McKinsey Solve Changes in 2026: Dated Update Log

The biggest McKinsey Solve change in 2026 is a reported 95-minute invitation, first asked about on a PrepLounge thread on August 24, 2026, whose extra ten minutes belong to a newer 30-minute Sustainable Futures Lab (SFL) first described by a candidate there on September 11, 2026. As of October 3, 2026, both 85 and 95 minute invitations are still reported, so the new version looks like a pilot. McKinsey has announced none of it: its August 2025 Solve FAQ, the latest official material, says only that your length is in your invitation and that each task starts with an untimed tutorial.

Each entry below says how far you can trust it.

How to read the evidence labels

What changed in McKinsey Solve in 2026?

McKinsey Solve's 2026 changes, newest first: both 85 and 95 minute invitations live in late September, a new 30-minute SFL described on September 11, 85-minute invitations still sent on August 25, the first 95-minute invitation on August 24, and two earlier shifts whose dates prep sites dispute. Each entry gives the source, the evidence label and what to do.

1. Late September 2026

   Both the 85 and 95 minute versions are live

   What changed

   Prep sites report candidates still receiving 85-minute invitations with the standard SFL alongside 95-minute ones. No region, role or office pattern has been identified.

   Evidence

   Prep-site claim, consistent across sites and with the August 25 candidate post below.

   Source

   SolvePrep (reviewed September 25 to 28, 2026) and Solve Games Guide (September 2026).

   What to do

   Read your own invitation length and prepare for that version. See 65, 85 or 95 minutes: which games you get.

2. September 11, 2026

   A candidate warns of a new 30-minute SFL

   What changed

   A candidate describes a new, roughly 30-minute Sustainable Futures Lab with a much more complex interface. Prep sites describe it as leading four researchers across four workstations over three simulated days, each day running Explore, Assign, Support and Reflect.

   Evidence

   Candidate-reported for the existence and length (one post); Prep-site claim for the structure.

   Source

   PrepLounge timing thread; structure from Solve Games Guide and PrepMatter.

   What to do

   If you have 95 minutes, learn the daily loop in the Sustainable Futures Lab guide and use the tutorial to confirm it.

3. August 25, 2026

   85-minute invitations still being sent

   What changed

   One day after the first 95-minute report, another candidate on the same thread reports an 85-minute invitation (described as 85 minutes plus 20 minutes of preparation). The older version did not disappear.

   Evidence

   Candidate-reported, one post.

   Source

   PrepLounge timing thread.

   What to do

   Do not assume a guide written for the 95-minute version applies to you.

4. August 24, 2026

   First reported 95-minute invitation

   What changed

   A candidate in the Middle East asks why their invitation says 95 minutes. It is the earliest first-hand report we could verify. Coaches on the thread first suggested the extra ten minutes was setup time; the September 11 report later contradicted that.

   Evidence

   Candidate-reported, one post.

   Source

   PrepLounge timing thread.

   What to do

   Treat a 95-minute invitation as including the longer SFL, and reserve time beyond the stated length for untimed tutorials.

5. Start disputed: mid-2025 to March 2026

   SFL as the third game in 85-minute invitations

   What changed

   Candidates describe an 85-minute version made of Red Rock, Sea Wolf and a 20-minute Sustainable Futures Lab (one ranking task, then about 12 linked decisions), while 65-minute invitations contain only the first two. Prep sites give different start dates, from mid-2025 to March 2026.

   Evidence

   Candidate-reported for the format; Prep-site claim for any start date.

   Source

   PrepLounge threads and coach statements; SolvePrep, MBB Prep and others for dates.

   What to do

   Ignore the start date; it does not change your preparation. Practise the ranking-then-decisions format if you have 85 minutes.

6. 2026 reports (dates disputed)

   Ecosystem Building and Plant Defense absent

   What changed

   No 2026 candidate report we found includes Ecosystem Building or Plant Defense, the games in early versions of Solve. Most prep sites date the removal to around mid-2025 (Hacking the Case Interview, MConsultingPrep and PSG Secrets); SolvePrep says early 2026 (January), and MyConsultingCoach says it can still appear. McKinsey announced nothing. The table below sets the versions side by side.

   Evidence

   Candidate-reported for absence; Prep-site claim for dates. McKinsey announced no retirement.

   Source

   2026 PrepLounge threads; prep-site game guides.

   What to do

   Treat older videos and guides about these games as history. The Ecosystem game explainer covers what it was.

7. August 2025

   McKinsey's current Solve FAQ

   What changed

   McKinsey's FAQ states that your assessment length is in your invitation email, that each task begins with an untimed tutorial, and that no business or gaming knowledge is needed. It names no games per length.

   Evidence

   Official

   Source

   Solve FAQ (PDF, August 2025) and the digital assessment page, rechecked October 3, 2026.

   What to do

   Let your invitation and the live tutorials overrule any guide, this log included.

Practise the three current games for free

When did the earlier McKinsey Solve changes happen?

Nobody can date the earlier McKinsey Solve changes precisely: McKinsey announced none of them, and prep sites disagree. Final Round AI dates the Sustainable Futures Lab's arrival to around mid-2025 while PSG Secrets and SolvePrep say March 2026, and Ecosystem Building's exit is dated anywhere from mid-2025 (PrepMatter, PSG Secrets) to January 2026 (SolvePrep).

Four earlier changes are told differently depending on where you read them: Ecosystem Building leaving, the Sustainable Futures Lab arriving, Red Rock's Cases dropping from about ten to six, and Sea Wolf moving from 35 to 30 minutes. The table puts each source's version side by side, with the date on its page. No source below shows the evidence behind its dates, and McKinsey has announced none of these changes.

Scroll horizontally on a small screen to see every column.

The pattern: sources disagree on dates by a year or more and rarely show where a date came from. Two things are consistent across them and with 2026 candidate posts: Red Rock now has six Cases and Sea Wolf runs about 30 minutes over three sites. Plan around those and ignore the start dates; none of them changes how you should prepare.

Which McKinsey Solve change claims are wrong?

Five McKinsey Solve claims failed our check against dated evidence: that McKinsey confirmed the 95-minute pilot, that the extra ten minutes are setup time, that the 13-question SFL is gone for everyone, that 95 minutes is now standard, and any published pass rate. Each circulates on prep sites or forums.

What has not changed in McKinsey Solve?

Most of McKinsey Solve is stable in 2026. Red Rock is still one Study followed by six standalone Cases on a shared clock of about 35 minutes; Sea Wolf still asks you to pick microbes so attribute averages fit three sites' ranges in about 30 minutes. Prep sites say both were trimmed earlier (Cases from about ten, Sea Wolf from 35 minutes), but a July 2024 PrepLounge thread already describes six Cases, so neither is a 2026 change (see who reported what). The names PSG, Imbellus test, digital assessment and Solve all describe the same screen, which replaced the paper Problem Solving Test around 2019 to 2020 (see PSG and Imbellus explained). Results are still considered with the rest of your application, as covered in scores and results. Start from the complete McKinsey Solve guide, then the Red Rock and Sea Wolf practice methods, and run the free Red Rock, Sea Wolf and standard SFL simulations in the practice hub.

How we maintain this log

We recheck McKinsey's official Solve page and FAQ, the main PrepLounge timing threads and the prep sites that report changes while the 95-minute story is developing. An entry is added only with a date and a named source, and its evidence label changes only when better evidence appears. A prep-site claim never becomes a fact here because several sites repeat it. Entries are reviewed by Esteban Ronsin. If you sat a version that does not match this log, the invitation guide and test day checklist explain what to check first.

Sources and evidence boundaries

• Official: McKinsey's digital assessment page and Solve FAQ (August 2025), checked October 3, 2026. Neither mentions a 95-minute version, a 30-minute SFL or any game being dropped.
• Candidate reports: PrepLounge timing thread (posts dated August 24, August 25 and September 11, 2026), checked October 3, 2026.
• Prep-site claims, treated as unverified: SolvePrep change log, Solve Games Guide, PrepMatter and MBB Prep, reviewed October 2 to 3, 2026. The who-reported-what table also uses PSG Secrets, MyConsultingCoach, Final Round AI and CaseBasix, each read October 3, 2026 with the page date shown in the table, and the PrepLounge Ecosystem and Red Rock thread (July 21, 2024).
• Unknown: regions receiving the 95-minute version, scoring for either SFL, and whether the new version will replace the old one.