test, so it is easy to postpone, but it is 60 of the 200 objective Mains marks and feeds the essay.
- Test each topic as you finish it. Pareeksha's topic-wise practice is organised by topic. A free 10-question mini-mock is available to try the format. Full mocks and topic practice are Pro.
- Re-check the notification every cycle. The Mains table changed between CRP-XV and CRP-XVI. Read this page's "as on" date and the official notification before a new cycle.
What this page does not have
- An official topic-wise syllabus. IBPS has not published one in the notification; every topic list above is ours.
- The Information Handout for CRP PO/MT-XVI, which carries IBPS's own sample questions. It is issued with the call letter and we could not open it.
- The period of current affairs IBPS draws on, and the number of questions from each topic. Neither is notified, and we do not publish topic-wise "weightage" guesses.
- The number of options per question.
- Any statement on whether computer aptitude is tested inside Mains Reasoning. The notification names only "Reasoning".
Related: Exam pattern and marking · Cut-offs · Preparation strategy