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UPSC Prelims, decoded.

Switch between GS Paper 1 and CSAT. Filter by subject, difficulty, and question type, then drill into the patterns. Every number is computed from 1100 questions tagged by hand — no projections, no editorial guesses.

Prelims cut-off in context

GS Paper 1 qualifying marks · 2020–2025 · out of 200

General cutoff 2025
92.66
▲ 4.68 vs 2024
Candidates appeared
5.9L
lakhs in 2025
Vacancies
1000
vs 979 in 2024
Qualified Prelims
14,000
candidates to Mains
2020
92.51
General cutoff
Appeared4.8L
Vacancies796
Qualified10,564
Hard Qs36%
2021
87.54
4.97
General cutoff
Appeared5.8L
Vacancies712
Qualified10,000
Hard Qs38%
2022
88.22
0.68
General cutoff
Appeared5.4L
Vacancies861
Qualified13,090
Hard Qs38%
2023outlier
75.41
12.81
General cutoff
Appeared5.3L
Vacancies1105
Qualified14,624
Hard Qs45%
2024
87.98
12.57
General cutoff
Appeared5.8L
Vacancies979
Qualified13,200
Hard Qs40%
2025latest
92.66
4.68
General cutoff
Appeared5.9L
Vacancies1000
Qualified14,000
Hard Qs42%
💡

The 2023 story: Highest vacancies (1,105) + hardest paper (45% Hard questions) = lowest cutoff (75.41) in 6 years. The cutoff is an output of the system — more seats and a tougher paper both pull it down. Chasing a cutoff number is less useful than understanding what drives it.

SubjectDifficultyNatureYear100 of 700 shown
Active filters
Top subject
Polity
18 questions · 18%
Current affairs
36%
36 questions
+7% vs paper avg
Hard questions
42%
42 questions
+12% vs paper avg
Questions shown
100
of 700 total

Subject distribution

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Sub-topic heatmap

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Question types

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Difficulty split

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Subject weightage trend

Questions per subject · 20202026

Each line is one subject across years. Filter by a subject above to spotlight its line.

Static vs current affairs by subject

Question explorer

Click a row · 100 shown
Q1Alternative Investment FundsEconomyMediumRead
Q2Reserve Bank of India - Income SourcesEconomyMediumRead
Q3Government Organizations (DoE, DRI, DGSDM)PolityHardRead
Q4Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR)EconomyHardRead
Q5Income Tax on Allied Agricultural ActivitiesEconomyHardRead
Q6Minerals Security Partnership / Critical MineralsCurr. AffairsMediumRead
Q7Bondholders vs StockholdersEconomyEasyRead
Q8Indian Stock Market & Options TradingEconomyHardRead
Q9Circular Economy & EmissionsEnvironmentMediumRead
Q10Capital Receipts of GovernmentEconomyMediumRead
Q11Raja Ram Mohan RoyHistoryEasyRead
Q12Non-Cooperation Programme (1920)HistoryMediumRead
Q13Araghatta (Irrigation Device)HistoryMediumRead
Q14Mahendravarman I (Pallava Titles)HistoryHardRead
Q15Fa-Hien / Chandragupta IIHistoryEasyRead
Q16Rajendra I Chola / Srivijaya CampaignHistoryMediumRead
Q17Ancient India Territorial Regions & RiversHistoryHardRead
Q18Gandharva Mahavidyalaya / PaluskarHistoryHardRead
Q19Ashokan Inscriptions - OfficialsHistoryHardRead
Q20Non-Cooperation Movement StrategyHistoryMediumRead
Q21NATO Membership (Eastern Europe)IRMediumRead
Q22Andes Mountains - Country CoverageGeographyMediumRead
Q23Equatorial Water BodiesGeographyHardRead
Q24Turmeric Production in IndiaEconomyMediumRead
Q25Continental Drift EvidenceGeographyHardRead
Q26Dust Particles & Atmospheric ConditionsGeographyHardRead
Q27Isotherms & January TemperatureGeographyHardRead
Q28Chalk vs Clay - PermeabilityGeographyMediumRead
Q29Greenhouse Effect & AtmosphereGeographyEasyRead
Q30Rashtriya Gokul MissionCurr. AffairsEasyRead
Q31Cement Industry & Carbon EmissionsEnvironmentHardRead
Q32COP28 Declaration on Climate & HealthEnvironmentMediumRead
Q33Earth's Rotation, Solar Flares, Polar Ice MeltGeographyHardRead
Q34Article 6 of Paris AgreementEnvironmentHardRead
Q35Nature Solutions Finance Hub (ADB)Curr. AffairsHardRead
Q36Direct Air Capture TechnologyEnvironmentMediumRead
Q37Peacock Tarantula (Gooty)EnvironmentHardRead
Q38India CO2 Emissions ProfileEnvironmentHardRead
Q39Plant Classification (Cassava, Ginger, etc.)EnvironmentHardRead
Q40Oxygen Production - Forests vs OceansEnvironmentMediumRead
Q41Alternative Powertrain VehiclesS&TMediumRead
Q42Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)S&TMediumRead
Q43EV Battery Cathodes (Cobalt, Lithium, etc.)S&TMediumRead
Q44Plastic in Everyday ItemsEnvironmentEasyRead
Q45Coal Gasification - OutputsS&THardRead
Q46CL-20, HMX, LLM-105 (Explosives)S&THardRead
Q47Majorana 1 Chip / Quantum ComputingS&THardRead
Q48Monoclonal AntibodiesS&TMediumRead
Q49Virus Behavior & BiologyS&TMediumRead
Q50Activated CarbonS&TMediumRead
Q51Ordinance Making PowerPolityMediumRead
Q52State Formation (Arunachal, Nagaland, Tripura)PolityHardRead
Q53Inter-State Council, NSC, Zonal CouncilsPolityMediumRead
Q54Governor's Discretion & President Reserving BillsPolityMediumRead
Q55Constitutional Provisions (DPSP, FD, FR)PolityMediumRead
Q56Fifth Schedule - Scheduled AreasPolityHardRead
Q57National Boards & Union MinistriesPolityHardRead
Q58Constitutional Amendment - State RatificationPolityMediumRead
Q59Governor's Immunity & Legislative PrivilegesPolityMediumRead
Q60Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory BoardPolityMediumRead
Q61Fiscal Deficit, Revenue Deficit, Primary DeficitEconomyMediumRead
Q62INSTC - North-South Transport CorridorIRMediumRead
Q63Ethanol Production - Brazil vs USAEconomyHardRead
Q64Wet-Bulb Temperature & ClimateEnvironmentMediumRead
Q65Gross Primary Deficit CalculationEconomyHardRead
Q6615th Finance Commission RecommendationsPolityHardRead
Q67International Bank for Reconstruction & DevelopmentIRMediumRead
Q68RTGS vs NEFTEconomyMediumRead
Q69UPI International AcceptanceCurr. AffairsMediumRead
Q70PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli YojanaCurr. AffairsMediumRead
Q71Gandhi's 'Sedition is my religion' QuoteHistoryHardRead
Q72Dancing Girl - Mohenjo-daroHistoryEasyRead
Q73Chauri Chaura Legal DefenceHistoryHardRead
Q74Poona Pact & Harijan UpliftmentHistoryMediumRead
Q75Portuguese-Introduced FruitsHistoryMediumRead
Q76Countries with Multiple Time ZonesGeographyHardRead
Q77International Date Line (Anadyr-Nome)GeographyHardRead
Q78Self-Respect Movement (Periyar)HistoryMediumRead
Q79Country & Natural ResourcesGeographyMediumRead
Q80Region & Country (Mallorca, Normandy, Sardinia)GeographyMediumRead
Q81Rare Earth Elements - PropertiesS&TMediumRead
Q82Indian Railways - NRP & Kavach SystemS&THardRead
Q83Space Missions (Axiom-4, SpaDeX, Gaganyaan)S&TMediumRead
Q84India's Defence AircraftS&THardRead
Q85Cloud Seeding ChemicalsS&TMediumRead
Q86President's Pardoning PowerPolityMediumRead
Q87Speaker of Lok SabhaPolityMediumRead
Q88MP Disqualification - 10th SchedulePolityHardRead
Q89Mineral Concession Powers (Centre vs State)PolityHardRead
Q90Nature Restoration Law (NRL)EnvironmentHardRead
Q91Panchayats at Intermediate LevelPolityHardRead
Q92BIMSTEC OrganizationIRMediumRead
Q93Gandhi Peace Prize - JuryCurr. AffairsHardRead
Q94GAGAN (GPS Augmentation)S&THardRead
Q95AI Action Summit Paris 2025Curr. AffairsMediumRead
Q96International Years (UN-Designated)Curr. AffairsHardRead
Q9716th BRICS SummitIRMediumRead
Q98Lokpal of IndiaPolityHardRead
Q99First Kho Kho World CupCurr. AffairsEasyRead
Q100Chess Olympiad / Gukesh DommarajuCurr. AffairsEasyRead