McKinsey case interview practice

McKinsey practice cases you can run out loud

A McKinsey case is interviewer-led. The interviewer holds the order of questions, hands you one exhibit at a time, and scores each answer on its own, so every chart and every calculation is a separate test. Reading cases teaches you the shape of that. Running them out loud, with someone waiting for your number, is what gets you ready for it.

This page puts both in one place: the five sample cases McKinsey publishes, what each question type asks of you, and 38 interviewer-led cases you can run tonight with an AI interviewer that shows the exhibits and grades you against the answer key.

See the 38 cases Start with an easy one

What McKinsey's process looks like

From McKinsey's own interviewing page, as of October 2026. Your recruiter confirms the details for your role.

Assessment

Solve

A gamified problem-solving assessment used for most consulting roles. McKinsey says there is no need to prepare for it.

Interview

Personal Experience Interview

Detailed conversations about experiences that mattered to you. McKinsey suggests two examples for each of its four themes, led by your reasoning, not a rehearsed story.

Interview

Problem Solving Interview

The case. A typical client scenario, worked through question by question. McKinsey asks candidates to listen carefully and give tailored answers rather than standard frameworks.

McKinsey's own five practice cases

Start here. McKinsey publishes these with the logic and suggested answers, and they are the best guide to the kinds of questions you will get. They are written walkthroughs, so read each one, then practice the same question types out loud with the cases further down.

Beautify

A global beauty company weighs training in-store consultants to sell through virtual channels.
Diconsa

Using a government store network in rural Mexico to offer basic financial services, for the Gates Foundation.
Electro-Light

Launching a reduced-sugar sports drink for a major beverage company.
Transforming a national education system

Diagnosing why a country's schools underperform and how to fix them.
Talbot Trucks

Whether a European truck maker should build and sell electric trucks.

All five are on McKinsey's interviewing page, under practice cases.

The five questions in a McKinsey case, and where to drill each one

Because each question is scored on its own, you can practice them as separate skills. Each line names three of our cases where that question is hardest, using the casebooks' own stretch labels.

1

Structure the problem

Lay out how you would attack an unfamiliar question, then say where you would start. McKinsey asks for tailored structures, not recited frameworks.

Happy Bellies Electro Chargers Avalon
2

Read the exhibit

A chart or table lands and the question is what you see. Footnotes, units and the one bar that breaks the pattern decide it.

Healthy Foods Polystore Smart Radiators
3

Do the math out loud

Set the calculation up before you multiply, say your units, and sanity-check the answer against the business.

Lux Rides Pink Cross Coolant Co.
4

Brainstorm in buckets

Ideas grouped so the interviewer can see the structure, with the two that matter most named first.

PSU Bank Co.Fruit Drink Co.Busch's Barber Shop
5

Recommend and hold it

Answer first, then reasons, risks and next steps. Then the push-back, built from something you said earlier.

High Q Plastics Kellogg Capital Surfside

38 McKinsey-style cases, by case type

Every case runs interviewer-led, the McKinsey way, with the casebook's own exhibits on screen and a report graded against its answer key. They come from the Kellogg, Wharton and Booth casebooks and The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook.

Market entry (12)

Profitability and cost (9)

Growth and new products (7)

M&A and investment (4)

Pricing (2)

Operations and public sector (4)

McKinsey-style cases inside the casebooks

If you are working through casebooks with a partner, these are the cases four clubs mark as McKinsey-modeled, McKinsey-style or interviewer-led. The ones live on Tough Tongue AI link straight to a run.

Booth 2024-25: modeled on McKinsey (8)

1. Army Hotel Run
5. Cleaning Products book
9. Contact Lenses book
11. Electric Utility book
22. Linda's Great Burgers book
30. PyeongChang Winter Olympics book
31. Quahog Public Schools book
34. Smart Cards book

Full casebook index →

Wharton 2024-25: interviewer-led (6)

2. Happy Bellies Run
5. PSU Bank Co. Run
8. Coolant Co. Run
11. Thomas the Tank book
13. Timeless Comfort book
16. University Program book

Full casebook index →

Kellogg 2024: interviewer-led (6)

Bubbly LLC Run
DigiBooks Run
Garthwaite Healthcare Run
Mustard Clinic book
Rotisserie Ranch book
Sosland Sports book

Full casebook index →

Fuqua 2023-24: McKinsey style (2)

Colombian Hippos book
Water Provision Scheme book

Full casebook index →

Using AI to prepare, by McKinsey's own rules

McKinsey is unusually clear about this. Its interviewing page marks practicing interview questions with AI, and asking AI to explain concepts or frameworks, as encouraged. It marks generating answers in real time during an interview, and using AI in an assessment unless it is allowed, as not allowed.

So the line is simple: rehearse with AI as much as you like before the day, and walk in on your own. An AI mock interview is the rehearsal. It is not something to have running during the real call.

Rehearse the video call too

McKinsey's virtual interview tips are practical: a quiet room, pen and paper and water within reach, camera on, and any AI note-taking tools switched off. On a paid plan, the Tough Tongue interviewer can join a Google Meet or Zoom call and run the case there, so the call itself stops being new.

Keep the Personal Experience Interview in the plan as well. It is a separate conversation, and candidates who spend every hour on cases often walk in with stories that are not ready.

Frequently asked questions

Does McKinsey publish practice cases?

Yes. McKinsey's interviewing page lists five sample cases with the logic and suggested answers: Beautify, Diconsa, Electro-Light, Transforming a national education system, and Talbot Trucks. They are written cases, so they show the question types well but cannot rehearse saying your answer out loud while someone listens.

What does the McKinsey case interview look like?

McKinsey calls it the Problem Solving Interview. The interviewer presents a typical client situation and asks a set of questions in order: how you would structure the problem, what an exhibit shows, a calculation, a brainstorm, and a recommendation. That interviewer-led format means each question is scored on its own. Most client-facing candidates also have Personal Experience Interviews about their own past experiences.

Where can I practice McKinsey-style cases with an interviewer?

Tough Tongue AI runs 38 interviewer-led cases from the Kellogg, Wharton and Booth casebooks and The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook as voice interviews. The interviewer asks the questions in McKinsey order, puts each exhibit on your screen when the case reaches it, waits while you do the math, pushes back on your recommendation, and grades you against the case's answer key.

Can I use AI to prepare for a McKinsey interview?

Yes, for preparation. McKinsey's interviewing page lists practicing interview questions and asking AI to explain concepts or frameworks as encouraged, and lists generating real-time answers during an interview and using AI during assessments as not allowed. Use AI mock interviews before the day, and nothing during it.

What is McKinsey Solve?

Solve is the gamified assessment McKinsey uses in its process for most consulting roles. McKinsey says it tests natural problem-solving and that there is no need to prepare for it. It is separate from the case interview, which is a live conversation with a McKinsey interviewer.

How many McKinsey practice cases should I do?

Most consulting clubs suggest 20 to 40 full cases before first rounds, and the Wharton Consulting Club's casebook puts typical preparation at 60 to 80 hours. For McKinsey, weight them toward interviewer-led cases with exhibits, and redo each case once after reading the feedback, because the redo is where the fix sticks.

More: case interview prep hub · MBB case interview prep with AI · the best AI case interview tools

Run a McKinsey-style case tonight

Pick one question type you are weakest at, run a case that stretches it, and read where the points went.

Open the case collection