Pariksha SaathiMixed-Direction Seating Arrangement
Most seating arrangement questions have everyone facing the same way, but some mix it up — a few people face North and others face South, so "immediately to X’s right" depends on which way X personally faces, not on the row as drawn on paper. Here’s the approach, one shared puzzle with six fully worked questions, and a few more to try yourself.
Written by Mahesh Srivastava, Founder of Pariksha Saathi. Published: 2026-10-05. Editorial standards & corrections
The approach, quickly
- Always separate "physical" position (the row as drawn, left to right on the page) from a person’s "own" right/left — the two only match when that person faces North (the usual default).
- When a person faces South, their own right and left are reversed relative to the row as drawn: their own right points to the physical LEFT, and their own left points to the physical RIGHT.
- A clue like "the extreme left end" or "third from the left" is always about the physical row, never about anyone’s own perspective — only "immediately to X’s right/left" depends on which way X faces.
- Check every person’s facing direction before answering a perspective-based question — reading "right" as the physical right when the person actually faces South is the single most common mistake in this topic.
- When several people face South, apply the left-right reversal to EACH of them individually based on their own facing direction — don’t assume the whole row’s perspective flips together just because more than one person faces South.
Worked examples
1. Five friends — A, B, C, D and E — sit in a row. All of them face North, except A, who faces South. C sits at the extreme left end. A sits third from the left. The person sitting to the immediate right of A, from A’s own perspective, is E. D sits at the extreme right end. B sits immediately to the left of D. Who sits second from the left?
Solution
- C is at position 1 (extreme left) and A is at position 3 (third from the left).
- A faces South, so A’s own right points to the physical LEFT — the immediate right of A, from A’s own perspective, is therefore physically at position 2, not position 4. That person is E, so E is at position 2.
- D is at position 5 (extreme right), and B sits immediately to its left, so B is at position 4.
- The full physical order is: C (1), E (2), A (3), B (4), D (5). Position 2 is E.
Answer: E
2. Using the same arrangement, who sits immediately to the physical left of A (regardless of which way anyone faces)?
Solution
- From the full order C, E, A, B, D, A is at position 3. The person physically immediately to its left, at position 2, is E.
Answer: E
3. Using the same arrangement, who faces South?
Solution
- Only A was stated to face South; everyone else faces North.
Answer: A
4. Using the same arrangement, from B’s own perspective, who sits immediately to B’s right?
Solution
- B faces North (everyone except A does), so B’s own right matches the physical right.
- B is at position 4; the physical position immediately to its right, position 5, is D.
Answer: D
5. Using the same arrangement, from D’s own perspective, who sits immediately to D’s left?
Solution
- D faces North (only A faces South), so D’s own left matches the physical left.
- D is at position 5; the physical position immediately to its left, position 4, is B.
Answer: B
6. Using the same arrangement, how many people sit between A and D (physical positions)?
Solution
- A is at position 3 and D is at position 5 — only position 4, B, sits between them.
Answer: 1
Try these yourself
Using the same arrangement above, answer these, then check against the answer.
1. Using the same arrangement, from C’s own perspective, who sits immediately to C’s right?
Answer: E
2. Using the same arrangement, who sits at the extreme right end?
Answer: D
3. Using the same arrangement, from A’s own perspective, who sits immediately to A’s left?
Answer: B
4. Using the same arrangement, who sits third from the right (physical position)?
Answer: A
5. Using the same arrangement, from E’s own perspective, who sits immediately to E’s left?
Answer: C
All 11 practice questions on Seating Arrangement (Mixed Directions), with answers →
Where this comes up
Seating Arrangement with Mixed Directions is a regular Reasoning topic in exams Pariksha Saathi covers — SSC CGL, SSC MTS, SSC CHSL, IBPS PO, IBPS Clerk, SBI PO and SBI Clerk — a step up in difficulty from basic Seating Arrangement.
Keep practising
Solve the questions above before opening the answers. Explain each step in your own words, then revisit any mistakes.
Go to practice questions →