Predictive Index test: Behavioral vs Cognitive, and how to prepare

By Prepti Team. Last checked: 16 October 2026. We are not affiliated with The Predictive Index (PI). Facts about the tests come from PI's own pages, linked and dated. Your invitation is the final word on which PI assessment you were sent. See how we compare and check.

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Quick answer

“The Predictive Index test” can mean two different assessments. Check your invitation to see which you have.

  • PI Behavioral Assessment: a free-choice adjective checklist about how you work. It is not scored by correct answers, so the honest-answering advice below applies.
  • PI Cognitive Assessment: 50 multiple-choice questions in 12 minutes, scored by the number you get right. It has right answers, so practising the format helps.
Two columns comparing the PI Behavioral Assessment and the PI Cognitive Assessment.
The two PI assessments side by side.
PI Behavioral AssessmentPI Cognitive Assessment
OwnerThe Predictive IndexThe Predictive Index
What it measures, per PIFour behavioral drives: Dominance, Extraversion, Patience, FormalityGeneral cognitive ability across verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning
Format, per PIUntimed, free-choice, stimulus-response50 multiple-choice questions from a larger pool
Timing, per PIAbout 6 minutes or less12 minutes to complete as many as you can
Scoring, per PIResults form a pattern and a Reference Profile showing the extremes of each driveThe score is the number of correct answers
SourcePI Behavioral Assessment and Our assessments, checked 16 October 2026PI Cognitive Assessment and Our assessments, checked 16 October 2026

PI publishes no pass mark on these pages. Employers decide how to use results. Processes differ by country and role. Check your invite.

What the PI tests are

PI describes the Behavioral Assessment as an untimed, free-choice, stimulus-response tool that measures an employee's natural behavioral drives and needs. It describes the Cognitive Assessment as a measure of general cognitive ability that was built for the workplace, and says it does not measure IQ or previously acquired knowledge (PI: Our assessments, checked 16 October 2026).

PI Behavioral Assessment

Format. PI's walkthrough says you confirm your language, enter your name and email, read the instructions, then see two lists of adjectives (PI transcript, checked 16 October 2026):

  1. In the first list, you check the adjectives you feel describe the way you are expected to act by others at work.
  2. In the second, you check the adjectives you feel really describe you.
  3. PI says there is no maximum number of adjectives you can select.

What it measures. PI's page names four drives (PI Behavioral Assessment):

  • Dominance: how a person naturally approaches control, independence and decision-making on the job.
  • Extraversion: how people communicate, persuade and engage with others, not how social they are in their personal lives.
  • Patience: how someone prefers to manage time, pace and change, not how tolerant or polite they are.
  • Formality: how strongly a person seeks structure, rules and precision in their work environment.

None of these is good or bad in itself. Each is a spectrum.

A made-up chart of four spectrums, each with a dot somewhere between a lower and a higher end. Illustration, not a real result. No position is better or worse.
Illustration, not a real result. No position on a spectrum is better or worse.

How to answer the Behavioral Assessment honestly

This is our advice, not PI's, except where we describe PI's process.

  • Answer as you really behave at work, not as you think the employer wants. Many personality tests compare answers across items. That is general knowledge about such tests, not a statement about this one.
  • Read the two lists as PI asks. The first is about how others expect you to act. The second is about how you really are. They are different questions, so answer each for what it asks.
  • Do not overthink. Your first honest instinct is usually better than second-guessing.
  • Think of typical work behaviour, not your best day or your worst day.
  • If a word fits you in some settings and not others, think of the setting of the role you are applying for, and be ready to explain it in an interview.
  • Know your strengths and weak spots. Interviews may follow up on the results.
  • Set yourself up. Quiet room, stable connection, enough time. It is short, but do not rush. See the online proctored assessment checklist and assessment accommodations.
  • Nerves are normal. See assessment test anxiety.
  • Do not try to build a “perfect profile”. Matching an imagined ideal can backfire if the role or the interview does not fit that profile. We cannot promise any result either way.
A checklist of six honest-answering points.
The honest-answering points as a checklist.

Honest limits: we do not know your employer's cut-offs, and nobody outside the employer does. If the assessment seems unfair or inaccessible to you, you can ask about adjustments. This is not legal advice. For the wider picture, see personality assessments: can you prepare?

PI Cognitive Assessment

Unlike the Behavioral Assessment, this one has right answers and a clock.

  • Format. PI says it consists of 50 multiple-choice questions from a larger pool across verbal, numerical and abstract reasoning. Candidates complete as many as they can in 12 minutes, and the score is the total number of correct answers (PI: Our assessments, checked 16 October 2026). The PI Cognitive page says scores reflect speed and accuracy (PI Cognitive Assessment).
  • Question mix. PI says questions are selected by a linear-on-the-fly test engine to ensure equivalent content and difficulty each time, so you will not see the same assessment twice.
  • Versions. PI's documentation for employers describes the standard test as 50 questions in 12 minutes and says employers have options including up to three attempts and 12-, 18- and 24-minute versions (PI documentation, December 2025, checked 16 October 2026). Your invitation says which you have. Retakes depend on the employer.
  • Our arithmetic: 12 minutes is 720 seconds, and 720 divided by 50 is 14.4 seconds a question on average. That is Prepti's maths, not a PI figure. See also CCAT test prep for another 50-question timed test.

Sample questions. PI says the sample questions are in the employer's invitation, if the employer chose to include them. You get no score at the end, but you can see which you got right and wrong and the correct answers. PI says they are for becoming familiar with content and format, and should not be used to work out how you will score on the real assessment (PI sample questions, checked 16 October 2026). PI says the sample questions do not overlap with the real item pool. We do not publish look-alike questions for this test.

How to prepare for the Cognitive Assessment.

  1. Use the official sample questions if your invitation includes them. Practise them under the 12-minute clock.
  2. Work on the three question types PI names: verbal, numerical, abstract reasoning. See numerical reasoning tests explained and verbal reasoning tests explained.
  3. Practise moving on. With about 14 seconds a question on average, you cannot stay on one for long.
  4. Sleep and a quiet room matter more than cramming the night before.

Prep options

Third-party providers sell practice for these tests. For the Behavioral Assessment, no practice can predict your result, because it has no right answers. For the Cognitive Assessment, practice covers format and timing only. They are not made by PI, and we have not tested them. See our JobTestPrep review and free vs paid prep.

These providers sell more practice. Prices checked 16 October 2026.

JobTestPrep PI Cognitive Assessment PrepPack

Covers the PI Cognitive Assessment only (the test with right answers). All plans include a free PI Behavioral PrepPack, per JobTestPrep; see the provider's page for contents.

  • $79 USD 1 week of access
  • $89 USD 1 month of access
  • $99 USD 3 months of access

Confirm currency, tax and VAT at checkout. Checked 16 October 2026.

Refund terms: may be granted if the content does not match your test (full or proportional), a technical problem blocked access, or the product was never used. Request by form, answer within 5 business days. Terms

Provider page (checked 16 October 2026)

FAQ

What is the Predictive Index test?

PI has two assessments. The Behavioral Assessment is untimed and about 6 minutes or less, per PI. The Cognitive Assessment is 50 questions in 12 minutes.

How long is the Predictive Index Behavioral Assessment?

PI says about 6 minutes or less, and untimed.

How long is the PI Cognitive Assessment?

12 minutes for 50 multiple-choice questions, per PI. Employers may use other versions.

What does the PI Behavioral Assessment measure?

Four behavioral drives: Dominance, Extraversion, Patience and Formality, per PI.

Is there a Predictive Index pass mark?

PI publishes none on the pages we checked. Employers decide how to use results.

How do I pass the Predictive Index test?

For the Behavioral Assessment, there is no answer key. Answer honestly. For the Cognitive Assessment, practise the format under the 12-minute clock.

Is there a free PI practice test?

PI says the Cognitive sample questions are in the employer's invitation if the employer included them. We found no public official sample.

Can I retake the Predictive Index test?

That depends on the employer. PI's employer documentation says employers can allow up to three attempts on the Cognitive Assessment.

Do I get a score on the sample questions?

PI says no, but you can see the correct answers.

Sources and last checked

Found something wrong or out of date? Tell us.

Related: Caliper test prep, Hogan assessment prep, Which employer test am I taking?, Got an assessment invite?, All employer tests.