UPSC Prelims papers: official PDFs and JobSafal practice
UPSC puts each prelims question paper on its website — the 2026 PDFs are dated 25 May 2026, the day after the exam. Answer keys work differently: UPSC releases them only after the final result of that year’s examination. Inside JobSafal, the PYQ section gives you generated practice sets, not scanned papers.
Why solving PYQs works
Reading past questions isn’t enough. You need to solve them against the clock. Here’s what that practice gives you:
See the real pattern
UPSC’s own papers show how questions are framed across the GS Paper I and CSAT syllabus areas.
Find weak topics
Your mistakes show which syllabus areas deserve the most time.
Build exam stamina
Each paper is two hours — 100 questions in GS Paper I and 80 in GS Paper II in 2026, both on the same day. Timed practice builds that pace.
Don’t skip CSAT
GS Paper II only qualifies, but you need 33% in it and both papers are compulsory — so practise it alongside GS Paper I.
Official UPSC Prelims question papers
These links open the question papers UPSC has published on upsc.gov.in. Solve each one in a single sitting under a two-hour timer, then check your answers against UPSC’s official key once it is released for that year.
Want shorter timed practice too? JobSafal’s six PYQ practice sets (Sets 1–2: 100 questions in 60 minutes; Sets 3–4: 80 in 50; Sets 5–6: 65 in 45) are generated from our question bank — they are not reproductions of UPSC’s papers.
How to use previous year papers
Downloading a PDF won’t change your score. This routine will.
- Attempt full, timedDo a whole paper in one two-hour sitting, marking answers as you would on the OMR sheet.
- Review every mistakeNote why each wrong answer went wrong — with one-third of a question’s marks lost per wrong answer, blind guesses cost you.
- Tag weak topicsGroup your errors by the official syllabus areas to find the two or three costing you the most marks.
- Drill those topicsPractise the weak areas on their own, then attempt another paper or practice set.
- Track the trendWatch your GS Paper I score across attempts, and keep your CSAT score comfortably above 33%.
The official prelims syllabus areas
UPSC publishes its prelims syllabus, so you don’t have to guess. These are the official areas from Section III, Part A of the notification — map every past-paper question to one of them.
GS Paper I · history & geography
GS Paper I · polity, economy & science
GS Paper II · comprehension & reasoning
GS Paper II · numeracy
Crack UPSC Prelims with your own daily plan
Daily targets, PYQ practice sets & timed practice mocks for UPSC Prelims.
Solve UPSC Prelims practice sets inside JobSafal
A PDF can’t time you, mark you or tell you what to fix. In JobSafal, every PYQ practice set is a timed test with its own score, so you can see which topics need more work.
Attempt as timed tests
Every set runs against the clock in a test interface.
Review your answers
After each set, go back through your answers and see where you went wrong.
Weak-area report
Analysis after each set points to the topics pulling your score down.
Official papers + sets
Use UPSC’s own papers for full two-hour runs and JobSafal’s sets for shorter timed practice.
