The Law To Know

Free practice

EPSO reasoning test practice

Timed practice for the three reasoning tests of the EU institutions’ selection competitions: verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning. The numbers of questions, the time limits and the pass marks follow the official notice of the AD5 graduate competition. All questions here are original; none is copied from EPSO or from any other provider.

Mode:

Full reasoning session

All three reasoning tests one after the other, with the official numbers of questions and time limits.

40 questions · 65 minutes

Verbal reasoning

20 passages, each with four statements. Pass mark 10/20. The test that counts most.

20 questions · 35 minutes

Numerical reasoning

10 data tables with a calculation each. A calculator is provided. Combined pass mark with abstract: 10/20.

10 questions · 20 minutes

Abstract reasoning

10 series of five figures. Find the sixth. Combined pass mark with numerical: 10/20.

10 questions · 10 minutes

What the official notice says

Checked on 13 October 2026 against the notice and EPSO’s own pages.

  • Verbal reasoning: 20 questions, 35 minutes, scored 0 to 20, pass mark 10/20. It carries 35% of the final ranking.
  • Numerical reasoning: 10 questions, 20 minutes, scored 0 to 10.
  • Abstract reasoning: 10 questions, 10 minutes, scored 0 to 10.
  • Numerical and abstract share one combined pass mark of 10/20 and carry no weight in the ranking.
  • The reasoning tests are taken in your first language (language 1), remotely, with proctoring.
  • For the AD5 graduates competition the reasoning tests are Part 1, planned from November 2026; the EU knowledge test, digital skills test and essay follow later.

Sources: official notice (EUR-Lex), EPSO competition page, EPSO news on timing.

What this practice is, and is not

  • It is independent. It is not made, approved or endorsed by EPSO or any EU institution. EPSO itself says that its sample tests are not training materials and that it does not endorse private preparation courses.
  • Verbal items follow the official sample style: a short passage, then “Which of the following statements is correct?” with four options. Only the passage counts, not what you already know.
  • Numerical items follow the official sample style: a table that may contain columns you do not need, one calculation, five options.
  • The abstract test is our own design of “a series of figures, find the next one”. EPSO’s own abstract sample exists in English only and we could not reproduce it, so treat ours as general training in rule-finding, not as a copy of the real thing.
  • The verbal bank currently has 200 passages, so after a few tests you will meet some again. All data in the numerical tables are invented.
  • Nothing you do here is stored or sent anywhere.

Use EPSO’s official sample tests as well, to see the real interface.

How to use it well

  1. Start in practice mode to learn the question types. Read each explanation, including the ones for the wrong options: the wrong options of the real test are built from the same few mistakes.
  2. Move to exam conditions and use the full session. Looking at your time per question in the results is more useful than the score at first.
  3. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so never leave a question blank. If a question is eating your time, mark it, guess, and come back if time remains.
  4. In the verbal test, find the statement that the passage directly supports. Options that go further than the passage, or only sound plausible, are wrong.