# Ranking and Order — Position from Top, Bottom, Left and Right

Source: https://skills101.in/learn/reasoning/ranking-and-order — Skills101 free tutorial (Logical Reasoning). Updated 2026-11-09.

Ranking questions place people in a row or a list and ask for positions or the total number. One formula solves most of them.

## 1. Position from both ends

![A row of 9 boxes. R is 4th from the left and 6th from the right, so the total is 4 + 6 − 1 = 9](https://skills101.in/learn-img/reasoning/ranking.svg)

> **Total = position from left + position from right − 1**

(We subtract 1 because the person is counted from **both** sides.)

The same works for top and bottom of a class.

### Example 1
*Riya is 12th from the top and 18th from the bottom of her class. How many students are in the class?*

12 + 18 − 1 = **29**.

### Example 2
*In a row of 40 students, Aman is 15th from the left. What is his position from the right?*

From right = 40 − 15 + 1 = **26th**.

## 2. People between two persons

### Example 3
*In a row of 30, A is 8th from the left and B is 10th from the right. How many people are between them?*

B from the left = 30 − 10 + 1 = 21. Between 8th and 21st: 21 − 8 − 1 = **12**.

### Example 4 — overlapping
*In a row of 20, P is 14th from the left and Q is 12th from the right. How many are between them?*

Q from the left = 20 − 12 + 1 = 9. Now Q (9th) is to the **left** of P (14th). Between = 14 − 9 − 1 = **4**.

> Always convert both positions to the **same end** before comparing.

## 3. Swapping positions

### Example 5
*In a row, A is 10th from the left and B is 15th from the right. They swap places; now A is 18th from the left. How many people are in the row?*

After the swap, A sits in B's old seat. That seat is 18th from the left and 15th from the right → total = 18 + 15 − 1 = **32**.

## 4. Comparison (who is tallest?)

Write the people in a line using > signs.

### Example 6
*A is taller than B but shorter than C. D is taller than C. Who is the tallest?*

B < A < C < D → **D** is the tallest; B is the shortest.

### Example 7
*Among five friends, Kiran scored more than only Leela. Mohan scored less than Nitin but more than Kiran. Om scored more than Nitin. Who scored the most?*

Leela < Kiran (Kiran beats only Leela) → Kiran < Mohan < Nitin < Om → **Om**.

## Common mistakes

- Forgetting the "− 1" in the total formula.
- Comparing a "from left" position with a "from right" position directly.
- After a swap, using the person's old position instead of the seat's position.

## Quick recap

- Total = left + right − 1.
- From right = total − from left + 1.
- Between = difference of positions (same end) − 1.
- Comparisons: write a chain with < signs.


Practice quiz and free certificate: https://skills101.in/learn/reasoning/ranking-and-order