
Once you decide to study at a B-School, the first step is to prepare for the GMAT exam. One can get GMAT preparation books and join online GMAT forums, which will help one prepare for the exam. As numerous books are available in the market, it becomes difficult to understand which book or resource is correct for GMAT preparation. This post will discuss various GMAT preparation books and other resources that are best for scoring well on the GMAT exam. We have provided a comprehensive list of the best GMAT books and resources to give you an edge over other aspirants. We have also been given a six-month study plan for the GMAT exam as well for reference.
Some of the best books to prepare for GMAT Focus Edition are as follows:
- The GMAT Focus Official Guide
- The Critical Reasoning Bible
- All the GMAT guides (Manhattan Prep)
- Total GMAT Math (Jeff Sackmann)
- GMAT Prep Plus (Kaplan)
Ideally these are some of the most important GMAT Focus books to prepare for the exam.
Yes, more or less the GMAT books are same for preparing for Focus edition with older versions. Applicants can just selectively choose the topics that are relevant for the current GMAT edition and can easily prepare for the exam. However, there are options to buy official guides or prep material from MBA.com website for GMAT Focus Edition.
Some of the trending GMAT books for preparation are as follos:
- Manhattan Prep All the GMAT
- Powerscore Critical Reasoning
- Kaplan GMAT Prep Plus
- GMAT for Dummies
- GMAC GMAT Official Guide
- GMAT Advanced Quant
GMAT books are essential for preparation because they are designed in a way that applicants can:
- Prepare based on current GMAT syllabus.
- Prepare and get practice
- Understand what kind of questions can be tested
- Look at the pattern of the paper and time themselves
- Finally, get enough material to be able to crack the exam in one go.
Yes, GMAT books are helpful resources to get hands on preparation, practice and work on strenghths and weaknesses closely. You can refer to 1-2 books for GMAT preparation and then look at solving some sample papers as well to get some additional practice.
- GMAT Books and Resources 2025: Important Factors
- GMAT Prep Books and Online Resources 2025
- GMAT Preparation Books 2025 FAQs
GMAT Books and Resources 2025: Important Factors
Students must note that they should not fill their books with too many GMAT books. Do not get swayed away by attractive websites and book covers. It is always advisable to follow a limited number of resources and focus on multiple revisions, practice questions, and GMAT mock tests. These key points will help you determine the right GMAT prep books and resources to tackle the exam:
- A deluge of GMAT preparation material is on the market. Before buying any book, ensure you are thorough with the syllabus and the pattern of the GMAT 2025 exam. Once you go through a book, make sure that this book is in line with the exam syllabus and pattern. Do not buy books just because they look attractive.
- It is about solving complex questions and forming a GMAT preparation strategy to help you score well on all exam sections. It can be identifying the priority section that you will be solving first or related to time management. These skills will prove to be handy during exam time. You can also follow GMAT preparation tips given by experts to utilize your time effectively.
- The GMAT exam is based on a specific pattern, so it is always essential you practice the right set of questions, which can help you score well on the exam.
- The GMAT preparation material and GMAT books must offer answer keys to help students understand the correct method to solve different questions. The answer keys should give detailed explanations about the correct answer so the aspirant can understand the concept behind it.
Commonly asked questions
Candidates need to understand that purchasing many GMAT books will not fetch them a higher GMAT score. In fact, if they start referring to multiple GMAT books and resources for a single topic, they will only get confused and end up leaving all the study material. The best starting point is always the official GMAT exam material. The official GMAT prep material should be at the base of your preparation. Make sure to cover the entire official study material at least twice. Once you are done with it, you can study other resources such as the Manhattan Guides, Veritas study material, GMAT club, Beat the GMAT, Thursdays with Ron, etc. Stick to selected GMAT books and resources, prepare notes, and appear for as many GMAT mock tests as possible.
The best GMAT books for preparation are:
- GMAT Official Guide to be THE best GMAT book
- Manhattan GMAT Strategy Guides (8 Books)
- Kaplan GMAT 800
- If you want subject specific guides, then you may consider: The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review
- Kaplan GMAT Verbal Workbook
- Kaplan GMAT Math Workbook
- The Official Guide for GMAT Quantitative Review
GMAT exam assesses different skill sets of candidates like the ability to think critically, ability to analyse data and draw conclusions using reasoning skills. According to an estimate, only very few of the candidates are able to score more than 720+. So, one needs to develop these skills to get a decent score in order to get admission to their dream B-school. However, GMAT does not require you to study management concepts. It tests your basic mathematical and verbal skills only. Hence, it is not a tough exam; however, it does require focused and dedicated preparation. Here are a few points that will help you prepare well for the GMAT exam 2023:
- Familiarize yourself with the GMAT exam syllabus and pattern.
- Complete the official GMAT study material (cover-to-cover) at least twice.
- Appear for the GMAT mocks every week and analyse your performance in each of them.
It is extremely important to appear for the GMAT mock tests. In fact, you must appear for full-length GMAT practice tests every week. Mock tests are the most important part of your GMAT prep. Without them, you will not be able to gauge your progress and identify your weak areas. Moreover, just appearing for the GMAT practice tests in not sufficient; it is equally important for you to analyse every question and your overall performance. You must make short notes of the questions that you find difficult and revise their corresponding concepts. It is essential for the students to appear for as many GMAT practice tests as possible.
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GMAT Prep Books and Online Resources 2025
The following GMAT prep books will help you holistically cover the entire GMAT 2025 syllabus. It is advised that students appear for GMAT 2025 mock tests to track their progress. Moreover, it is extremely important to analyse your performance on these GMAT practice tests.
- GMAT Official Guide: Popularly called GMAT OG, it is the most important book for your GMAT preparation. This book must form the base of your preparation. Do not leave a single page of this book. GMAT OG contains nearly 1000 questions from past GMAT exams. This is as close as you can get to the GMAT before the actual test day. A detailed overview of the exam, detailed answers, essays, and an organized order of questions will help you score well on the GMAT. Ensure you complete this book at least twice during your GMAT preparation. You can get the GMAT Official Guide Bundle ebook and online question band at $81.99.
- Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set: The Manhattan GMAT books cover every aspect of the GMAT exam. You have the option of buying these books in a bundle or individually. Apart from the books, one also gets one-year access to practice tests and web material. These GMAT books will help you strengthen your skill set to perform excellently. The study materials and guides offered by Manhattan are considered the best GMAT preparation materials by reviewers.
- Additionally, the practice tests included with the books help you prepare for the actual test. Practice questions also come with a detailed explanation for the answers. You must aim to combine the GMAT Official Guide and Manhattan GMAT guides to cover the entire syllabus holistically. Once you have completed these, you should proceed to other GMAT books and resources.
- GMAT Official Advanced Questions: Once you have completed the GMAT Official Guide and Manhattan GMAT books, you should move on to the GMAT Official Advanced Questions. It has hard GMAT questions from past GMAT exams. This book will help you familiarise yourself with the tough GMAT questions. Note that if you keep on answering the questions correctly, the level of questions gets tougher on the GMAT (with an obvious increase in the score). Hence, a candidate needs to practice hard GMAT questions. You can get the GMAT official advanced questions ebook and online question bank at $29.99.
- Kaplan GMAT Prep Plus: The biggest advantage of studying from the Kaplan guide is that it provides the perfect content required for the exam and excludes the concepts that can be distracting. The Kaplan GMAT Verbal Workbook helps you develop advanced strategies to tackle verbal questions. In addition, the Kaplan GMAT Math Workbook will help you build strong basics in the quantitative section. This book provides a helping hand to those struggling with quant. The study material by Kaplan is consistently regarded as the best GMAT study book by reviewers.
- Veritas Prep Complete GMAT Course Set: For those looking to enhance their knowledge in each topic, the Veritas Prep GMAT Set is recommended. It covers each topic in detail, and the books are written nicely. Furthermore, the practice questions in the books are not unique but also challenging. One of the drawbacks of this set is that it comes with only one online full-length practice test, whereas other publishers offer many more practice tests. Veritas offers hundreds of practice questions online, which can help the aspirants increase their scores.
Popular GMAT Online Resources for Preparation
Apart from the prep books, you can also download GMAT preparation materials free of charge from various reputable online forums. Otherwise, you can join various forums, such as the official GMAT forum, and post your query there; experts will answer it. There are numerous (free and paid) online GMAT tests that you can take to enhance your skills. With little effort, you can get free GMAT prep material that can also be useful. We recommend that you take help from the following online resources:
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- Beat The GMAT
- GMAT Club Forum
- Thursday with Ron
- Magoosh YouTube channel
No amount of books or GMAT prep material will be fruitful until you adopt an extensive study plan, rigorous training sessions, and discipline, which are key to achieving a high GMAT score.
Commonly asked questions
Yes, there are ample resources available for applicants to prepare for GMAT exam and one of the best resources is using the official GMAT books. The GMAT books give detailed answer explanation and directly target the topics that are tested on the exam. Plus they also give practice questions along with full length GMAT exam sample papers.
Yes, why not! You can get hold of some of the best and also popular e-books for GMAT and prepare from them. Ensure that they are authentically sources and are up to date with the latest GMAT exam syllabus. Also try o get those e-books which will give you access to some sample papers as well. Lastly, read the reviews and then make a choice.
The most important point for any examination prep is familiarity with the exam pattern and the exam syllabus. Without these, you will not be able to start the preparation. Hence, the starting point for the GMAT exam 2023 is its pattern and syllabus. Once you are clear with the GMAT pattern 2023 and its syllabus, you can start with the official GMAT study material. Make sure that you complete the GMAT official study material at least twice. Once you are done with that, you can move on to other GMAT books and online resources. The most important aspect of your GMAT 2023 preparation is your GMAT mock tests. Candidates must appear for as many mocks as possible to gauge their level of preparation from time to time.
If at some point you prepared for GMAT 10th Edition and are planning to appear for the GMAT Focus Edition, then here are a few strategies to help you adjust your study plan for GMAT Focus.
- Since GMAT Focus is shorter, applicants will have to effectovely plan their question solving capacity.
- Understand that answering more correct questions here is the key rather than aiming for multiple questions and answering them incorrectly.
- Practice taking GMAT and solve multiple GMAT sample papers to understand the pattern of the paper. The mock test of GMAT Focus may be difficult to access so relying on available materials is important.
- Since GMAT Focus has the bookmarking questions feature where applicants can come back to review and edit, will also be an added advantage for the applicants.
Being able to follow these will aid applicants in their GMAT preparation and also transition from GMAT 10th edition to GMAT Focus.
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GMAT Preparation Books 2025 FAQs
To know more about GMAT books and other resources, please visit more FAQs.
Commonly asked questions
Before beginning your GMAT preparation, you must understand the GMAT syllabus and GMAT pattern first. Once you have thoroughly understood them, you should move on GMAT official guide (GMAT OG) and other GMAT official study material. Official study material must be at the base of your preparation. After completing the official study material, you can refer to Manhattan GMAT guides and other authentic resources. In addition, we suggest that you give as many GMAT mock tests as possible. Mock tests are the most important part of your preparation, as they will help you analyze your progress and develop strategies to solve different question types.
Here are certain other tips related to GMAT books 2023:
- Stick to a limited number of GMAT books. These books must be revised again and again.
- Make use of online resources, especially YouTube, GMAT Club, and Beat the GMAT.
- As you study these GMAT books, prepare short notes that you can revise. Keep updating these notes.
Although there are a lot of sources available online to prepare for the GMAT exam, however, candidates can access free GMAT practice tests on the GMAC site (mba.com). They need to download the GMAT prep software and create an account and get GMAT practice tests. Make sure that you solve the practice tests provided by the GMAC. These will provide you with a near real-time feel of the GMAT and will help you gauge the level of your preparation. Once you complete a GMAT mock test, it is essential for you to analyse your performance in that GMAT practice test. You need to work on your weak areas based on your mock test analyses.
There are various sources available online where one can get useful study material to prepare for the GMAT test. Following are the sources where one can study and prepare for the GMAT for free:
- Official GMAC site (mba.com): Here, you can get tips to prepare for the exam and free GMAT practice tests as well
- Manhattan Prep: It offers free GMAT online prep tools that are very useful for the candidates preparing for the GMAT exam
- Veritas Prep: It offers free GMAT lessons and free tools that will come in handy while preparing for the exam
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The current version of the GMAT exam "will continue to be available until early next year". There is no specific date for the same. After MCom, you may opt for an MBA as it will enhance your profile. You might as well venture into a new field (e.g. supply chain management) if you find it interestin