# Floor Arrangement Reasoning Puzzle for IBPS PO — 13 Oct 2026

> 5-person floor arrangement puzzle (2026-10-13) — Neha, Lata, Nikhil, Tanvi, Meera. 4 logic clues, one provable answer. Free IBPS PO & SSC practice.

Source: https://deducepuzzles.com/blog/2026-10-13-floor-arrangement-puzzle

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Published: 2026-10-13 · Difficulty: medium · 4 clues · 5 people
Exams: IBPS Clerk · SBI Clerk · SSC CHSL

## The puzzle

Neha, Lata, Nikhil, Tanvi, Meera — live on different floors — floor 1 is the lowest, floor 5 is the topmost. Using the clues below, work out the arrangement.

1. Neha lives on a floor somewhere above Meera.
2. Lata lives on the topmost floor.
3. Tanvi lives on an odd-numbered floor.
4. There are exactly 3 floors between Lata and Nikhil.

## Answer

Floor 5: Lata (top) down to Floor 1: Nikhil (lowest).

Floor 5: Lata · Floor 4: Neha · Floor 3: Tanvi · Floor 2: Meera · Floor 1: Nikhil

## Step-by-step solution

1. Start: 120 possible arrangements of 5 people.
2. Clue 2 — "Lata lives on the topmost floor." ⇒ Lata → floor 5 (24 possibilities left). Board (top → bottom): Lata · _ · _ · _ · _
3. Clue 4 — "There are exactly 3 floors between Lata and Nikhil." ⇒ Nikhil → floor 1 (6 possibilities left). Board (top → bottom): Lata · _ · _ · _ · Nikhil
4. Clue 3 — "Tanvi lives on an odd-numbered floor." ⇒ Tanvi → floor 3 (2 possibilities left). Board (top → bottom): Lata · _ · Tanvi · _ · Nikhil
5. Clue 1 — "Neha lives on a floor somewhere above Meera." ⇒ Neha → floor 4, Meera → floor 2 (1 possibility left). Board (top → bottom): Lata · Neha · Tanvi · Meera · Nikhil
6. Exactly one arrangement survives every clue — that is the answer.

## How to crack floor arrangement puzzles faster

- Floor puzzles are **vertical rows** — treat floor 1 as "leftmost" and floor N as "rightmost" in your mental model.
- "Lives above" means a **higher floor number**. "Immediately above" means exactly one floor apart.
- "Exactly k floors between" gives a **fixed vertical gap** — try it at each valid pair of floors.
- Write the floor numbers 1 to N on paper and fill names as you lock positions — the visual stack prevents errors.

## FAQ

### Who lives on the top floor?

Lata lives on the top floor. The full arrangement from top to bottom: Lata, Neha, Tanvi, Meera, Nikhil.

### How do you solve floor arrangement puzzles for bank exams?

Treat floors as a vertical stack: lock the topmost and lowest first, then place intermediate floors using 'above/below' clues. Transfer the stack to paper numbered 1 to N and fill names as each clue eliminates possibilities.

## Learn the method

This post is one worked example. The topic page for floor puzzles carries the full method,
the clue-wording table and the mistakes that cost marks: https://deducepuzzles.com/reasoning/floor-arrangement

Play a fresh server-validated puzzle every day: https://deducepuzzles.com