SHL Numerical Reasoning Test (2026): build the chart, not just pick a number
The SHL numerical reasoning test today is usually Verify Interactive Numerical: up to 10 tasks in 18 minutes where you turn a few business facts into an exact chart or table with on-screen controls, adaptive and with partial credit.1 Entry-level roles get Numerical Calculation instead, 12 quick tasks in 10 minutes.2 Try 10 timed questions and one real bar-chart task free.
- How SHL assessments work: guide and lesson video8 min read
- Interactive numerical: five formats, video, live task7 min read
- Three interactive drills, easy to real-test hard10 tasks each
- Interactive Numerical simulation 1, adaptive18 min
- Numerical calculation, if your role is entry level3 drills
- Test day: calculator, proctoring, devices5 min read
- Interactive Numerical simulation 218 min
- 10 questions: tables, charts, calculation
- 13:00: 90 s a chart, 50 s a calculation
- Read the data, no calculator needed
- Score by type, every answer worked
Free · no account, no email · SHL-style items written for our course, not SHL questions
What does an interactive numerical task look like?
A short tour of the five chart and table formats and how the controls work, filmed in the course.
Trailer · numerical lessons of SHL Assessment Prep 2026
What is the SHL numerical reasoning test?
It is SHL’s test of working with numbers at work: percentages, ratios, totals and changes, taken from tables, charts and short facts about a fictional business. In 2026 it mostly comes as Verify Interactive Numerical, where you build the answer and every value scores on its own.1 For hourly and contact-center roles SHL offers Interactive Numerical Calculation, short everyday math, mostly without a calculator.2 The classic multiple-choice Verify Numerical was retired in 2024; multiple-choice numerical questions remain part of the 30-question Verify G+.3,4
| Version | What you do | Items and time |
|---|---|---|
| Verify Interactive Numerical | Complete stacked bars, pie segments, line points, ranking badges or a rules table from a few facts | Up to 10 tasks, 18 minutes, adaptive1 |
| Interactive Numerical Calculation | Put values in order, spot the wrong calculation, work out a receipt or refund | Up to 12 tasks, 10 minutes, mostly without a calculator2 |
| Multiple choice (inside Verify G+) | Read a table or chart and pick one of five answers | 10 of the 30 G+ questions, 36 minutes in total3 |
| Older Verify Numerical | Multiple choice | Retired in 2024; older projects may still use it4 |
How many questions are on the SHL numerical test?
Up to 10 tasks in 18 minutes for Interactive Numerical, about 1 minute 48 seconds each, and up to 12 tasks in 10 minutes for Numerical Calculation, 50 seconds each.1,2 “Up to” matters: the test is adaptive, and an employer can configure the battery, so the start screen of your test is the final word.
SHL numerical test facts at a glance (2026)
Checked October 23, 2026 against SHL’s fact sheets and support notes- Interactive Numerical
- Up to 10 tasks, 18 minutes, adaptive, answers built with controls, no answer options.1
- Task formats
- Five in prep sources and test-taker videos: stacked bars, pie charts, line charts, ranking with badges, rules tables.5
- Scoring
- Partial credit: each value you set scores on its own; SHL does not publish the weighting.1,6
- Numerical Calculation
- Up to 12 tasks, 10 minutes, mostly without a calculator, for entry-level roles.2
- Calculator
- No single SHL rule. Prep videos show an on-screen calculator in interactive numerical tasks; Calculation is designed to be done without.2,5
- Older format
- The classic multiple-choice Verify Numerical was retired in 2024.4
- Result
- Compared with a norm group the employer picks; percentile bands A to E; no published pass mark.7
- Proctoring
- Can include webcam snapshots every 120 seconds and a lock on window switching.4
Which SHL numerical test is in your invitation?
The invitation names the test. Numbers also appear inside the general ability test, which mixes them with logic and figures.
| Test name | Who gets it | What to train |
|---|---|---|
| Verify Interactive Numerical (this page) | Graduate and professional roles, since July 2025 also normed for entry level1 | Lesson IN: five formats, three drills, two 18-minute simulations |
| Interactive Numerical Calculation (this page) | Hourly and contact-center roles2 | Lesson NC: mental math, ordering, receipts; a 10-minute simulation |
| Verify G+ general ability test | Many graduate programs6 | Numerical plus deductive and inductive tasks in 36 minutes |
| SHL inductive and deductive reasoning tests | Often sent together with the numerical test9 | Rules, calendars, figures; no numbers |
Got a different SHL test? See all formats on the SHL practice tests page.
Which interactive numerical tasks catch people out?
The ones where the facts depend on each other. A pie with a ratio and a remainder, a ranking built from “60% more than” statements, a line that changes at a stock threshold: one early slip moves every later value. The course gives each of the five formats a method, then drills it at three levels with a worked solution after every task.
Can you build a stacked bar chart from four facts?
A real Interactive Numerical task from the course engine: set the total and the share of the bottom part with + and − or by dragging. No clock here; in the test you would have about 1 minute 48 seconds.
The interactive sample task needs JavaScript.
Sample task from SHL Assessment Prep 2026 (our item, SHL-style). Check scores each value on its own, as partial credit, and shows the calculation and the trap.
How does the course train SHL numerical reasoning?
Controls first, method second, speed last. The lesson video shows each control before you meet it on the clock.
4:51Lesson IN · five task formats, each value scored on its own
- 1Lesson IN
Seven minutes and a 4:51 video
For each of the five formats: what the controls do, a short method and the traps (direction of the ranking, strictly vs. at least, percent of a part vs. of the whole). A live task in the lesson lets you try the controls.
- 2Drills
Three levels, 10 tasks each
Each task has its own 150-second clock. Submit, or let the clock run out, and the worked solution appears: the correct chart, the calculation steps and the trap.
- 3Simulations
Two Interactive Numerical runs
10 tasks on one 18-minute clock, forward only, difficulty following your answers. The report shows a percent with partial credit, an estimated band A to E (not an SHL score) and every task to review.
- 4Calculation and MC
If your test is different
Lesson NC with three 12-task drills and a 10-minute simulation for entry-level roles; lesson MN with three drills of table and chart questions for the multiple-choice format.
Numerical plus something else?
Employers often send numerical with deductive and inductive tests, or a personality questionnaire. The course start page has six paths; the numerical lessons are shared by the Interactive, G+ and entry-level paths.
How should you prepare for an SHL numerical test?
Most invitations give a week or less. The order stays the same; only the depth changes.
Controls, then one simulation.
Learn the controls of all five formats on day one, so the clock only measures your math.
- Day 1Lesson IN and its live task, level 1 drill~40 min
- Days 2–3Level 2 and 3 drills, read every solution~35 min/day
- Day 4Interactive Numerical simulation 1~25 min
- Day 5Formats the report flags, then simulation 2~40 min
Method and mental math.
With time, build fast percentages and ratios too: the multiple-choice drills and the calculation lesson train exactly that.
- Week 1Lesson IN, drills at levels 1–2~30 min/day
- Week 2Level 3 drills, lesson MN with its drills~30 min/day
- Week 3Simulation 1, review, simulation 23 sessions
- Any timeLesson NC for quick mental math20 min
Speed without a calculator.
Calculation tasks take about 50 seconds each, so the tricks in lesson NC (10% steps, fractions, receipts) matter more than charts.
- Day 1Lesson NC and its level 1 drill~30 min
- Day 2Level 2 and 3 drills~30 min
- Day 3Numerical Calculation simulation, 12 tasks10 min
- ThenThe rest of the entry-level path
What does the numerical route cover?
The numerical lessons, drills and simulations of SHL Assessment Prep 2026, as the course lists them.
Are free numerical reasoning questions enough?
Free question sets are almost always multiple choice. That trains the math, not the controls of the interactive test, where an approximate value earns nothing for that part because the controls snap to a grid.1
| Free practice | SHL Assessment Prep 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Pick A to E | Build stacked bars, pies, lines, rankings and rules tables |
| Exact values | Not needed, the options are close enough | Required: controls snap to steps of 1% or 10 units |
| Scoring | Right or wrong | Each value scored on its own |
| Explanations | Often just the key | The correct chart, the steps and the trap |
| Simulations | Rare, untimed | Two adaptive 18-minute runs and a 10-minute calculation run |
| Cost | $0 | $68 once, 90 days of access |
SHL numerical test FAQ: time, calculator, scoring
Is this SHL numerical practice free?
Yes, no account and no email: 10 questions in 13 minutes, seven table and chart questions at 90 seconds and three calculation questions at 50 seconds, plus one interactive bar-chart task to build. Every answer comes with the working.
How long is the SHL numerical reasoning test?
Verify Interactive Numerical gives up to 10 tasks in 18 minutes.1 Numerical Calculation gives up to 12 tasks in 10 minutes.2 Check the start screen of your test: employers configure the battery.
What kind of math is on the SHL numerical test?
Percent change, shares of a total, values from a percent, the original before a change, ratios and averages, applied to tables, charts and short facts about a business, plus rules such as targets and tiers. The course’s numerical lessons teach one formula and one trap for each.
Can you use a calculator on the SHL numerical test?
SHL publishes no single rule. Prep videos show an on-screen calculator in interactive numerical tasks; Numerical Calculation is designed to be taken mostly without one.2,5 If the session is proctored, show any calculator of your own to the camera first.
What is the SHL calculation test?
Verify Interactive Numerical Calculation, an entry-level test: up to 12 tasks in 10 minutes such as putting values in order, spotting a wrong calculation or working out a receipt, mostly without a calculator.2
How is the SHL numerical test scored?
In the interactive version each value you set scores on its own, so a partly right chart still earns points.1 Your result is compared with a norm group the employer chooses and often shown as a band A to E; SHL publishes no pass mark.7
Is the SHL numerical test adaptive?
Yes, the interactive version is: the next task depends on how you did, so a test that feels hard often means you are doing well.1
Is the old SHL numerical test still used?
The classic multiple-choice Verify Numerical was retired in 2024.4 Multiple-choice numerical questions still appear in the 30-question Verify G+, and some employers may run older projects.3
Do the practice questions come with solutions?
Yes. The free questions here explain every answer, and every drill task in the course ends with a worked solution: the correct chart or value, the calculation steps and the trap that catches most people.
How do I get faster at SHL numerical tasks?
Learn the controls until they are automatic, write each value down before you set it, and practice the five formats at increasing difficulty. Then run full 18-minute simulations; a pace of about 1 minute 48 seconds per task is the target.
What is included for the numerical tests?
One payment of $68 opens SHL Assessment Prep 2026: lessons IN, NC and MN with videos, nine numerical drills with worked solutions, two Interactive Numerical simulations and a Calculation simulation, plus the other five paths. Access starts right after checkout and lasts 90 days; 7-day money-back guarantee.
Are these SHL numerical questions real?
No. They are SHL-style practice items written for our course. Prepterminal is independent and not affiliated with SHL, and practice percents and bands are estimates, not SHL scores.
Everything for the SHL numerical test
- All five interactive formats with controls, methods and traps
- Three interactive drills from easy to real-test hard, a worked solution after each task
- Two adaptive Interactive Numerical simulations, 10 tasks in 18 minutes
- Numerical Calculation: lesson, three drills, a 10-minute simulation
- Multiple-choice table and chart questions for the older format and the G+
- The rest of the course: G+, deductive, inductive, verbal, entry level, personality
Five formats. Exact values.
Learn the controls once, then let the 18-minute clock measure only your math.
Get SHL Assessment Prep 2026: $68P.S. Not ready to buy? Take the free numerical practice first, then decide.