Bhagya Achievers
27th May, 2025
Bank Exams

How Many Attempts Are Allowed For Bank Exams?

Dilpreet attempted the SBI PO bank exam 4 times; she did better in every new attempt. But when she tried for the 5^th time for the SBI PO bank exam, her application was rejected. Why? She did not know she had hit the attempt limit. Don’t let that happen to you in the future.

In this article, we described the number of attempts allowed in top bank exams like IBPS PO, IBPS Clerk, SBI PO, SBI Clerk, IBPS RRB, RBI Assistant, RBI Grade B, IBPS SO, and NABARD Grade B- so that you can accordingly without panic.

Why does the Attempt limit Matter?

The number of attempts allowed in a bank exam affects:

You’re long-term planning for the bank exam.
Your bank exam preparation strategy.
Opportunities for improvement.

Major Bank Exam in India

Name of Bank Exam	Job roles in various bank exams	Conducted Body
SBI PO/Clerk	Probationary Officer, Clerk	State Bank of India
IBPS Clerk/PO	PO, Clerk	Institute of Banking Personnel Selection
RBI Grade B	Officer Grade B	Reserve Bank of India
IBPS RRB PO/Clerk	Officer Scale-1 (PO), Assistant (Clerk)	IBPS for Regional Rural Banks

Let’s now explore how many attempts are allowed for the bank exam?

Attempted Allowed for SBI PO Bank Exam

Category	Number of attempts allowed
General	4
General (PwD)	7
OBC (Non-Creamy Layer)	7
OBC (PwD)	7
SC/ST	No Limit
SC/ST (PwD)	No Limit

Note: If you are appearing even once for the SBI PO prelims bank exam, it will be counted as a one full attempt, whether you qualify or not for the mains or final interview.

Age Limit for SBI PO Bank Exam:

It is essential to check the age eligibility criteria, along with specific relaxations, when you are preparing for the SBI PO bank exam.

Age limit for General SBI PO Bank Exam: 21 to 30 years
Age limit for SC/ST SBI PO Bank Exam: 21 to 35 years (+5 years age relaxation)
Age limit for OBC SBI PO Bank Exam: 21 to 33 years (+3 years age relaxation)
Age limit for PwD Candidates: Additional 10 years relaxation, depending on category

Attempts Allowed for the SBI Clerk Bank Exam

There is no limit of attempts allowed for the SBI Clerk Bank exam. You can attempt the SBI Clerk bank exam as long as you are within the age limit.

Attempts Allowed for the SBI Clerk Bank Exam
Category	Age Limit allowed for Bank Exam SBI Clerk
General	20 to 28 years
SC/ST	20 to 33 years
OBC	20 to 31 years
PwD (General)	20 to 38 years
PwD (OBC)	20 to 41 years
PwD (SC/ST)	20 to 43 years
Persons Domiciled in Jammu and Kashmir State from 1 January 1980 to 31 December 1989	20 to 33 years

Attempts Allowed for the IBPS PO Bank Exam

The IBPS PO bank exam is the chance to work in top PSU banks like PNB, BOB, Canara Bank, etc.

How many attempts are allowed in the IBPS PO bank exam?

There are unlimited attempts allowed for the IBPS PO bank exam within the age limit.

Age Limit for IBPS PO Bank Exam:

Age Limit for IBPS PO Bank Exam:
Category	Age Limit (Age Relaxation)
General	20 to 30 years
SC/ST	20 to 33 years (+3 years)
OBC (Non Creamy layer)	20 to 35 years (+5 years)
PwD (General)	Up to 40 years (+10 years)
PwD (SC/ST)	Up to 43 years (+13 years)
PwD (OBC)	Up to 45 years (+15 years)

Attempts Allowed for the IBPS Clerk Bank Exam

There is no limit on the number of attempts for the IBPS Clerk bank exam.

Age Limits for IBPS Clerk Bank Exam:

Age limit for General Category IBPS Clerk Bank Exam: 20 to 28 years.
Age limit for SC/ST IBPS Clerk Bank Exam: 20 to 33 years.
Age limit for OBC IBPS Clerk Bank Exam: 20 to 31 years.

Attempt Limit for IBPS RRB PO & Clerk

IBPS RRB PO (Officer Scale I) and RRB Clerk (Office Assistant) are both bank exams that allow unlimited attempts, but age restrictions apply.

IBPS vs. SBI vs. RBI: Which Bank Exam Should You Choose?

Age Limit for IBPS RRB Bank Exam:

Post	Age Limit (General Category)
Office Assistant (Clerk)	18 to 28 years
Officer Scale I (Assistant Manager/PO)	18 to 30 years
Officer Scale II (Manager)	21 to 32 years
Officer Scale III (Senior Manager)	21 to 40 years

Age Relaxation for IBPS RRB Bank Exam:

Add 3 years for OBC, 5 years for SC/ST, and up to 10 years for PwD candidates to crack the IBPS RRB competitive bank exam.

Attempt Limit allowed for RBI Grade B Bank Exam:

The RBI Grade B officer exam has strict attempt limits, the same as SBI PO.

RBI Grade B Attempts Limits:

Category	Maximum Attempts
General	6
OBC	9
SC/ST/PwD	No limit

Age Relaxation and Age Limit for RBI Grade B Bank Exam:

Age limit for the General category RBI Grade B Bank Exam: 21 to 30 years

Age Relaxations for Bank Exam RBI Grade B: OBC (3 years), SC/ST (5 years), PwD (10 years)

Note: Only appearance in phase 1 is counted as an attempt.

Summary Table–How Many Attempts Are Allowed for a Bank Exam?

Bank Exam Name	Number of Attempts for Major Bank Exams	Other Information
IBPS PO	Unlimited	Within age limit
IBPS Clerk	Unlimited	Within age limit
IBPS RRB PO	Unlimited	Within age limit
IBPS RRB Clerk	Unlimited	Within age limit
SBI Clerk	Unlimited	Within age limit
SBI PO	Limited	General: 4, OBC: 7, SC/ST: unlimited
RBI Grade B	Limited	General: 6, OBC: 9, SC/ST: unlimited

In Final Words:

Knowing the number of attempts allowed for the bank exam in India helps applicants to plan smarter. Bank exams reward the consistent, not just the persistent. Don’t wait for the final attempt; get serious from now. Treat your first attempt as the final attempt.

FAQs

Q1. How many times can we attempt the bank exams?

Ans. Bank exams, like IBPS PO/Clerk and RRB bank exams have an unlimited number of attempts, while SBI PO and RBI Grade B bank exams have limited attempts within age limits.

Q2. How many times have candidates applied for the SBI PO bank exam?

Ans. Candidates can apply for SBI PO bank exam, four times in general, seven times in OBC/General PwD, and unlimited times in SC/ST within the age limit.

Q3. Which is the toughest exam in banking?

Ans. According to the current trend, the RBI Grade B bank exam is the toughest exam in banking due to its huge syllabus and the difficulty level of the questions.

Q4. Which bank exam is easy?

Ans. IBPS RRB exams are the easiest; particularly the Office Assistant and Officer Scale I positions are easily cracked as compared to SBI PO bank exams and IBPS PO bank exams.

Q5. How many attempts are there in the IBPS Clerk bank exam?

Ans. There is no limit to attempt IBPS Clerk bank exam, but you must be within the age criteria (20 to 28 years for general).

Q6. Which bank exam has the best salary?

Ans. The RBI Grade B bank exam offers the highest salary, followed by the SBI PO bank exam, which includes perks, allowances and accommodation.

Q7. Which is better, IBPS or SBI bank exam?

Ans. The SBI bank exam offers better salary growth and brand value, but the competition is very tough, whereas the IBPS bank exam offers easy entry and flexibility.

Also Check:

How Many Attempts Are Allowed For Bank Exams?

Table of Contents

Dilpreet attempted the SBI PO bank exam 4 times; she did better in every new attempt. But when she tried for the 5th time for the SBI PO bank exam, her application was rejected. Why? She did not know she had hit the attempt limit. Don’t let that happen to you in the future.