What UPSC's cut-off means
- It is the marks of the last candidate UPSC recommended in each category, at each stage, not a pass mark announced in advance.
- Prelims: GS Paper I only. CSAT (GS Paper II) is qualifying at 33% and its marks are not added.
- Mains: the written total, with at least 10% needed in each of the seven papers that count.
- UPSC publishes all three with or after the final result, so a year's Prelims cut-off appears only when its cycle ends.
UPSC cut off 2025 at a glance, category-wise
| Category | Prelims /200 | Mains /1750 | Final /2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | 92.66 | 739 | 963 |
| EWS | 89.34 | 706 | 926 |
| OBC | 92.00 | 717 | 931 |
| SC | 84.00 | 700 | 905 |
| ST | 82.66 | 694 | 902 |
The UPSC cut off for 2026 will come with or after its final result; UPSC released the 2025 figures in March 2026.
General Prelims cut-off, year by year
Prelims cut-off (GS Paper I, out of 200)
CSAT is qualifying at 33% and not counted.
| Year | General | EWS | OBC | SC | ST | PwBD-1 | PwBD-2 | PwBD-3 | PwBD-5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 92.66 | 89.34 | 92.00 | 84.00 | 82.66 | 76.66 | 54.66 | 40.66 | 40.66 |
| 2024 | 87.98 | 85.92 | 87.28 | 79.03 | 74.23 | 69.42 | 65.30 | 40.56 | 40.56 |
| 2023 | 75.41 | 68.02 | 74.75 | 59.25 | 47.82 | 40.40 | 47.13 | 40.40 | 33.68 |
| 2022 | 88.22 | 82.83 | 87.54 | 74.08 | 69.35 | 49.84 | 58.59 | 40.40 | 41.76 |
| 2021 | 87.54 | 80.14 | 84.85 | 75.41 | 70.71 | 68.02 | 67.33 | 43.09 | 45.80 |
| 2020 | 92.51 | 77.55 | 89.12 | 74.84 | 68.71 | 70.06 | 63.94 | 40.82 | 42.86 |
| 2019 | 98.00 | 90.00 | 95.34 | 82.00 | 77.34 | 53.34 | 44.66 | 40.66 | 61.34 |
| 2018 | 98.00 | — | 96.66 | 84.00 | 83.34 | 73.34 | 53.34 | 40.00 | 45.34 |
| 2017 | 105.34 | — | 102.66 | 88.66 | 88.66 | 85.34 | 61.34 | 40.00 | — |
| 2016 | 116.00 | — | 110.66 | 99.34 | 96.00 | 75.34 | 72.66 | 40.00 | — |
Mains cut-off (written total, out of 1,750)
Subject to at least 10% in each of the seven papers that count (Essay, GS I–IV, Optional I and II).
| Year | General | EWS | OBC | SC | ST | PwBD-1 | PwBD-2 | PwBD-3 | PwBD-5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 739 | 706 | 717 | 700 | 694 | 703 | 708 | 536 | 451 |
| 2024 | 729 | 696 | 702 | 685 | 684 | 663 | 696 | 307 | 361 |
| 2023 | 741 | 706 | 712 | 694 | 692 | 673 | 718 | 396 | 445 |
| 2022 | 748 | 715 | 714 | 699 | 706 | 677 | 706 | 351 | 419 |
| 2021 | 745 | 713 | 707 | 700 | 700 | 668 | 712 | 388 | 560 |
| 2020 | 736 | 687 | 698 | 680 | 682 | 648 | 699 | 425 | 300 |
| 2019 | 751 | 696 | 718 | 706 | 699 | 663 | 698 | 374 | 561 |
| 2018 | 774 | — | 732 | 719 | 719 | 711 | 696 | 520 | 460 |
| 2017 | 809 | — | 770 | 756 | 749 | 734 | 745 | 578 | — |
| 2016 | 787 | — | 745 | 739 | 730 | 713 | 740 | 545 | — |
Final cut-off (Mains + interview, out of 2,025)
Marks of the last candidate recommended for appointment.
| Year | General | EWS | OBC | SC | ST | PwBD-1 | PwBD-2 | PwBD-3 | PwBD-5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 963 | 926 | 931 | 905 | 902 | 917 | 944 | 804 | 631 |
| 2024 | 947 | 917 | 910 | 880 | 884 | 876 | 913 | 701 | 461 |
| 2023 | 953 | 923 | 919 | 890 | 891 | 894 | 930 | 756 | 589 |
| 2022 | 960 | 926 | 923 | 893 | 900 | 879 | 913 | 632 | 590 |
| 2021 | 953 | 916 | 910 | 886 | 883 | 892 | 932 | 689 | 701 |
| 2020 | 944 | 894 | 907 | 875 | 876 | 867 | 910 | 675 | 465 |
| 2019 | 961 | 909 | 925 | 898 | 893 | 861 | 890 | 653 | 708 |
| 2018 | 982 | — | 938 | 912 | 912 | 899 | 908 | 754 | 718 |
| 2017 | 1006 | — | 968 | 944 | 939 | 923 | 948 | 830 | — |
| 2016 | 988 | — | 951 | 937 | 920 | 927 | 951 | 817 | — |
— : no such category that year (EWS from 2019; PwBD-5 from 2018). 2016–2017 notices name the disability categories PH-1 to PH-3. Each year links to UPSC's notice.
UPSC cut off: last 5 years in one view
General category, Prelims / Mains / Final: 2025 92.66 / 739 / 963 · 2024 87.98 / 729 / 947 · 2023 75.41 / 741 / 953 · 2022 88.22 / 748 / 960 · 2021 87.54 / 745 / 953.
Two things stand out. The Mains cut-off barely moves (729–748 out of 1,750 in these years), so Mains is where your rank is really decided. Prelims swings with the paper, which is why a safety margin matters more than any single number.
What to aim for
No cut-off is announced in advance, and it moves with each year's paper. A practical aim is to score clearly above the highest recent cut-off, 98.00 for General since 2018, in full-length timed papers with UPSC's negative marking, before the exam.
Take the next step
Timed tests · UPSC's marking
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Quick answers
What was the UPSC Prelims cut-off in 2025?
92.66 out of 200 in GS Paper I for the General category; EWS 89.34, OBC 92.00, SC 84.00 and ST 82.66.
Are CSAT marks counted in the Prelims cut-off?
No. The Prelims cut-off is on GS Paper I marks only. CSAT (GS Paper II) is qualifying: you must score 33%, but its marks are not added.
What does UPSC's cut-off mean?
In UPSC's words, the minimum qualifying marks secured by the last recommended candidate in each category, at each stage of the exam.
How has the General Prelims cut-off moved over the last 10 years?
Between 2016 and 2025 it ranged from 75.41 (2023) to 116.00 (2016); since 2018 it has not gone above 98.00.
When does UPSC publish the cut-off?
With or after the final result of each year's exam, so even the Prelims cut-off appears only once the whole cycle is over.
What is the UPSC cut off for the SC, ST and OBC categories?
In 2025: OBC 92.00, SC 84.00 and ST 82.66 in Prelims; 717, 700 and 694 in Mains; 931, 905 and 902 in the final list. Every earlier year is in the tables above.
When will the UPSC cut off 2026 be released?
With or after the final result of CSE 2026. UPSC published the 2025 cut-offs in March 2026, and the 2024 and 2023 ones in April of the following year.
Will the cut off go up next year?
Nobody can say in advance. The cut-off follows the difficulty of that year's paper: the General Prelims cut-off fell to 75.41 in 2023 and rose to 92.66 in 2025. Aim well above the recent highest rather than guessing.
All figures from UPSC's cut-off notices, linked year by year above.
