CA Foundation Jan 2027 Maths mock test: fixed chapter counts
For a CA Foundation Jan 2027 Maths mock test, copy what ICAI keeps the same: how many questions most chapters get. In January, May and September 2026, Quantitative Aptitude had 14 questions on mathematics of finance every time, 4 each on permutations and combinations, sequence and series, sets and functions, and calculus, and 5 on each Logical Reasoning chapter. That is 50 of the 100 marks in a fixed shape. Practise to that shape, and learn the eight question types that came in all three papers.
Paper 3 has 100 MCQs of one mark each, in 2 hours with no reading time. A wrong answer loses a quarter mark. Paper 3 is one of four Foundation papers held on 3, 5, 7 and 9 January 2027, as ICAI's exam schedule (PDF) (opens in a new tab) sets out. ICAI's syllabus fixes the parts: Business Mathematics 40, Logical Reasoning 20 and Statistics 40 (Paper 3 syllabus, PDF (opens in a new tab)). For the other three papers' formats, read CA Foundation exam pattern and marking.
CA Foundation Maths chapter wise weightage: ICAI's last 3 papers
We tagged all 300 questions of ICAI's three 2026 papers to their study material chapters. The January and May papers are printed inside ICAI's suggested answers for January 2026 (PDF) (opens in a new tab) and May 2026 (PDF) (opens in a new tab); September is the Paper 3 question paper (PDF) (opens in a new tab).
| Chapter | Jan 26 | May 26 | Sep 26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics of finance | 14 | 14 | 14 |
| Ratio, proportion, indices, logarithms | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Equations | 4 | 2 | 5 |
| Linear inequalities | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Permutations and combinations | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Sequence and series | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Sets, relations, functions, limits | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Calculus | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Business Mathematics | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Number series, coding, odd man out | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Direction tests | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Seating arrangements | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Blood relations | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Logical Reasoning | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| Central tendency and dispersion | 10 | 10 | 11 |
| Statistical description of data | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| Sampling | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| Probability | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| Theoretical distributions | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| Correlation and regression | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Index numbers | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Statistics | 40 | 40 | 40 |
Tagging is our own reading; a surd or a ratio question could sit under a neighbouring chapter and move a count by one. Our CA Foundation Jan 2027 chapter wise weightage puts Paper 3 beside the other three subjects.
What the counts tell you:
- Mathematics of finance is the single biggest chapter, at 14 marks, three times out of three. It is worth more than all of Logical Reasoning's direction and seating questions together.
- Only the first three Business Mathematics chapters move. Ratio, equations and inequalities moved around but always shared 10 questions between them; everything else in Business Mathematics was fixed.
- Statistics is steadier than it looks. Correlation and index numbers were 5 each every time, and central tendency and dispersion 10 or 11.
8 CA Foundation Maths question types asked every time
These came in all three 2026 papers (question numbers in brackets, January / May / September):
| Type | Chapter | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Effective rate with quarterly compounding | Finance | Q60 / Q11 / Q8 |
| CAGR | Finance | Q11 / Q65 / Q60 |
| Future value of an annuity | Finance | Q6 / Q7 / Q5 |
| Sum of an infinite GP | Sequence and series | Q13 / Q16 / Q64 |
| A definite or indefinite integral | Calculus | Q72 / Q18 / Q71 |
| AM, GM and HM relation | Central tendency | Q85 / Q91 / Q36 |
| Quartile deviation | Dispersion | Q88 / Q90 / Q90 |
| r from the two regression coefficients | Correlation | Q45 / Q100 / Q47 |
Also in all three: a Poisson and a normal distribution question, Spearman's rank correlation, Fisher's index, a logarithm, numbers formed from digits, letter-shift coding, a circular seating puzzle, and table parts such as stub and caption. If you can do every type in this list in under a minute, you have about a fifth of the paper in hand. Every question type ICAI set in each chapter, and the 14 questions it asked a second time in 2026, are in our CA Foundation maths important questions.
Is a calculator allowed in CA Foundation Maths?
Yes, a simple one, not a scientific one. ICAI's Guidance Notes allow a calculator "of any type upto 6 functions, 12 digits and upto two memories" and add that a "Scientific calculator is not allowed" (Foundation Guidance Notes, September 2026, PDF (opens in a new tab)).
That matters because ICAI does not give every power you need. It printed values like (1.07)⁵ and P(10, 0.18) in May 2026 and [(1.08)⁵ = 1.4693] in September, but it left others, such as a fourth power of 1.03 or a root of a growth factor, for you to work out. Three habits that work on a basic calculator:
- Powers: type 1.03, press × and then = three times to get the fourth power (on most basic calculators = repeats the last operation; check yours).
- Fourth root: press √ twice. An eighth root is √ three times.
- Memory keys: M+ and MR hold Σfx while you work out Σfx² for a standard deviation.
Use the same calculator in every mock that you will take into the hall.
Worked example 1: CAGR with the √ key
Question (written by us): a fund grew from ₹1,00,000 to ₹1,46,410 in 4 years. What is its CAGR?
- Growth factor = 1,46,410 ÷ 1,00,000 = 1.4641.
- CAGR = (1.4641)^(1/4) − 1. Press √ twice: √1.4641 = 1.21, √1.21 = 1.1.
- CAGR = 1.1 − 1 = 10%.
The trap options would be 11.6% (46.41% ÷ 4, a simple average) and 46.41% (the total growth). Twenty seconds, if the √√ habit is automatic.
Worked example 2: correlation from regression coefficients
Question (written by us): the regression coefficients are bxy = −0.8 and byx = −0.45. Find r.
- r² = bxy × byx = 0.36, so r = ±0.6.
- r takes the sign of the coefficients, which are both negative: r = −0.6.
The trap is +0.6. ICAI's papers have offered both signs side by side, so write the sign before you look at the options.
The traps in ICAI's Maths options
- Wrong sign or a neighbour value, as above, or the median offered next to the mode.
- Change of origin and scale: adding a constant to every value shifts the mean but not the standard deviation or the range; multiplying by a constant changes the mean, the standard deviation and the range.
- Percentages for coefficients: in January 2026 ICAI's key gave a coefficient of quartile deviation as 60 with 0.6 also on offer, so read whether the options are in per cent.
- New formats: September 2026 had three match-the-following questions, a format that January and May 2026 didn't use. Practise a few.
- A question with no right option happens. ICAI's May 2026 key notes "None of the options are correct" for two questions. If an answer isn't there after one honest re-check, move on.
How to attempt the CA Foundation Maths paper in 2 hours
ICAI numbers the paper in two cycles: Business Mathematics, then Logical Reasoning, then Statistics, and the same again from about Question 50. Plan around the cycles:
| Clock | Target |
|---|---|
| 2:00 to 2:50 PM | Questions 1 to 50. Skip anything that needs more than 90 seconds and mark it |
| 2:50 to 3:40 PM | Questions 51 to 100, same rule |
| 3:40 to 3:55 PM | Marked questions, long Statistics first (combined standard deviation, Bayes, Fisher) |
| 3:55 to 4:00 PM | Check every OMR bubble sits against the right question number |
Logical Reasoning is the fastest 20 marks once each type is drilled: each seating question in ICAI's 2026 papers was its own short puzzle, so draw a quick, clean diagram for each one. In a mock, write the answers as "37 – B" against the question numbers at the start of the answer book.
Guess only when you can strike out at least one option. The quarter-mark rule makes a blind guess roughly break-even. The numbers are worked in how to pass CA Foundation Jan 2027.
What applies to CA Foundation Maths for Jan 2027
Paper 3 uses the August 2024 study material (Reprint August 2025 onwards), and ICAI's notice names no RTP for it (ICAI notice, PDF (opens in a new tab)). There are no amendments, since the paper is not law-based. Topics inside the syllabus that are easy to skip, and that can still be asked: bond valuation and EMI, circular permutations, continuity, and non-sampling errors. ICAI's MTPs and past papers are on our CA Foundation MTPs and CA Foundation past year question papers pages.
How our CA Foundation Jan 2027 Maths mock tests follow these counts
Our CA Foundation Quantitative Aptitude mock tests are three complete Paper 3s, each scored exactly like ICAI's (+1, −¼, zero for a blank), with new questions set by 15+ qualified CA faculty. Each keeps ICAI's 40–20–40 split, 14 questions on mathematics of finance and 5 on each reasoning chapter, with 10 to 15 long questions and wrong options built from real slips. Across the three, every chapter of the study material comes up.
You write the option letters by hand, scan and upload one PDF, and get your checked copy within 24 hours, with suggested answers that show the working and the slip behind each wrong option. Before buying, you can open preview pages of Maths Mock 1; our CA Foundation Jan 2027 mock test plan dates all three.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions come from mathematics of finance in CA Foundation?
Fourteen, in each of ICAI's January, May and September 2026 papers: compound interest, effective rate, annuities, sinking funds, NPV, CAGR, perpetuities and depreciation.
Which chapters are fixed in CA Foundation Maths?
In all three 2026 papers: mathematics of finance 14; permutations and combinations, sequence and series, sets and functions, and calculus 4 each; every Logical Reasoning chapter 5; correlation and index numbers 5 each.
Is CA Foundation Maths difficult for non-maths students?
The paper rewards practice more than background. Logical Reasoning (20 marks) needs no school maths at all, and most Statistics questions need one formula and two or three steps. Start with those, then build up mathematics of finance. Every formula, chapter by chapter, is on one page in the CA Foundation Maths formula sheet.
How many marks is Statistics in CA Foundation?
Forty, fixed by ICAI's syllabus. Central tendency and dispersion is the largest part, with 10 or 11 questions in each 2026 paper.
Is there negative marking in CA Foundation Paper 3?
Yes: a quarter of a mark for each wrong answer, nothing for a blank, and more than one option for a question counts as wrong.
Your next step
Your first job is a diagnosis: sit ICAI's September 2026 Paper 3 against a 120-minute timer, and put a tick on the chapter table above for every question you got wrong. The rows with the most ticks are your revision list. Late November is the time for full-length CA mock tests: the CA Foundation test series has all four papers, and the CA test series home page lists every level. Also worth a read: the CA Foundation Accounts mock test, the Economics mock test and the Law mock test.