AFCAT Preparation 2026: Subject-wise Tips and Strategy

Air Force Common Admission Test 2026 ( AFCAT )

Anangsha Patra
Updated on Nov 25, 2025 13:13 IST

By Anangsha Patra, Deputy Manager – Editorial

Candidates should be thorough with the syllabus. They must focus on revising the important topics for AFCAT exam. Students must clear the concepts of the topics given in the syllabus. Candidates must refer to good books. Read below for more details on AFCAT preparation tips. 

Q:   How to prepare for AFCAT General Awareness section?
A: 

 Candidates must check the syllabus for General Awareness section. They should make a study schedule. Candidates must attempt mock tests. They should read newspapers. Candidates must learn current affairs questions of last six months.

 

Q:   How to prepare for AFCAT in 6 months?
A: 

Six months are more than enough to prepare for AFCAT exam. Candidates must start from clearing the basic concepts of every topics. Maths can be tough, therefore, candidates must understand the basic concepts. They should note down the important theorems and formulas. In English, candidates need to focus on improving their vocabularly. Candidates must prepare current affairs of six months from the date of exam. They should also prepare basic Science, Geography, Defence Terms, etc. Logical Reasoning questions will be of non-verbal type. So, candidates must solve previous years' question papers. 

Q:   How to prepare for AFCAT in 3 months?
A: 

With just three months left for the exam, take mock test on the first day of preparation. This will give candidates an idea how much effort they need to put in to propel towards the ideal score. Set a week-wise target to complete the syllabus. Buy a good book and learn from it. The mock-taking exercise should be followed up with an in-depth mock analysis. Candidates must also solve previous years' question papers.

Table of contents
  • AFCAT Preparation Tips 2026
  • Best Books for AFCAT Exam
  • AFCAT Preparation Tips 2025 FAQs
AFCAT Logo

AFCAT Preparation Tips 2026

AFCAT exam is conducted to select Class A Gazetted Officers in Flying and Ground Duty (Technical and Non-Technical) branches. The competition for AFCAT is high, candidates who are planning to appear for the exam should start the preparation as soon as possible. Candidates need to be well prepared for all the rounds in order to get selected. Candidates should prepare a proper strategy to ace AFCAT exam. Candidates should refer to the previous years' question papers and practice mock tests. Besides, they should check the exam pattern and syllabus to know about the exam structure and important topics. Candidates are advised to practice more and more questions to score well in the exam. 

To begin with, be clear with the pattern, subjects, and paper. According to the AFCAT exam pattern, the test comprises questions from General Awareness, Verbal Ability in English, Numerical Ability and Reasoning, and Military Aptitude Test. The duration of the test is two hours. AFCAT question paper carries a total of 100 questions. The maximum marks allotted to the test are 100. Candidates can check below the preparation tips of AFCAT.

Prepare for Competitive Exams with Expert Tips on English Section

Click Here

Revision

Revise properly all the topics given in the syllabus. From each of the topics in General Awareness, Verbal Ability in English, Numerical Ability and Reasoning and Military Aptitude Test jot down all the important formulas, topics, and shortcut tricks. Formulas are the basis of calculations and can help you solve many questions. Concentrate on what you know and what you have learned and ace those topics.

DFP-Banner

Practice Managing Time

Candidates need to have a strategy to complete all the questions in the available time. This becomes easier if they practice time management using the AFCAT mock test. 

Plan What to do in the Exam Hall

Prepare exam day strategy and practice accordingly from now on. Screen the paper and mark the questions as 1, 2, and 3. These marks denote one attempt in the first go, a second attempt in the second go, and third attempt in the last.

Get the Top Score in Numerical Ability section of Competitive Entrance Exams with Expert Prep Tips

Click Here

Analyse the Trend

Analyze previous years’ question papers and find out the topics from which most numbers of questions are asked. Note the topics that are on high priority and focus on them. During the last days of preparation, do not learn new topics. 

Relax

Take a break in between studies. Give your mind and body some time to relax, especially one day before the exam. Do not study or revise anything on the last day to keep yourself fresh for the exam.

Section-Wise AFCAT Preparation Tips by Experts

Get the Top Score in DI and Logical Reasoning section of Competitive Entrance Exams with Expert Prep Tips

Click Here

How to Prepare for AFCAT English Language?

The English section basically covers questions from Antonyms and Synonyms, English Grammar, Idioms and phrases and Comprehension. AFCAT preparation tips for English are given below:

  • Practice at least two passages daily to improve comprehension, vocabulary, grammar, and phrases
  • Practice 20 questions on antonyms and synonyms, misspelt words, idioms and phrases daily 
  • Refer to the basic grammar books to understand the fundamentals

How to Prepare for AFCAT Numerical Ability?

In this section, candidates will get questions from Decimals, Fractions, Profit & Loss, Average, Percentage, Ratio & Proportion, Speed, Time & Distance, etc. AFCAT preparation tips for Numerical Ability is given below:

  • Candidates should write down formulae in one place so that it becomes easier for revision
  • Work on the topics that have more weightage
  • Practice everyday and remember the concepts

How to Prepare for AFCAT General Awareness?

The tips and tricks to crack AFCAT preparation tips for General Awareness are given below:

  • For General Awareness, candidates must follow the latest news, sports and events
  • Read newspapers daily to stay updated with the latest events

How to Prepare for AFCAT exam by Experts?

How to Prepare for AFCAT General Intelligence and Reasoning?

The Reasoning & Military Aptitude section carries questions from Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Questions from Verbal Reasoning are asked from Analogy, Classification, Coding-Decoding, Logical Venn Diagrams, Puzzle Tests, Direction Sense Test. Questions from Non-Verbal Reasoning are asked from Series, Analogy, Classification, Completion of incomplete pattern, Hidden figures, Papercutting and folding, Dot situations. AFCAT preparation tips 2023 for Reasoning & Military Aptitude are given below:

  • Understand the fundamental concepts of reasoning
  • Practice at least 15-20 questions daily
  • Be consistent with practice

How to Prepare for AFCAT EKT?

EKT exam is conducted for the technical branch. The syllabus for EKT comprises questions from Engineering Mathematics, Engineering Drawing & Physics. Candidates for EKT should brush up the basics of their engineering subjects. Cover the topics given in the syllabus and study regularly. 

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   How to prepare AFCAT Reasoning section?
A: 

Candidates need to understand the format ofAFCAT reasoning section. Practising will help candidates to know the type of questions that are asked in the exam.  They must attempt mock tests.  Also, candidates must solve previous years' question papers.

Q:   How to prepare for AFCAT English section?
A: 

To prepare for AFCAT English Language, candidates must have a strong command of grammar and vocabulary. To improve vocabulary, read the. Try to solve at least 30 grammar questions daily. 

AFCAT Logo

Best Books for AFCAT Exam

Candidates can refer to the following books for the AFCAT exam. These AFCAT books help candidates understand the concepts of the topics given in the syllabus.

Book Author

AFCAT for Flying, Technical & Ground Duty Branch with Solved Papers (English, Paperback )

Arihant Experts

AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test)

Arihant Experts

AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test) Self Study Guide-cum-Practice Work Book 

Kiran Prakashan

AFCAT Solved Papers and Practice Sets

Arihant Experts

SSB Interview: The Complete Guide

NK Natarajan

Manorama Yearbook

Philip Mathew

Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations

RS Aggarwal

AFCAT (Air Force Common Admission Test) Exam Guide: For Flying and Technical Branch (Popular Master Guide)

R Gupta

DFP-Banner

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   Which are the best books for AFCAT English section?
A: 
Scoring the highest marks in English section is no less than a cakewalk if candidates have strong hold over grammar, comprehension and vocabulary. Questions in this section are asked from Comprehension, Error Detection in Sentence, Sentence Completion/ Fill in the correct word, Cloze Test / Fill in the blanks in a paragraph, Synonym/ Antonym, Idioms and Phrases, Sentence Rearranging, Analogy, Substitution in a Sentence/ One Word Substitution. These are some of the best AFCAT English books for preparation. Candidates can refer to these books and ace the exam. Verbal Reasoning by Bhupendra Kumar Singh Objective General English by Dr. RS. Aggarwal.
Q:   How to choose the best books for AFCAT preparation?
A: 

Best books for AFCAT exam help candidates to cover the entire syllabus. Candidates should choose the ones that are simple to read. This must be based on latest syllabus. Total marks allotted to exam are 300.

Q:   Which are the best books for AFCAT Reasoning section?
A: 
Reasoning and Military Aptitude section of the AFCAT exam can be bit tricky. Candidates can ace this section by referring to the best books. Besides, referring to the best books candidates need to practice previous year question papers. Candidates must solve maximum questions from Puzzles. Questions in the exam are asked from Odd One Out, Analogy, Venn Diagram, Pattern Completion, Dot Situation Analysis, Blood Relation, Missing Figures, Figure Classification, Coding and Decoding, Spotting the Embedded Figures. Best books to refer to for AFCAT Reasoning section are given below: Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Exams by McGraw Hill Education Quantitative Aptitude by S Hand.
View list of Books
AFCAT Logo

AFCAT Preparation Tips 2025 FAQs

Candidates can check below AFCAT preparation tips 2026 FAQs.

qna

AFCAT Exam

Student Forum

chatAnything you would want to ask experts?
Write here...

Answered 5 days ago

AFCAT reporting timings are mentioned in the admit card. The shift-wise reporting timings are given below. 

AFCAT ShiftsAFCAT Reporting Time
Shift 17.30 am
Shift 212.30 pm

A

Abhishek Kumar

Contributor-Level 7

Upcoming Sarkari Exam Dates

IBPS RRB Clerk 2025 Prelims Exam 13 Dec '25 - 14 Dec '25
IBPS RRB Clerk 2025 Prelims Exam 13 Dec '25 - 14 Dec '25
SSC JHT Paper 2 2025 exam 14 Dec '25
Bihar Police Constable PET 2025 15 Dec '25
TSTET Admit Card Release 27 Dec '25

News & Updates

Latest NewsPopular News