BCG Case Interview Practice: Free Case and Prep Resources
BCG's free case preparation is its case interview preparation page, OneDay@BCG (thirteen free job simulations with BCG's sample answers) and six practice cases from BCG France with interviewer notes. Those cases open candidate-led, closer to Bain's style than McKinsey's interviewer-led one: you restate the problem, ask clarifying questions, then propose a structure.BCG (opens in a new tab), read
Free, no signup: 2 worked BCG-style cases with model answers. Free, no card: your first full BCG-style case with an AI interviewer, a full Casey-style case and a full CCA-style diagnostic (each simulator starts with no account). Paid: Pro $49/month for every case, or one-time: the Casey pack $69 (all 10 cases) or the CCA pack $49.
Updated ·By Esteban Ronsin·Founder · former Deloitte and Accenture Strategy consultant
Built and reviewed with former McKinsey, BCG and Bain consultants and interviewers.
Free BCG interview prep resources
BCG interview prep resources: what you get, whether it is free or paid, and the link
Resource
What you get
Free or paid
Link
BCG case interview preparation
BCG's own description of the case interview, what interviewers assess, a do and don't list, and the free OneDay@BCG job simulation
BCG's free, self-paced job simulations on Forage: thirteen modules, from strategy consulting to data science, each with BCG's sample answers and a digital badge
23 BCG-style cases (6 operations, 6 profitability, 5 market entry, 4 growth, 2 M&A), run out loud with an AI interviewer or step by step and scored on 7 skills; start with UrbanBrew Coffee Margin Case
Free + paid. The case list and a worked excerpt are public; a free account includes 1 full AI-graded case in voice or guided mode; Pro ($49/month) adds every case
Larkspur Bakehouse: profitability case with answers Industry: Restaurants. Difficulty: medium.2 math questions.
BCG-style. Why did a growing bakery-café chain lose half its operating margin in two years, and how does it win it back? 6 questions, 2 exhibits, a model answer for each
Free. The whole case and every model answer, no account; the practice button opens a live case like it
BCG fit and behavioral questions answered out loud, with follow-up probes and structured feedback (choose BCG on the page)
Free + paid. 1 behavioral or Learning Mode session with a free account; Behavioral Unlimited ($39/month, behavioral and PEI only) or any Pro plan adds more
Firm-style cases are practice cases written for Road to Offer or adapted from university consulting club casebooks, not the firm's own cases. Road to Offer is independent and not affiliated with BCG.
Try a free BCG-style case now: no card, no signup
An original practice case written by Road to Offer in a BCG-style format, not BCG's own case. Everything stays in your browser.
Coffee Chain Profit: A coffee chain whose profit halved while sales grew
Written the way BCG France's interviewers describe the opening: ask a few clarifying questions, note the key data, take one to two minutes to write a structure, then an exhibit. The full version is UrbanBrew, our BCG-style library case. BCG (opens in a new tab), read
1Step 1: Read the case
A regional US coffee chain with 140 stores sells coffee, bakery items and sandwiches. Revenue grew last year, but EBITDA halved, from 24 million to 12 million dollars. The CEO asks you why profit fell and what can lift it within the next two quarters.
2Step 2: Ask clarifying questions
Open a question to hear the interviewer's answer.
Is customer traffic falling?
Interviewer: No. Traffic is stable to slightly up, and no stores closed last year.
Which part of the menu grew fastest?
Interviewer: Sandwiches, by revenue.
Did any costs change?
Interviewer: Wages went up. Scheduling is flexible, but we don't have labor productivity by store or by hour.
Can we change prices?
Interviewer: Selectively, yes. Management wants to protect quality and customer satisfaction.
Is there a profit target, or is growth the priority?
Interviewer: No numeric target, and no expansion for now: the priority is margin in the current stores.
Do we have results by store or region?
Interviewer: No. We have results by product category, which I can show you once you have a structure.
3Step 3: Structure your answer
Take two minutes. Lay out how you would find why profit halved while sales grew, then say where you would start and why.
2:00
Show what a strong structure covers
Plays the paradox back: sales up, EBITDA halved, so the problem is margin, not demand.
Revenue quality: traffic, the mix between coffee, bakery and sandwiches, and price.
Gross margin by category: which line's costs grew faster than its sales.
Costs below gross profit: labor (wages rose), promotions and other store costs.
Picks a starting point and says why, for example category margins first because the mix shifted toward sandwiches.
Ends with how a fix would be tested within two quarters without hurting quality or traffic.
4Step 4: The interviewer's next question
The interviewer shows an exhibit: revenue and gross profit by category, in millions of dollars, last year then this year. Coffee 120 and 78, then 126 and 81. Bakery 60 and 33, then 58 and 29. Sandwiches 45 and 27, then 56 and 23. What happened, and what do you say first?
Show what a strong answer does
Leads with the finding: total gross profit fell only 5 million (138 to 133), so most of the 12 million drop sits below gross profit, in labor and promotions. Then the detail: sandwich revenue rose 11 million while its gross profit fell 4 million (margin from 60% to about 41%), bakery also lost 4 million and coffee gained 3. It asks for the cost bridge next.
Flour costs rose 18% on a $4M flour bill, and prices went up 3% on $20M of sales. How much margin did Harbor lose?
Your answer
Flour went up by about $720K and the price rise brings in $600K, so the net hit is roughly $100K.
What worked
Split the change into a cost side and a price side before adding them up.
Could improve
$720K minus $600K is $120K, not $100K: state the exact net before rounding.
Model answer
Flour: 18% of $4M is $720K more cost. Price: 3% of $20M is $600K more revenue. Net margin loss: $120K.
Next time, say this
Cost is up $720K and price brings back $600K, so Harbor loses $120K of margin.
3
1
Choose a case
23 BCG-style cases to pick from.
2
Solve it out loud
An AI interviewer asks, listens and follows up.
3
Get answer feedback
Feedback on every answer: what worked, what to fix.
What makes BCG interviews different
Background first, then the case.
A BCG Associate describes a typical interview as a conversation about your background and motivation, followed by the case, which you work through together with the interviewer. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
A structure in one to two minutes.
BCG France's interviewers advise a few clarifying questions, noting the key data, then one to two minutes to write a structure before you solve. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Written cases as well as oral.
BCG France's practice library includes two written cases: a partner's email, a pack of documents, and three to five slides to present in 15 minutes. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
No single right answer.
BCG says there isn't always one right answer in a case; what matters most is how you approach the problem and the quality of your reasoning. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Two online screens in the US.
Every US applicant gets the Consultant Career Assessment (CCA); a select group then takes an online case of about 35 minutes. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
No AI in the room.
BCG France's candidate honor code excludes AI tools, note-taking plug-ins and problem-solving software during interviews. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: BCG, read Nov 9, 2026.
BCG France's case library: three oral cases for two people, one solo oral case and two written cases, each a PDF with notes or corrections. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Four steps.
Application, skills interview, case interview and team interview; the case and team interviews are for client-facing roles. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
BCG Switzerland: a 30-minute cognitive test, one virtual 45-minute case interview, then three in-person case interviews in Zurich. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: BCG, read Nov 9, 2026.
BCG's free case prep, item by item
Everything BCG's own careers pages offer for the case interview, plus the online screens BCG describes. Each line is our summary of the item's own page or file. BCG France and Japan also link three interactive quizzes at quiz.bcg.com; that address did not resolve when we checked, so they are left out. Read on BCG's site .
BCG's free case prep, item by item: level, area and what each one is, linked to BCG's page
BCG's page on the format: structure, ask questions, analyze data, do quick math; six do's and six don'ts; links OneDay@BCG and an Associate's blog on what BCG looks for.
Free, self-paced job simulations on Forage: thirteen modules, BCG's sample answers, a digital badge each, plus a virtual 3D office with videos from BCGers.
A luxury jewelry and watch brand in France and Japan whose shareholder wants more ambition: plan how to triple sales in five years. In French, with interviewer notes and a video version.
A French property administrator built by mergers: its rental management business grows steadily while profitability falls. In French, with interviewer notes.
A premium leather-goods brand whose collections grew more complex wonders what that does to store profit, down to how many styles a store should carry. In French, with interviewer notes.
A partner's email and an industry pack on an Australian wine producer: is the US the right priority, with which products, and why Australian wines compete there. Three to five slides, 15 minutes to present. In English.
South America's poultry leader eyes western Europe: pick one segment, size France, Italy and Germany, and say how to win beyond cost. Three to five slides, 15 minutes to present. In English.
Thirty minutes of multiple-choice numerical, verbal and logical questions, answered without tools, before the first case interview.
Worked: Glacier, in BCG France's case tips
Europe's ice-cream leader holds 31% of the European market. Its sales are very seasonal and 90% of its costs are fixed, so it earns well in summer and loses heavily in winter, and it suspects its sales swing more than the market's. BCG France's solo case asks you to help it cut its winter losses, one question at a time, with a correction to check after each. Read the official case (opens in a new tab)(read )
How you might work it is ours, not BCG's answer key.
1
Clarify, and write down the data
Before structuring, confirm what a winter loss means here (an operating loss in the low months), what the company sells and where. Write down the two numbers everything rests on: a 31% market share and 90% fixed costs.
2
Take a minute or two for a structure
The case first asks you to picture the problem. Sketch monthly sales as a summer peak over a flat line of fixed costs: the winter months fall below the line. The structure follows from the picture: earn more in winter, or carry less cost in winter.
3
Talk the interviewer through it, with interim conclusions
When the interviewer raises storage, reason from your own sketch before answering: what the cost curve says about when the company produces, and what producing evenly all year would do to the plants and trucks sized for summer. Say the so-what in one sentence, then move on when the interviewer closes the idea.
4
Do the math out loud, then sanity-check it
The last question gives the company's share in two of three channels (40% of ice-cream parlours, which make 30% of the market, and 40% of supermarkets, which make 40%) and asks for its share in the third, cafés, hotels and leisure. Write the weighted average equal to 31% and solve for the unknown. The check: since both known shares sit above 31%, the third must sit well below it.
5
Close with levers, reasons and next steps
One recommendation, stated first: where the winter gap comes from and the two or three moves that close it, each with its reason. Then the next step, such as sizing the year-round channel by country, and the risk to watch.
BCG's consulting interviewers look for integrity, intellectual curiosity, creative thinking, a collaborative mindset and drive. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Approach over the answer
BCG says what matters most is “how you approach the problem and the quality of your reasoning”, not a single right answer. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Values and core competencies
A BCG recruiting specialist in Dubai says answers are reviewed “against both our values and the ‘core competencies’”. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Analysis over memorized solutions
BCG Switzerland says it values analysis over memorized solutions, and that logic matters more than perfect answers. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Frameworks are not the point
BCG Japan's tips warn that textbook frameworks are not always right for a case and ask you to weigh what would really work in the business, with the limited information given. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: BCG, read Nov 9, 2026.
The BCG interview process, and what trains each step
1
Application
Apply through BCG's careers portal. BCG's interview page links its own guidance on using AI in your application, and BCG says its OneDay@BCG job simulations can help you stand out on it.
BCG's US campus page asks applicants to complete the Consultant Career Assessment (CCA), then invites a select group to an online case of about 35 minutes, roughly two weeks after the deadline. Candidates call that online case Casey. Other offices can differ (BCG Switzerland starts with a 30-minute cognitive test), so follow your invitation.
A traditional interview on your experience, skills and motivation to join BCG. BCG lists five qualities it looks for: integrity, intellectual curiosity, creative thinking, a collaborative mindset and drive.
For client-facing roles: a realistic business problem you structure, ask questions about, analyse with data and quick calculations, and close with a recommendation. BCG says your approach matters more than a single right answer.
Also for client-facing roles, assessing problem-solving, analytical and communication skills. BCG's page does not say how many interviews each step has; your recruiter does.
Missing from BCG's pages: how many interviews a round has (only BCG Switzerland says), whether a case is candidate- or interviewer-led, how the CCA and the online case are scored, the name Casey, and English versions of BCG France's oral practice cases.
12 BCG-style interview questions
In our words, not BCG's, grouped by BCG's own steps, with what a strong answer does. Each links where to practice it.
Online case (US, select candidates)
BCG's US page: about 35 minutes, sent to a select group about two weeks after the deadline.
1A drugstore chain's loyalty-app sign-ups doubled, but repeat visits did not move. You have three minutes: which two factors would you look at first, and why?
What a strong answer does: Ranks two factors with a line of reasoning each (are the new members new customers or existing ones, and do the offers bring anyone back) instead of listing everything; a timed screen rewards a short, ranked answer.
2A chart shows cost per order by sales channel. Which channel would you cut first?
What a strong answer does: Reads the units, compares cost with revenue per order rather than cost alone, picks one channel and names the number behind the choice.
BCG: your experience, skills and motivation, against its five qualities.
3Tell me about a time you changed someone's mind with data.
What a strong answer does: Keeps the situation short, then the evidence, how you handled the pushback and a result in numbers; it shows the creative thinking and collaborative mindset BCG names.
What a strong answer does: Names something specific (a conversation with a BCGer, a OneDay@BCG module, a piece of BCG's work), ties it to your own experience and stays under a minute.
BCG France: ask clarifying questions, note the key data, take one to two minutes to write a structure.
5A regional hospital group wants to open urgent-care clinics. What do you ask before you structure anything?
What a strong answer does: Asks the two or three questions that would change the plan (the goal, profit or access; the budget; the timeline), plays the goal back and then stops asking.
6A European airline's on-time rate fell from 85% to 70% in a year. Structure the problem.
What a strong answer does: Splits causes the airline controls (turnaround, crews, maintenance) from outside causes (airports, weather, air traffic), and says which branch to test first and why.
7An outpatient care network is offered a fast-growing telehealth company. What would make the deal create value?
What a strong answer does: Separates stand-alone value, synergies and integration risk, asks for the price before judging, and names the one condition that would flip the answer.
BCG: analyze data and do quick calculations. BCG France: say your math out loud and sanity-check it as you go.
8How many battery-swap stations would an electric-scooter operator need in a city of two million people?
What a strong answer does: Builds from riders, trips a day and swaps per station, says each assumption out loud, rounds, and checks the result against something known.
9Sales grew 8% but operating profit fell 20%. You get a profit bridge. What do you say first?
What a strong answer does: Reads the biggest bars first, separates one-off items from recurring ones, and states the finding in one sentence before computing anything else.
BCG France's honor code excludes AI tools, note-taking plug-ins and problem-solving software during interviews. Practice without them. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
BCG Switzerland says it values analysis over memorized solutions; build the structure from the case in front of you. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Forgetting the behavioral part
A BCG alum quoted on BCG's interview page warns that interviews also include a behavioral portion, and to relate answers back to the job. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Missing the CCA window
In the US the CCA arrives 30 to 90 minutes after you apply and must be done within 48 hours. Apply when you have time to take it. Source: BCG, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: BCG, read Nov 9, 2026.
A BCG prep plan, day by day
The order follows BCG's own pages; the timing is our suggestion.
Days 1 and 2
Read BCG's own pages
Read the case interview preparation page and the interview process, then your office's page, which may name an online test or a written case.
Do Glacier alone and check each correction, then run an oral case with a partner playing the interviewer from BCG's notes. Try one written case under time.
Run a BCG-style case with an AI interviewer each day: lead the opening, take two minutes for the structure, then work the exhibit. Add a chart rep daily.
How should I prepare for the BCG case interview, and which free resources should I use?
Start with BCG's own free material: its case interview preparation page, the OneDay@BCG job simulations (the Strategy Consulting module is the closest to a case) and BCG France's six practice cases with interviewer notes. Then train each step BCG lists: the online assessment your invitation names (in the US, the CCA and, for a select group, the online case), the skills interview and the case interview. On Road to Offer a free account includes 1 full BCG-style case with AI feedback, one full Casey-style case and one full CCA-style diagnostic, and the worked BCG-style cases with model answers need no account. Firm-style cases are practice cases written for Road to Offer or adapted from university consulting club casebooks, not the firm's own cases.
Where can I practice BCG-style case interviews for free?
BCG's own practice cases come first: BCG France publishes four oral cases (in French) and two written cases (in English) with interviewer notes, free to download. Road to Offer has 23 BCG-style cases you run out loud with an AI interviewer or step by step; your first full case is free with a free account. Larkspur Bakehouse (profitability) and Tessaline Water Systems (market entry) are free to read with a model answer for every question, no account.
What free preparation does BCG offer for its case interview, like OneDay@BCG, and how should I use it?
Three things, all free. BCG's case interview preparation page explains the format with six do's and six don'ts. OneDay@BCG is a set of thirteen self-paced job simulations on Forage, each with BCG's sample answers and a digital badge; the Strategy Consulting module, a fictional tech client with falling profits, is the closest to a case. BCG France adds six practice cases with interviewer notes, four oral and two written. Use them in that order: read the page, do one or two OneDay modules and compare your work with BCG's answers, then run the practice cases out loud with a partner, because OneDay is written and self-paced, not a live interview.
Is OneDay@BCG part of the BCG application?
No. BCG presents OneDay@BCG as a way to see the work from the inside, and says it can help you stand out on your application and earn digital badges to share; its pages do not say the modules are scored or required. You sign up through Forage, and BCG France says you can compare your results with the model answers after each activity.
Does BCG publish its own practice cases?
Yes, on BCG France's Let's Practice page: Horlogerie & Joaillerie (growth strategy), Gérance Immobilière and Maroquinerie (profitability), oral cases for two people with notes for the person playing the interviewer; Glacier, a solo profitability case with a correction after each question; and two written cases, Château Boomerang and Chick&Co. BCG's global page publishes none. BCG France and Japan also link three interactive case quizzes at quiz.bcg.com (a climate strategy, a digital bank, a cloud migration), but that address did not resolve on November 9, 2026.
Is the BCG online case (Casey) the same as the CCA?
No. BCG's US campus page names two steps: the Consultant Career Assessment (CCA), sent 30 to 90 minutes after you apply, about 30 to 35 minutes long and due within 48 hours; then an online case of about 35 minutes for a select group, about two weeks after the deadline. Casey is the name used on bcg.com by the alumnus who built it: a case chatbot with structured questions, free-text answers and a video summary. Road to Offer's Casey-style simulator opens its first two questions with no account and finishes one full case free with an account; all 10 cases are $69 one-time. The CCA-style simulator has a two-question preview and one free full diagnostic; the CCA pack is $49 one-time.
What does the BCG fit interview cover?
BCG calls it the skills interview: your experience, skills and motivation to join BCG, with a behavioral portion. BCG lists five qualities: integrity, intellectual curiosity, creative thinking, a collaborative mindset and drive. Prepare one story per quality and say it out loud; Road to Offer's fit practice asks the questions with follow-up probes, 1 session free with a free account.
Is the BCG case interview candidate-led or interviewer-led?
BCG's pages use neither term. BCG France's own practice cases open the way a candidate-led case does: you restate the problem, ask clarifying questions and propose a structure after about a minute; then the interviewer asks a series of questions and hands out data. A BCG Associate describes the case as a problem you work through together with the interviewer. Prepare to lead the opening and to follow the interviewer's questions after it.
How long is a BCG interview, and how many rounds are there?
It depends on the office. BCG France says each interview runs 45 to 60 minutes: about 15 to 20 minutes on your background and motivation, the case, then your questions. BCG Switzerland describes a 30-minute cognitive test, one 45-minute virtual first-round interview, then three in-person case interviews in Zurich. BCG's global FAQ says the number and structure of interviews vary by position and region.
Can I use AI during BCG interviews?
No. BCG France's candidate honor code excludes any computer assistance or outside resources during interviews, naming AI tools, note-taking plug-ins and problem-solving software. For the application, BCG's US page says AI can help you prepare, but not as a substitute for your own insights, voice or experiences.
Does BCG use a written case?
Some offices may. BCG France's practice library includes two written cases: a partner's email, a pack of industry documents and a short presentation of three to five slides that you present in 15 minutes. BCG's US and global pages do not mention a written case, so ask your recruiter.
Does BCG give feedback if my application is not selected?
Not at the application stage. BCG's candidate FAQ says that, because of the volume of applications, it cannot give individual feedback at that stage. Track your status in BCG's candidate portal under My Applications.
