What GMAT flashcards should train

The GMAT tests reasoning from information in the question, not just recall. Flashcards work best when they make you practise a decision: what the prompt gives you, what it asks for, and which steps will get you there without wasting time. A card that only asks you to recite a formula may not prepare you to choose when to use it.

The exam is computer-based and adaptive, with time-limited multiple-choice sections covering quantitative reasoning, verbal reasoning and data interpretation or analysis. Some versions also include an analytical writing task. Check the official GMAT website for the current exam structure and details for your test. Whatever version you sit, accuracy and pacing matter: a correct approach that takes too long can still leave you short of time.

The deck below covers useful reasoning moves across quantitative, verbal and data questions. It is a practice set, not a claim about the exam’s exact question distribution. In MySummaries, a focused GMAT flashcard deck might look like this:

Cards — GMAT — reasoning under time pressure18 due

A price rises from $80 to $100. What is the percentage increase?

25%. The increase is $20; divide by the original $80: 20/80 = 25%.

All 18 cards
A price rises from $80 to $100. What is the percentage increase?25%. The increase is $20; divide by the original $80: 20/80 = 25%.
A value increases by 10%, then by 20%. What is the total percentage increase?32%. Successive changes multiply: 1.10 × 1.20 = 1.32.
The ratio of red to blue counters is 3:5 and there are 64 counters. How many are red?24. There are 8 equal parts, so each part is 8; red is 3 × 8.
The average of 5 numbers is 12. What is their total?60. Total = average × number of values = 12 × 5.
One worker completes a job in 6 hours and another in 3 hours. How long do they take working together at constant rates?2 hours. Their combined rate is 1/6 + 1/3 = 1/2 of the job per hour.
A car travels 60 km in the first hour and 90 km in the second. What is its average speed?75 km/h. Average speed is total distance divided by total time: 150/2.
A bag has 3 red and 2 blue counters. Two are drawn without replacement. What is the probability both are red?3/10. The probability is 3/5 × 2/4 = 6/20 = 3/10.
An integer is divisible by both 3 and 4. What must it be divisible by?12. The least common multiple of 3 and 4 is 12.
An integer n leaves remainder 2 when divided by 5. What remainder does n² leave when divided by 5?4. Write n = 5k + 2; then n² = 25k² + 20k + 4, leaving remainder 4.
If x + y = 11 and x − y = 3, what is x?7. Add the equations to get 2x = 14, so x = 7.
When you multiply both sides of an inequality by a negative number, what must you do?Reverse the inequality sign.
Solve |x − 3| < 2. What interval contains x?1 < x < 5. The distance between x and 3 is less than 2.
In a group of 40, 22 drink tea, 18 drink coffee and 7 drink both. How many drink neither?7. At least one = 22 + 18 − 7 = 33; neither = 40 − 33.
A study finds that people who exercise more also report better sleep. Does this alone show exercise caused the better sleep?No. The association alone does not establish causation; other factors could explain it, or the direction could be reversed.
An argument generalises from a survey. What feature of the sample most supports that generalisation?A sample that is representative of the population the conclusion concerns.
An argument claims a new policy reduced delays. What kind of evidence would most weaken that claim?Evidence that delays fell equally in comparable places that did not adopt the policy, suggesting another cause.
A verbal answer sounds plausible but is not directly supported by the passage. Should you select it as an inference?No. Choose only what follows from the passage; plausibility outside the text is not enough.
A chart shows a change from 20% to 25%. What is the increase in percentage points?5 percentage points. The relative increase is 25%, but the difference between the two percentages is 5 points.

That is a MySummaries deck, filled with GMAT material. Yours is written from your own notes. Start free

Work through the deck, not past it

Take each card in order. Read the question, decide on an answer and a method, then reveal the answer. Before grading yourself, compare your reasoning with the explanation. A correct number reached by an unreliable shortcut is not the same as a dependable method you can repeat under a time limit.

Use Again when you could not answer or made a reasoning error. Choose Hard when you got it right but needed a long or uncertain route. Choose Good for a correct answer with a clear method, and Easy when the answer and reasoning came quickly. Be honest: grading every familiar-looking prompt as easy makes the review schedule less useful.

For the percentage-change cards, notice the denominator. The first increase is measured against the starting value, while successive increases multiply. For rates, convert each worker’s time into a rate before combining them; do not add the completion times. For the counter problem, the second draw has a changed denominator because the first counter is not replaced. These are small set-up decisions, but skipping them is a common source of avoidable errors.

The verbal and data cards need a different habit. Separate what the question states from what you infer. A relationship between two measurements does not, by itself, establish a cause. A conclusion from a survey depends on whether the sample represents the population in question. For charts, identify whether the question asks for a difference in percentage points or a relative percentage change.

Make a small core from the deck

A useful core is short enough to revisit before a practice set. Keep rules that help you set up a problem correctly, rather than trying to memorise every answer in a question bank. These points summarise the decisions this deck practises:

Must not miss coreGMAT — reasoning under time pressure
Percentage change = change ÷ original value; successive percentage changes multiply their factors.
For combined work, add rates, not completion times; for average speed, divide total distance by total time.
For without-replacement probability, update the total and favourable outcomes after the first draw.
For verbal reasoning, distinguish evidence from assumption: association alone does not prove causation, and an inference must follow from the passage.
For data questions, check the denominator and distinguish percentage points from relative percentage change.

Use the core as a quick check after studying the cards. If you cannot explain a rule with a fresh example, mark the related card for another review. If you can state the rule but still miss a question, the problem may be identifying the right set-up rather than remembering the rule.

Turn repeated mistakes into another card

After a practice set, record the exact step that failed. “Careless mistake” is too vague to revise. Write down whether you used the wrong base for a percentage, combined times instead of rates, treated an association as proof, or read the chart’s units incorrectly. A useful remedial card asks for the decision that would prevent that specific error.

A repeated lost mark can become a short prompt in a remediation tray:

Remediation tray

You lost this mark twice: a chart rises from 20% to 25%. Is that a 5% increase or an increase of 5 percentage points? State both the difference and the relative change.

Add cardDismiss

Answer the tray card by naming both quantities: the difference is 5 percentage points, and the relative increase is 25% of the original 20%. If you miss it again, return to the chart card and explain the denominator aloud. This turns a repeated error into a specific correction, rather than another broad instruction to be more careful.

How MySummaries helps

Build a revision board from your own GMAT notes or practice material, then make flashcards from the rules and mistakes you need to revisit. Spaced repetition brings cards back for review, so you can spend more time on weak reasoning steps and less on material you already retrieve reliably. You can start at portal.mysummaries.app.