Problem database last updated: June 20, 2025
4 problems · 0 Easy, 3 Medium, 1 Hard · Ranked #298 of 458
0 Easy
0% · avg 23%
3 Medium
75% · avg 59%
1 Hard
25% · avg 18%
Based on 4 reported problems, McKinsey interviews are slightly harder than average - 25% Hard vs 18% across all companies. The majority (75%) of questions are Medium difficulty, which is typical for companies that want to see solid fundamentals without excessive trick questions.
Compared to the industry average, McKinsey puts unusual emphasis on breadth-first-search (50% of problems, 6x the industry average), depth-first-search (50% of problems, 5.5x the industry average). If you're short on time, these are the categories to double down on.
The most common topics are array (50%), depth-first-search (50%), breadth-first-search (50%), matrix (25%). Problems below are sorted by frequency, the ones at the top are asked most often.
| Problem | Difficulty | Frequency | Topics | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Shortest Bridge You are given an n x n binary matrix grid where 1 represents land and 0 represents water. | Medium | Very Likely | arraydepth-first-searchbreadth-first-search | Solve |
Maximal Score After Applying K Operations You are given a 0-indexed integer array nums and an integer k. You have a starting score of 0. | Medium | Very Likely | arraygreedyheap-priority-queue | Solve |
Number of Operations to Make Network Connected There are n computers numbered from 0 to n - 1 connected by ethernet cables connections forming a network where connections[i] = [ai, bi] represents a connectio... | Medium | Very Likely | depth-first-searchbreadth-first-searchunion-find | Solve |
Minimum One Bit Operations to Make Integers Zero Given an integer n, you must transform it into 0 using the following operations any number of times: | Hard | Very Likely | mathdynamic-programmingbit-manipulation | Solve |
Shortest Bridge
SolveYou are given an n x n binary matrix grid where 1 represents land and 0 represents water.
Maximal Score After Applying K Operations
SolveYou are given a 0-indexed integer array nums and an integer k. You have a starting score of 0.
Number of Operations to Make Network Connected
SolveThere are n computers numbered from 0 to n - 1 connected by ethernet cables connections forming a network where connections[i] = [ai, bi] represents a connectio...
Minimum One Bit Operations to Make Integers Zero
SolveGiven an integer n, you must transform it into 0 using the following operations any number of times:
Frequency scores are based on crowdsourced interview reports. A higher score means the problem has been reported more often in recent McKinsey interviews.
Very Likely
75-100%
Likely
50-74%
Sometimes
25-49%
Rare
0-24%
McKinsey interviews focus heavily on array, depth-first-search, breadth-first-search problems. If you're short on time, these are the categories to prioritize. The problems on this page are sorted by frequency, so start from the top and work your way down.
Beyond solving problems, practice explaining your approach. McKinsey interviewers care about your thought process - how you break down a problem, consider edge cases, and evaluate tradeoffs between solutions. A clean O(n) solution you can explain clearly beats an O(log n) solution you can't articulate.
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McKinsey has been reported to ask 4 distinct coding problems. The most common topics are array, depth-first-search, breadth-first-search. 0 are Easy difficulty, 3 are Medium, and 1 are Hard. Problems are sorted by frequency - the ones at the top are asked most often.
Based on 4 reported problems, McKinsey interviews are slightly harder than average - 25% Hard vs 18% across all companies. 75% of questions are Medium difficulty. Focus on the high-frequency Medium problems first, then work through the Hard ones.
Start with the highest-frequency problems listed on this page. Focus on the core topics: array, depth-first-search, breadth-first-search. Practice solving them under time pressure and explaining your approach out loud. Mock interviews with AI can simulate the real experience.
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