UPSC CSE 2026 Notification: 933 Vacancies, Prelims on 24 May 2026

Important Dates

Application Fee

Vacancy Details

Total Vacancies: 933

Eligibility & Age Limit

Age Limit: 21–32 years as on 01 August 2026

OBC: +3 years (max age 35), SC/ST: +5 years (max age 37), PwBD: +10 years (UR), Ex-Servicemen: 5 years after qualifying service. Number of attempts: 6 (UR), 9 (OBC), unlimited (SC/ST) until age limit.

Educational Qualification:

• All services: Bachelor's degree in any discipline from a recognised university. Final-year students may apply but must produce the degree certificate at the Mains application stage.

Nationality: For IAS, IPS and IFS: must be a citizen of India. For other services: citizen of India, OR a subject of Nepal/Bhutan, OR a Tibetan refugee who came before 1 January 1962, OR person of Indian origin from specified countries.

Selection Process

1. 1 — Two objective papers — General Studies Paper-I (200 marks) for merit shortlisting and CSAT Paper-II (200 marks) qualifying at 33%. Each paper is 2 hours.
2. 2 — Nine descriptive papers totalling 1,750 marks. Includes Essay, four General Studies papers (250 marks each), Optional Subject (two papers, 250 marks each), and two qualifying language papers (Indian Language + English, 300 marks each).
3. 3 — In-person interview at UPSC office in Dholpur House, Delhi. 275 marks. Tests judgement, mental alertness, leadership orientation and ethical depth — not academic knowledge.
4. 4 — Final merit computed out of 2,025 marks (1,750 Mains + 275 Interview). Allocation to IAS / IPS / IFS / IRS / etc. based on rank, candidate service preference, category-wise reservation and physical fitness category.

Negative marking: Prelims: 1/3 (0.33) marks deducted per wrong answer in both papers. Mains: no negative marking; subjective evaluation by trained examiners with a third moderator on variance >10%.

Final merit for UPSC Civil Services is computed from Mains and Personality Test marks combined. Prelims marks do NOT count in the final merit — Prelims serves only to shortlist candidates for Mains.

Indian Language and English qualifying papers (300 marks each) must be cleared at 25% but DO NOT count toward final merit. Failing them disqualifies the entire Mains regardless of GS / Optional scores.

Salary & Pay Scale

How to Apply Online

1. Visit the official portal of UPSC (linked in Important Links below).
2. Register with a valid email and mobile number to generate login credentials.
3. Fill the application form with personal, educational, and contact details exactly as on official documents.
4. Upload a recent passport-size photograph and signature in the prescribed format and size.
5. Pay the application fee through the prescribed payment mode (see Application Fee table above).
6. Review all entries carefully, then submit the form.
7. Download and print a copy of the submitted application for your records.

Apply on Official UPSC Portal →

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UPSC CSE 2026 Notification: 933 Vacancies, Prelims on 24 May 2026 — Analysis & Trends

Vacancy trend — 933 is a 5-year low; service-wise split confirmed

The 2026 cycle\'s 933 vacancies (including 33 reserved for Persons with Benchmark Disability — 8 LD, 7 VI, 11 HI, 7 MD) is the lowest CSE allocation since 2020\'s 796, down from 1,056 in 2025 and 1,255 in 2024. The drop reflects post-pandemic rationalisation of cadre strength across IRS, Indian Information Service, and several Group B services. UPSC released the tentative service-wise breakup on 30 January 2026 (Annexure-I) — the All-India Service triad anchors the cycle at 180 IAS, 150 IPS and 40 IFS, with the two IRS streams (Income Tax 180, Customs & Indirect Taxes 94) accounting for another 274 between them. The remaining 289 vacancies are split across the 18 Group A and Group B services in the table above. Aspirants targeting IAS specifically should note that the conversion ratio (vacancy ÷ qualified) sharpens to roughly 1 in 7,500 candidates who clear Prelims.

Reading the service-wise split for preference-list strategy

The Mains DAF requires you to rank all 24 services in your preferred order. The vacancy table directly shapes how aggressive you can be — for example, IFS with only 40 seats (16 UR) is statistically harder than IAS by rank-conversion, while IRS (IT) at 180 vacancies (73 UR) accepts ranks well below the IAS cutoff. DANIPS (12 vacancies, 6 UR) and PONDIPS (6 vacancies, 2 UR) are the smallest cadres and effectively closed for general candidates outside the top ~700 ranks. The category-wise distribution per service is on the table — use the UR column when planning, then layer in your category reservation as a buffer.

Cut-off direction for Prelims 2026

The 2024 Prelims cut-off settled at 87.34 for UR, 81.95 for OBC, 75.00 for SC and 70.55 for ST after a notably easier paper. With the smaller 2026 vacancy pool and an applicant base likely above 12 lakh, expect cut-offs to land 4-6 marks below 2024 levels — UR aspirants should target 92+ in GS Paper-I and ensure CSAT comfortably clears the 33% qualifying threshold (66.7/200).

Optional subject choice still matters

Despite NEP 2020 commentary, optional subjects continue to drive 70-80 marks of variance in the final ranking. The 2024 toppers from PSIR, Sociology and Geography averaged 280-300/500 in the optional, while less-prepared optionals dragged candidates 50+ marks below cut-off in Mains. If you are early in preparation, weigh an optional that overlaps your graduation subject heavily — the time-to-coverage ratio is everything in a 12-week pre-Mains window.

What to do now (Prelims is 24 May 2026)

With Prelims three weeks out, focus on revision plus 4-6 full-length mock tests. Build foundational reading from NCERT class 6-12 (Polity, Geography, History, Economics) and pair with daily current affairs from The Hindu or Indian Express. After Prelims (assuming clearance), the 12-week window to Mains on 21 August 2026 is the highest-leverage prep period. Aspirants with state-PSC backup ambitions should also track UPPSC PCS, BPSC, and RPSC RAS notifications during the same prep cycle.