SSC CGL 2026 Sectional Timing: 15 Minutes per Section, and How to Plan for It

The biggest change in SSC CGL 2026 is not the syllabus. It is the clock. From this cycle, each of the four Tier 1 sections has its own 15-minute timer. The paper is still 100 questions and 200 marks in 60 minutes, but you can no longer spend those 60 minutes the way you like.

What changed in SSC CGL 2026 Tier 1

Each section still has 25 questions worth 50 marks: General Intelligence & Reasoning, General Awareness, Quantitative Aptitude and English Comprehension. Reports on the 2026 notification also say sectional timing applies to Tier 2, with its own time per module.

Why this matters more than it looks

Under the old pattern, the common plan was to finish General Awareness in 7 or 8 minutes and spend the saved time on Quant. That plan no longer works. GA still takes 7 or 8 minutes for most aspirants, but the other 7 minutes now simply run out.

Quant is hit hardest. 25 questions in 15 minutes is 36 seconds per question. Many aspirants used to give Quant 20 to 25 minutes. With 15, you will not finish every question, and you should not try to.

A plan for each 15-minute section

Reasoning (15 minutes)

Most aspirants can finish Reasoning in time. Do the quick types first: analogy, classification, series, coding and odd one out. Leave long puzzles and mirror/paper-folding questions for the last 4 minutes. Aim for 21 to 23 attempts with high accuracy.

General Awareness (15 minutes)

GA is a recall section. You either know the answer or you do not. Go through all 25 once in about 7 minutes and answer what you know. Use the remaining time to think about the questions where you can rule out two options. Do not try to save time here: it will not move to Quant.

Quantitative Aptitude (15 minutes)

This is where marks are won or lost. Do a first pass of about 10 minutes and answer only questions you can solve in under 40 seconds: percentages, ratio, simple interest, averages, simplification and direct DI. In the last 5 minutes, go back to two or three medium questions. Skip long geometry and trigonometry questions unless you know the trick. A realistic target is 17 to 20 attempts.

English Comprehension (15 minutes)

Do vocabulary, idioms, spelling and one-word substitution first (about 5 minutes for 10 to 12 questions). Then do error spotting and sentence improvement. Leave the cloze test and reading passage for the end, as each takes 4 to 5 minutes but gives 5 questions.

How many questions to attempt

With +2 for a right answer and −0.5 for a wrong one, a guess helps you on average if you can rule out even one option. But a guess also takes time, and in a 15-minute section time is the real limit. A good rule: attempt every question you can solve or narrow down to two options, and skip the rest without guilt. Read our negative marking guide for the numbers.

Practise with the same clock

Your section plan is only useful if you have tried it under the same clock. RankVyuh's SSC CGL full mocks now follow the 2026 rule: four sections, 15 minutes each, opening in order, each closing when its time ends. The report then shows how many minutes you spent in each section and which questions took longest.