Civil Service Online Tests 2026: Verbal, Numerical & Judgement

The Civil Service Online Tests are the short, timed assessments that many UK government departments and agencies use to sift applicants before interview. They are advertised through the Civil Service Jobs website and typically sit between your application form and the interview stage. They are used for a wide range of roles, from Administrative Assistant (AA) and Administrative Officer (AO) through Executive Officer (EO) and Higher Executive Officer (HEO), at departments such as DWP, HMRC and the Ministry of Justice.

The tests are separate from the Civil Service Fast Stream assessments, which use a longer battery for graduate entry. If you are applying for a standard departmental vacancy, the online tests described here are the ones you are most likely to meet.

Which tests you take depends on the department, the grade and the vacancy. Common elements are a verbal test, a numerical test and a judgement test, often combined with a questionnaire or a short behavioural exercise. The invitation email will say exactly what you have been set, so read it carefully and do not assume it matches what a friend took for a different role.

Passing the tests is only one stage. Most vacancies then assess you against the Civil Service Success Profiles at interview, so it helps to prepare for both at the same time.

Some campaigns also use in-tray or e-tray exercises for administrative and management roles, and the numeracy and literacy tests seen in health recruitment follow a similar logic. For the broader picture of how employers use these tools, see our guide to online assessment tests.

The verbal test checks how well you can read, understand and weigh written information, a core skill for a civil servant who spends the day handling briefings, policy documents and correspondence. You read a passage and answer multiple-choice questions about it. The golden rule is to answer only from the text in front of you, never from what you already know about the subject.

How to approach it

• Read the question before the passage so you know what to look for.
• Find the exact sentence that supports your answer. If you cannot point to it, the answer is probably wrong.
• Watch qualifiers such as “all”, “some”, “usually” and “never”. They are used to separate correct from near-correct options.
• Do not spend more than your fair share of time on any one passage; mark and move on if the format allows.

The same careful-reading discipline is used on SHL-style tests, so our guides to verbal reasoning and the true, false, cannot say format are directly useful practice.

The numerical test presents tables and charts and asks you to extract figures and do calculations: percentages, percentage change, ratios, averages and simple conversions. It is about accuracy with realistic data, not advanced mathematics. A calculator is normally allowed, but you should confirm in your invitation.

If your maths feels rusty, work through our numerical reasoning guide and the formulas cheat sheet, then move to timed questions on our practice tests. For harder data interpretation, see the numerical critical reasoning guide.

The judgement test is a situational judgement test (SJT). You read a workplace scenario, for example a colleague missing a deadline, a customer complaint or a conflict between priorities, and judge a set of possible responses. Depending on the version, you rate how effective each response is or choose the most and least effective.

There is no trick to it, but there is a pattern. The best responses usually reflect the Civil Service Values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality, and the behaviours of someone who works well with others, communicates clearly and follows proper process. Responses that ignore a problem, go behind a colleague's back, bend the rules or act purely for personal gain are rarely scored well.

Our full guide to situational judgement tests and the SJT blog guide include worked examples, and the situational interview questions guide helps you prepare for the same ideas at interview.

The Civil Service uses a framework called Success Profiles to assess candidates. It has five elements: Behaviours, Strengths, Experience, Technical skills and Ability. The online tests mostly cover Ability, while your application and interview cover the rest. A vacancy may assess any combination of these elements, and the advert tells you which.

Once you pass the tests, prepare for behaviour questions with the STAR technique and for strengths questions with our strengths-based interview guide. Many applications also require a written supporting statement, and the full process is covered in our Success Profiles guide.

The online tests are usually released with only a short window to complete them, often a matter of days, so start preparing as soon as you submit your application rather than waiting for the invitation.

• Days 1 to 3, baseline: Take one timed verbal and one timed numerical practice set. Record your score and what slowed you down.
• Days 4 to 8, fix the weakest area: If numerical, drill percentages and table reading. If verbal, practise finding the evidence sentence for every answer.
• Days 9 to 11, judgement and behaviours: Review the Civil Service Values and behaviours and do scenario practice. Draft two or three STAR examples.
• Days 12 to 14, simulate test conditions: Do timed sets in a quiet room, using the same device and calculator you will use on the day.

Build speed gradually. Accuracy first, then pace. A candidate who answers 80% of questions correctly at a steady rate generally does better than one who rushes through all of them and makes careless mistakes.

• Technology check: Use a laptop or desktop where possible, close other tabs and check your internet connection before you begin.
• Environment: Choose a quiet space and tell people you live with that you cannot be disturbed.
• Materials: Have a calculator, rough paper and a pen ready, unless the instructions say otherwise.
• Read the instructions: Practice questions at the start are not scored but show you how the interface works.

If you have a disability or health condition that affects how you take tests, tell the recruiting team before the deadline. The Civil Service is required to consider reasonable adjustments, such as extra time or a different format. Our guide to reasonable adjustments in assessments explains how to ask and what to expect.

Results are usually communicated by the department within a few weeks, though timing varies. If you pass, you move to the next stage, commonly a Success Profiles interview and sometimes a presentation or exercise. Use the wait productively by reading our guides to competency-based interviews and how to prepare for a job interview.