Data Interpretation Exit
Quantitative aptitude

Data Interpretation

DI is speed arithmetic on a table. Read the question first, then only the cells it needs; approximate with the fraction table.

Start with this

A chart is a question you answer by reading carefully. Half the marks in DI are lost by reading the wrong year, the wrong unit or the wrong bar.

DI sets carry 4 or 5 questions on one table or chart, so one set is worth a lot of marks. The maths is percentages, ratios and averages; the skill is reading.

Read before you calculate

Read the title, the units (thousands? lakhs? %?), the axes and the legend before the first question.

Then approximate: DI options are usually far enough apart that rounding to 2 significant figures is enough.

1202021150202213520231802024
Sales of a company (Rs crore)

Worked example

From the chart: by what percent did sales grow from 2021 to 2024?

  1. Change = 180 - 120 = 60.
    Why: Read the two bars.
  2. 60 / 120 × 100.
    Why: Percentage change is over the earlier year.
  3. 50%.

Answer: 50%

Worked example

Average sales over the four years?

  1. 120 + 150 + 135 + 180 = 585.
  2. 585 / 4 = 146.25 crore.

Answer: 146.25

Pie charts

A pie chart shows shares of a whole. Sector angle = share × 360. A 90 degree sector is a quarter.

To get the actual value: share % × total.

30%Rent (30)25%Food (25)15%Travel (15)20%Savings (20)10%Other (10)
Monthly spending of a family (%)

Worked example

If the family earns Rs 60,000 a month, how much more is spent on rent than on travel?

  1. Rent - travel = 30% - 15% = 15%.
    Why: Work with the percentages first; multiply once.
  2. 15% of 60,000 = 9,000.

Answer: 9000

Worked example

What is the angle of the Food sector?

  1. 25% of 360.
  2. = 90 degrees.

Answer: 90

Tables and line charts

For a table, circle the row and column you need before calculating. For a line chart, the steepest segment is the biggest change, and a fall shows a line going down.

Ratios across years: compare using fractions of the same base, not by computing each value.

Shortcut: Growth % by fractions

Use it when: Old 120, new 150.

  1. 30/120 = 1/4 = 25%, no division needed.

Growth % by fractions: try it

120 → 150

  1. 1/4.

Answer: 25%

Your turn medium

Same table: overall % growth from 2024 to 2025 (2 d.p.)?

  1. 700 → 783: 83/700.

Answer: 11.86%

Your turn hard

Same sales table: company B's share of total 2025 sales (2 d.p.)?

  1. 210 / 783.

Answer: 26.82%

Your turn hard

Production (thousand units) 2021-2025: 40, 50, 45, 60, 72. Which year had the highest % growth over the year before?

  1. 2022 +25%, 2023 -10%, 2024 +33.3%, 2025 +20%.

Answer: 2024

Recap

Now practise

8 questions with full solutions.

Open practice Back to the lesson