McKinsey Solve is a game that McKinsey says needs no preparation, and it bans AI and notes

McKinsey's Solve is a game, not a question paper, and McKinsey says no preparation is required or expected. Our CCAT-style test is offered only as a general warm-up for problem solving under time pressure, which some candidates find calming before an unfamiliar format.

Solve does not ask multiple-choice reasoning questions like ours, so our test is not a rehearsal of it, and practising ours will not raise a Solve score in any way we can show. McKinsey publishes its rules and setup in an FAQ, and that FAQ is the preparation that matters.

McKinsey still hosts practice papers for an older Problem Solving Test, a 26-question, 60-minute multiple-choice paper. Solve is a different thing: a game made of several tasks. McKinsey says it requires no previous business knowledge and no gaming experience.

That shift matters for preparation. A paper test rewards drilling question types; a game rewards understanding each task's goal and working systematically within it. McKinsey's own advice is that no preparation is required or expected.

Each Solve task begins with a tutorial that explains the objective and how to navigate. The tutorial is the most valuable minute of the task, because it tells you what success looks like. Candidates who skim it to save time often spend longer correcting course later.

A McKinsey consultant's account of taking Solve says guidance on managing time was given during the game and that progress could be tracked. Use that guidance to set yourself checkpoints rather than racing.

Solve runs only on a PC or Mac, starts with a technical check, and does not need sound. A mouse is optional. McKinsey suggests choosing a time when you will not be disturbed, which in practice means a quiet room, a charged laptop and notifications off.

The rules are strict. McKinsey prohibits other applications, websites, AI tools and pre-prepared notes, as well as recording or screenshotting the assessment, and it expects you to work alone. Breaking those rules risks the application; nothing in the game rewards it.

McKinsey says Solve results are considered together with the rest of your application and any other assessment results, so the game is not the only thing a recruiter sees. A newer FAQ says McKinsey will provide your score and, on request, your percentile range.

You may also be asked to complete an additional task in person or to explain the logic you used. That is a reason to work methodically: if you can describe why you made each choice, a follow-up conversation becomes an opportunity rather than a risk.

Prep sites commonly name specific Solve games and sell simulations of them. We did not find those game names, or any current list of tasks, in the McKinsey pages we read, and McKinsey says preparation is not expected. Treat paid simulations as unverified copies of a format that changes.

If you want to do something, do what McKinsey suggests: rest well, run the technical check early and read each tutorial. Our game-based assessments guide compares Solve with other employers' games, and the no-preparation guide lists others that say the same.

These come from anonymous reviews, university careers pages and prep guides. They often disagree, and McKinsey has not confirmed them. Read them as leads, not rules.

• Prep sites commonly name particular Solve games and sell simulations of them, but we did not find those names on McKinsey's own pages.
• A McKinsey consultant's blog post says time-management guidance appeared during the game and recommends simply getting a good night's rest.