PRACTICE GUIDE MAKO
Mako Aptitude Test: what the test is, and how to train for it
The Mako aptitude test screen is 37 questions in 15 minutes - about 24 seconds each - answered by typing the number, with no calculator. There is no negative marking, so leaving an item blank gains you nothing over guessing.
Where it sits: Aptitude test, first online round. The practice sitting on this page runs the same item count, the same clock and the same marking rule, with questions generated by Outcry rather than taken from Mako.
Outcry is not affiliated with Mako and has no access to their assessment content. This guide describes an assessment format that candidates report publicly; the questions here are generated by Outcry and are not Mako’s own.
What it screens
A derivatives market maker founded in London, trading options and futures across global exchanges.
- ✓Two-digit multiplication and division without writing anything down
- ✓Fraction and decimal conversion at a glance
- ✓Percentage moves in both directions (a 20% drop needs +25% to recover)
- ✓Knowing when to skip: negative marking punishes guessing
Where it sits at Mako
This section does not arrive on its own. It opens the paper, and the sitting around it runs 45 minutes and 65 items in total, with Round two on the same continuous clock. Candidates who prepare only for this round tend to be caught by the pacing of the rest.
There is no going back. You answer or skip, and the next item loads, which means the decision to leave an item is final at the moment you make it.
The format
These are the numbers the Mako sitting on this site runs on, matching the format candidates report.
| Questions | 37 |
|---|---|
| Time | 15 minutes |
| Per question | 24 seconds |
| Negative marking | No |
| Answer style | Typed numeric answer, no calculator |
| Where it sits | Aptitude test, first online round |
What it tests, with a worked example
Every example below is generated by Outcry, drawn from the same question generators the timed drills run. None of them is Mako’s.
Two-digit multiplication
Products you are expected to reach by splitting rather than by long multiplication.
Example 1
16 × 24
Answer 384
(20−4)(20+4) = 20² − 4² = 400 − 16 = 384.
Example 2
45 × 55
Answer 2475
(50−5)(50+5) = 50² − 5² = 2500 − 25 = 2475.
Example 3
6/7 × 14
Answer 12
14 ÷ 7 = 2, then × 6 = 12.
Fast division
Exact quotients where the divisor is chosen to make a shortcut available.
Example 1
125% of 32
Answer 40
Swap it: 125% of 32 = 32% of 125 = 40.
Example 2
44²
Answer 1936
Anchor on 40: 44² = 40² + 2 × 40 × 4 + 16 = 1600 + 320 + 16 = 1936.
Example 3
1/3 of 18
Answer 6
18 ÷ 3 = 6, then × 1 = 6. Divide before you multiply and the numbers stay small.
Percentages both ways
A percentage of a number, and the move needed to undo one - a 20% fall needs a 25% rise.
Example
Four runners finished with no ties. Ben finished ahead of Ana. Ana finished ahead of Eli. Eli finished ahead of Femi. Who finished second?
- Ana
- Eli
- Ben
- Femi
Answer Ana
Chaining the three statements gives Ben then Ana then Eli then Femi, so second place is Ana.
Fractions and decimals
Converting between the two on sight, and reducing without pencil work.
Example 1
25% of 25% of 400
Answer 25
Multiply the fractions first: 25% × 25% = 6.25%, and 6.25% of 400 = 25.
Example 2
352 ÷ 11
Answer 32
11 × 32 = 352, so the quotient is 32.
Example 3
25% of 50% of 400
Answer 50
Multiply the fractions first: 25% × 50% = 12.5%, and 12.5% of 400 = 50.
Mixed operations under a clock
Several steps in one item, where the order you take them decides whether it fits in the time.
Example 1
73.46 + 7.08 = ?
Answer 80.54
73.46 + 7.08 = 80.54.
Example 2
After a 50% rise a price is 90. What was it before?
Answer 60
Divide, do not subtract: 90/1.5 = 60.
Example 3
337 × 5 = ?
Answer 1685
× 5 is × 10 ÷ 2: 3,370/2 = 1,685.
Squares and near-squares
Products a step either side of a square, where the difference-of-squares identity is faster than multiplying.
Example 1
9 6 6 6 9 6 3 8 8 1 2 7
How many entries match the entry 1 place before them?
Answer 3
The matches land at positions 3, 4, 9 - 3 in all.
Example 2
A 58 × 99 B 42 × 56 C 85 × 46 D 53 × 81
Which of these products is the largest?
- C
- D
- A
- B
Answer A
A = 5,742, B = 2,352, C = 3,910, D = 4,293, so A is the largest. Rounding each pair to the nearest ten separates them without multiplying anything out exactly.
Example 3
46 58 16 30 19
Halve every even number. Triple every odd number and add 1. What do the results add to?
Answer 133
46→23, 58→29, 16→8, 30→15, 19→58, which adds to 133.
What a good score looks like
On a paper of 37 questions with no penalty for a wrong answer, the only thing an unanswered question can do is cost you. Candidates most often report a pass mark around 70 per cent of the questions attempted correctly, with the strongest scores well above that. Nothing here is a published figure: firms move these by role, region and year, and most never state them at all.
How to train for it
- 01Drill the arithmetic cold, untimed, until you stop making careless errors. Speed on top of shaky accuracy is worth negative marks on a paper that subtracts.
- 02Add the clock and hold the accuracy. This is the step most people skip, and it is the one the screen measures.
- 03Learn a handful of identities rather than more speed: difference of squares, multiplying by 11, halving and doubling. They convert a hard item into an easy one.
TRAIN IT HERE
The drills that match each section
Arithmetic Drill
2.5 timed minutes of exactly this question mix, with a ghost of your best past run to race.
Duck Duck Dash
Endless mental-math runner - one mistake ends the run, and the questions climb through ten difficulty tiers.
Sequence Sprint
Pattern recognition under the same per-question time pressure.
SIT THE FULL BATTERY
All the sections back to back on one clock, marked the way the real screen marks them, with a by-skill breakdown at the end. Included with any pass.
Also reported at Mako
Common questions
- Is the Mako aptitude test test multiple choice?
- Typed numeric answer, no calculator. You type the number, so there is nothing to eliminate your way to.
- How long is the Mako aptitude test test?
- 37 questions in 15 minutes, which is about 24 seconds each.
- Is there negative marking on the Mako aptitude test test?
- No. A wrong answer costs nothing beyond the mark you would have earned, so leaving an item blank is never better than guessing at it.
- How do I practise for it free?
- Every drill linked on this page is free to play, with no account, inside a daily run cap. Questions are generated fresh each run, so there is nothing to memorise between attempts. The full Mako Aptitude and Round Two sitting puts the sections back to back on one clock.