📝 UPSC CSE 2026 · Question Papers

UPSC Prelims 2026
Question Paper

Download the official UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2026 question papers — GS Paper 1 and CSAT (GS Paper 2) — held on 24 May 2026.

📅 Exam date: 24 May 2026 · ✅ Papers available for download

100GS Paper 1 Qs

80CSAT Qs

2 hrsEach Paper

⬇ Download Question Papers

Official UPSC Prelims 2026 papers — free to download.

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GS Paper 1 — Series D General Studies · 200 Marks · English

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GS Paper 2 — CSAT Coming soon

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📋 UPSC Prelims 2026 — Exam Overview

Detail	Information
Exam Name	Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2026
Conducting Body	Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
Date of Exam	24 May 2026 (Sunday)
GS Paper 1 Timing	9:30 AM – 11:30 AM
CSAT (GS Paper 2) Timing	2:30 PM – 4:30 PM
Mode of Exam	Offline (OMR based)
Total Papers	2 (GS Paper 1 + GS Paper 2 / CSAT)
Total Marks	400 (200 marks each paper)
GS Paper 1 Questions	100 MCQs
CSAT Questions	80 MCQs
Negative Marking	1/3rd mark deducted per wrong answer
CSAT Nature	Qualifying — minimum 33% required
Medium	Bilingual — Hindi & English
Official Website	upsc.gov.in

⬇ Download UPSC Prelims 2026 Question Papers

The UPSC Prelims 2026 question papers are available below for free download. These are the official papers as administered on 24 May 2026.

📄 GS Paper 1

General Studies Paper 1 — Series D (English)

100 questions · 200 marks · 2 hours · Counts for merit. Covers History, Geography, Polity, Economy, Environment, Science & Current Affairs.

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📄 CSAT

General Studies Paper 2 — CSAT

80 questions · 200 marks · 2 hours · Qualifying (33% minimum). Covers Comprehension, Reasoning, Aptitude & Data Interpretation.

⌛ Coming Soon

⚠ The question papers are provided for reference and practice only. UPSC question papers are available in multiple series (A, B, C, D) — the content is the same, only the question order differs.

📝 How to Download UPSC Prelims 2026 Question Paper

Click the download button for GS Paper 1 or CSAT above.
The PDF will open in your browser or download automatically.
Save the PDF to your device for offline reference and practice.
Use the papers to analyse question patterns and prepare for UPSC CSE 2027.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

When was UPSC Prelims 2026 conducted? +

UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2026 was conducted on 24 May 2026 (Sunday). GS Paper 1 was held from 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM and CSAT from 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM.

How many questions are there in UPSC Prelims GS Paper 1? +

GS Paper 1 consists of 100 multiple choice questions carrying 200 marks. Each correct answer carries 2 marks and 1/3rd mark is deducted for each wrong answer.

Is CSAT marks counted for merit in UPSC Prelims? +

No. CSAT (GS Paper 2) is a qualifying paper. Candidates must score a minimum of 33% (66 out of 200) to qualify, but the marks are not counted for the Prelims merit list. Only GS Paper 1 marks determine the Prelims cut-off.

What is the difference between Series A, B, C and D question papers? +

UPSC distributes question papers in 4 series (A, B, C, D) to prevent malpractice. All series contain the same questions — only the order of questions and answer options differs. The content and difficulty level is identical across all series.

When will the UPSC Prelims 2026 result be declared? +

Based on past patterns, the UPSC Prelims 2026 result is expected to be declared in June 2026. The result will be published on the official UPSC website at upsc.gov.in.

Can I use UPSC Prelims 2026 question paper for UPSC CSE 2027 preparation? +

Yes, absolutely. Previous year question papers are one of the most important resources for UPSC preparation. Solving these papers helps you understand the pattern, difficulty level, and type of questions asked. It is highly recommended to solve at least 10 years of previous papers before your exam.