IB Math AA HL Paper 1 Predicted Questions 2026
The topics most likely to appear in the 2026 session Paper 1 — backed by frequency analysis across past paper sessions. No calculator is allowed on Paper 1: every question is pure by-hand technique, exact values and algebra.
Stop hoping the right topics come up.
Know exactly what to practise — by hand, no calculator.
Paper 1 is non-calculator, so the highest-frequency earners are complex numbers and De Moivre's theorem, vectors, sequences and series, and Maclaurin series, with the factor and remainder theorems and optimisation close behind. The crash course drills these exactly as the IB asks them, with full algebraic working and exact-value answers.
- High-frequency topic walkthroughs: complex numbers & De Moivre, vectors, sequences and series, Maclaurin series.
- Non-calculator method drills — exact values, surds and clean algebra, the exact skills tested on Paper 1.
- Full-working models for the long HL questions where method marks live, not just final answers.
- Common-trap fixes: modulus-argument slips, +C and limits, vector line vs plane errors.
Most likely Paper 1 focus areas
Based on frequency analysis across past Math AA HL Paper 1 sessions
- 1Complex numbers & De Moivre's theorem — Cartesian and polar forms, powers and roots (73 question parts since 2021)
- 2Vectors — lines and planes, scalar and vector products, intersections and distances (48 question parts)
- 3Arithmetic & geometric sequences and series — nth term, sums and sum to infinity (42 question parts)
- 4Probability — combined, conditional and independent events (27 question parts)
- 5Counting & the binomial theorem — permutations, combinations and expansions (26 question parts)
- 6Rational functions — asymptotes, sketching and transformations (24 question parts)
- 7Maclaurin series — derive and use a series expansion by hand (23 question parts)
- 8Factor & remainder theorems — polynomial roots and factorisation (20 question parts)
How to use these predictions
- 1Prioritise the top earners first — complex numbers & De Moivre and vectors carry the most Paper 1 question parts.
- 2Trig equations and proof by induction each appear in 12 sittings: short, reliable marks if the method is automatic.
- 3Practise everything by hand: no calculator means exact values, surds and full algebra — train the technique, not the answer.
- 4Drill the long vectors and calculus questions for method marks; show every line because Paper 1 rewards working.
Ready to walk into Math AA HL Paper 1 prepared?
Turn these predictions into marks. The crash course walks you through every high-frequency Paper 1 topic with full by-hand working and the exact-value technique the IB rewards.
Join the Math AA HL Paper 1 crash course