Partnership in Bank Exams: One Rule Does It All
Partnership questions share a business profit among partners. In IBPS and SBI exams they come as direct questions, in caselet DI and in data sufficiency. Every type rests on one rule: profit is shared in the ratio of capital × time.
Key takeaway: Profit share ∝ Capital × Time. Same time for all: share by capital. Same capital: share by time. A working partner first takes the management share (salary or % of profit), then the rest is split by capital × time. If capital changes mid-year, add capital × months for each part.
Each answer below was computed in Python. For ratio-heavy caselets, see our caselet DI for SBI Clerk note.
Partnership Formulas
| Case | Profit ratio |
|---|---|
| Simple partnership (same time) | C₁ : C₂ : C₃ |
| Compound partnership | C₁T₁ : C₂T₂ : C₃T₃ |
| Capital changes in the year | Sum of (capital × months) for each period |
| Partner joins after m months (12-month year) | Capital × (12 − m) |
| Working partner gets x% for managing | Pay x% first, split the rest by C × T |
| Capitals in ratio a : b : c, times in ratio p : q : r | ap : bq : cr |
Solved Partnership Questions (IBPS and SBI Pattern)
- A invests ₹20,000 and B ₹30,000 for a year. Profit ₹15,000. Shares? Ratio 2 : 3 ⇒ A ₹6,000, B ₹9,000.
- A invests ₹12,000 for 12 months, B ₹18,000 for 8 months. Ratio? 1,44,000 : 1,44,000 = 1 : 1.
- A starts with ₹45,000; B joins after 3 months with ₹60,000. Year-end profit ₹34,000. B's share? 45,000 × 12 : 60,000 × 9 = 1 : 1 ⇒ ₹17,000.
- Capitals of A, B, C are 3 : 4 : 5 and times 4 : 3 : 2. Profit ₹8,500. C's share? Ratio 12 : 12 : 10 ⇒ C = 8,500 × 10/34 = ₹2,500.
- A is a working partner and gets 10% of the profit for managing; capitals are 2 : 3. Profit ₹50,000. A's total? 5,000 + 45,000 × 2/5 = ₹23,000.
- A invests ₹40,000 and withdraws half after 6 months; B invests ₹30,000 for the year. Ratio? (40,000 × 6 + 20,000 × 6) : 30,000 × 12 = 3,60,000 : 3,60,000 = 1 : 1.
- A invests ₹50,000 for the year. B joins later with ₹60,000 and their profits are equal. After how many months did B join? 50,000 × 12 = 60,000 × (12 − m) ⇒ m = 2.
Tricks for Partnership Questions
- Cancel zeros first: 45,000 × 12 : 60,000 × 9 becomes 45 × 12 : 60 × 9 = 540 : 540.
- Equal-profit questions: set C₁T₁ = C₂T₂ and solve for the missing value.
- Ratio of ratios: capital ratio × time ratio term by term, then simplify.
- Read "after", "for" and "before the end": "joins after 3 months" means 9 months in a 12-month year.
Common Mistakes in Partnership Questions
- Splitting profit only by capital when times differ.
- Forgetting to remove the working partner's salary before splitting.
- Counting months wrongly when a partner joins or leaves mid-year.
- Splitting the total investment instead of the profit.
Partnership Questions FAQs
What is the formula for profit sharing in partnership?
Profit is shared in the ratio of capital × time for each partner (C₁T₁ : C₂T₂ : …).
What is the difference between simple and compound partnership?
In a simple partnership all partners invest for the same time, so profit follows the capital ratio. In a compound partnership times differ, so profit follows capital × time.
How is a working partner paid?
The agreed management share (a salary or a percentage of profit) is paid first; the remaining profit is shared by capital × time.
Practice Next
- Mock tests: IBPS PO Quantitative Aptitude Sectional Mock Test 01, IBPS Clerk Numerical Ability Sectional Mock Test 04 and IBPS PO Quantitative Aptitude Mock Test: Percentage, Profit and Loss.
- New topic tests with a partnership question: IBPS Clerk Arithmetic Word Problems Test 01 and SBI Clerk Arithmetic Word Problems Test 01.
- SBI partnership topic tests: SBI PO Partnership Mock Test 01 and SBI Clerk Partnership Mock Test 01.
- Related notes: age problems for bank exams, caselet DI for SBI Clerk, mixture and alligation questions for bank exams and percentage tricks for SSC CGL; also see ratio and proportion for SSC CGL.
- Browse all study notes.