McKinsey Solve Assessment: How to Prepare (2026 Guide)

McKinsey Solve is a gamified assessment used for most consulting roles to test natural problem-solving ability. McKinsey says no prior business knowledge, gaming experience, or special preparation is required. Your result is considered with the rest of your application rather than used as the only hiring decision.

That is the verified answer. The useful way to prepare is to build the transferable skills Solve calls on, confirm the rules in your own invitation, and avoid anyone claiming to know a fixed current game roster, secret scoring formula, or universal pass mark.

Last verified against McKinsey's published guidance: July 15, 2026.

What McKinsey officially says about Solve

McKinsey describes Solve as a game-based assessment that shows how candidates approach problem solving. Its current Solve page says performance is reviewed alongside the rest of the application and any other assessments.

The firm's August 2025 Solve FAQ adds several details that matter on test day:

• You do not need previous business knowledge or gaming experience.
• Each task starts with an untimed tutorial.
• Your invitation email states the length of your assessment.
• Solve must be taken on a PC or Mac, not a phone or iPad.
• Sound is unnecessary and a mouse is optional.
• Accommodations may be available through your recruiter.
• Technical problems should be reported when they occur through McKinsey's support channel.

Those points supersede old prep articles that quote one fixed duration or describe one set of tasks as if every candidate receives it. Read your invitation first. It is the source for your version.

Verified facts versus outside reporting

Most confusing Solve advice mixes official rules with candidate reports and then presents the whole package as fact. Keep the distinction clear.

I reviewed applications and interviewed candidates at McKinsey, but I did not score Solve submissions. That boundary matters. The recommendations below come from the problem-solving behaviors that transfer into McKinsey's interviews and from the firm's published instructions, not access to a hidden scoring model.

How to prepare for McKinsey Solve

1. Read the question before exploring the data

Start every practice problem by stating the decision you need to make. Then identify the information that could change that decision. Candidates lose time when they inspect every chart or rule with equal attention.

A short drill works well: open an unfamiliar chart, give yourself 20 seconds, and write one sentence answering, "What changed, by how much, and why might it matter?" The case interview math guide has the arithmetic and data-reading fundamentals to use for this.

2. Turn rules into a checklist

When a problem contains several constraints, write them as pass-or-fail checks. Test each option against the same list. This prevents a common error: choosing an attractive answer that violates one quiet condition buried in the instructions.

For example, if an option must meet a capacity limit, a minimum return, and a timing requirement, check all three in the same order every time. Consistency reduces rereading and careless omissions.

3. Practice clean, approximate math

Build comfort with percentages, ratios, weighted averages, and reading units. Write calculations in a way you can audit quickly. If a result is off by an order of magnitude, catch it before moving on.

Do not assume a calculator or another application will be permitted. McKinsey's assessment integrity rules prohibit outside applications, websites, AI tools, calculators, and prepared notes during assessments unless an approved accommodation says otherwise.

4. Work at a steady pace

Your invitation defines the available time. Divide that time across the tasks you are given, keep a small buffer, and check your pace at natural break points. Do not invent a per-question timing rule before you see the structure of your assessment.

Timed chart reading and short logic sets are better practice than repeatedly watching walkthrough videos. Active work exposes hesitation; passive review hides it.

5. Rehearse the setup once

Use the computer, browser, internet connection, desk, and room you expect to use on test day. Complete the required tech check. Close other programs, silence notifications, disconnect VPNs or proxies if instructed, and make sure you will not be interrupted.

If the tech check fails or a problem occurs during Solve, contact the support address or live chat in your invitation immediately. McKinsey's FAQ says the support team can diagnose the issue and may add time or reset a link depending on the problem.

A seven-day preparation plan

This plan is deliberately short because McKinsey does not expect subject-matter study for Solve.

Continue case and PEI preparation in parallel. Solve is one part of the application, and McKinsey explicitly says it is reviewed with the rest of your file. The McKinsey interview guide maps the full process, while the McKinsey PEI guide covers the behavioral stories you will need if you advance.

What you may not use during Solve

McKinsey's current rules are unusually explicit. Unless the firm has approved a disability accommodation in writing, candidates may not use applications, websites, AI tools, prewritten notes, calculators, or help from another person. Recording or taking screenshots is also prohibited.

Prepare with any lawful tools you find helpful before the assessment. Once the assessment begins, follow the rules in your invitation and the current integrity page. A shortcut that risks disqualification is a bad trade.

Test-day checklist

• Re-read the invitation for the duration and any version-specific instructions.
• Use a PC or Mac that passed the tech check.
• Choose a stable connection and a quiet, interruption-free room.
• Close unrelated programs, browser tabs, overlays, VPNs, and notifications.
• Keep the support contact from your invitation accessible without opening prohibited tools during the assessment.
• Read each untimed tutorial fully.
• Escalate a technical issue as it happens rather than trying to explain it afterward.

The practical conclusion

Treat Solve as a structured reasoning assessment with a game interface. Read for the decision, convert constraints into a checklist, keep calculations auditable, and manage the time stated in your invitation. Precise scoring claims and recycled game walkthroughs are less useful than those habits, and McKinsey's own guidance does not support them.

For the broader recruiting sequence, use the 14-day case interview plan to keep Solve preparation from crowding out the case and PEI work that follows.