The Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test is short, fast and mixed. Here is what Criteria says about the format, and how to plan your time.
According to Criteria's own help page, the CCAT has 50 multiple-choice questions and a 15-minute limit, and it says most people will not finish. That works out at about 18 seconds per question on average, so the key skills are triage, a steady pace and not getting stuck on any one item.
Criteria's help article, as read on 12 October 2026, describes the CCAT as 50 multiple-choice questions to be completed in 15 minutes. It describes the content as three areas: spatial reasoning, verbal ability such as sentence completion, vocabulary and word comparison, and maths and logic, covering arithmetic, number logic and problem solving. The article adds that most people will not complete the test, and that this is by design, because the test measures how quickly someone processes information.
Results are given as a raw score and a percentile. The raw score is the count of correct answers out of 50, and the percentile compares you with a norm group. Employers differ in how they use the result and Criteria does not publish a single pass mark on that page, so do not trust any universal cut-off you see quoted elsewhere.
Formats and timings can change, so confirm everything in your own invitation. We also have a short provider page: Criteria CCAT overview.
Fifteen minutes is 900 seconds. Divided by 50 questions that is 18 seconds each. A few questions will take five seconds, such as a simple word comparison, and some will take a minute. The point of the arithmetic is to make the cost of a slow question concrete.
If you spend 40 seconds on each of five difficult questions, that is 200 seconds. At the 18-second average, 200 seconds would have covered about 11 easier questions. Those 11 questions are worth more marks than the five hard ones, which is why triage matters on a timed test like this.
Criteria's page describes the raw score as the number of questions answered correctly, and it does not mention a deduction for wrong answers. Based on that wording, a blank answer cannot score and a wrong answer is not described as costing marks, so answering every question looks like the sensible approach. This is our reading of the public wording, so check the instructions shown at the start of your test in case they say something different.
Make guesses educated. Eliminating even one option out of five lifts your chance from one in five to one in four. Use quick rules: cross out answers that are plainly the wrong size, wrong unit or wrong type.
Because the question types come mixed together, you cannot settle into a single mode. A word question may be followed by a number series and then a spatial item. Practise switching. Do mixed sets, not blocks of one type, for at least part of your preparation.
Here are two original examples in the style of the number and word areas, written to show the pace expected, not copied from any test.
I checked the doubling series in Python before using it. Spatial items are harder to describe in words, so practise those from a visual source such as our spatial and diagrammatic practice test.
If you are short of time, our guide to preparing in 24 hours sets out a sensible order.
ReasonEra is an AI tutor for practice. If you are working through CCAT-style practice questions from a free sample, upload a screenshot and use Tutor Explanation to see the reasoning, or Quick Verify to check an answer. It covers verbal, numerical, logical and spatial questions across 50+ supported tests, so it suits mixed practice. A free account gives 3 free trials and the 14-Day Pass costs 49 € for unlimited use.
For timed practice in different areas, use the free verbal and numerical tests.
Publishers update their tests and employers swap providers, so rely on your own invitation where it differs.
This tool is meant for the weeks before an assessment, but the rules of a graded test come from the employer, not from us, so use it beforehand and sit the real test on your own.
Criteria's help page describes 50 multiple-choice questions in 15 minutes. Check your own invitation in case the format has changed.
Yes, Criteria says most people will not complete the test and that this is by design. The test is meant to measure how quickly you process information.
Criteria describes the raw score as the number of correct answers and does not mention a penalty, so answering every question looks sensible. Confirm this in the instructions shown at the start of your test.
Criteria describes verbal ability, maths and logic, and spatial reasoning. The types appear mixed, so practise switching between them.
There is no single universal pass mark, since employers use the raw score and percentile in different ways. Criteria's help page explains the percentile as a comparison with a norm group.
Marketing claims only go so far. Run a few of your own questions through ReasonEra using the free trials.
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Notes. Public pages are the only basis for the facts stated here, and each source is named on the page. ReasonEra has no affiliation with the organisations named on this page.