UPSC Exam Pattern 2026: Check IAS Prelims, Mains & Interview Pattern
Deeksha Dixit13 Nov, 2025
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The Union Public Service Commission conducts the Civil Services Examination every year to recruit candidates for IAS, IPS, IFS, and other Group A services. If you are preparing for UPSC CSE 2026, understanding the UPSC Exam Pattern 2026 is essential before you begin your preparation. The exam consists of three stages—Prelims, Mains, and Interview—and its structure has remained largely unchanged since 2013. The IAS Exam Pattern 2026 serves as a complete roadmap, explaining the number of papers, subjects, question types, and marking scheme at each stage. With a clear understanding of this pattern, candidates can plan their preparation more strategically and improve their chances of success.
UPSC Exam Pattern 2026
The Commission has designed the UPSC Exam Pattern 2026 to evaluate a candidate’s knowledge, analytical ability, and overall suitability for civil services. The IAS paper pattern has remained largely unchanged since 2013. As per the IAS selection process, the UPSC CSE consists of three stages, and candidates must clear each one separately to move forward. The first stage, UPSC Prelims, includes two objective-type papers of 200 marks each. Candidates who qualify this stage appear for the UPSC Mains, which comprises nine descriptive papers totaling 1750 marks. Finally, shortlisted candidates attend the UPSC Interview (Personality Test), which carries 275 marks, making the total marks for the final merit 2025.
| Stage | Name | Type of Exam | No. of Papers | Marks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | UPSC Prelims | Objective | 2 | 400 |
| Stage 2 | UPSC Mains | Descriptive | 9 | 1750 |
| Stage 3 | UPSC Interview | Personality Test | – | 275 |
| Final Merit | Mains + Interview | – | – | 2025 |
UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern 2026
The UPSC Prelims is the first stage of the Civil Services Examination and acts as a screening test for the Mains stage. It consists of two objective-type papers, both held on the same day in two separate shifts. Paper I evaluates candidates on General Studies, while Paper II (CSAT) tests aptitude, comprehension, and logical reasoning. Each paper carries 200 marks, making the total 400 marks for the Prelims. To qualify, candidates must score at least 33% in the CSAT paper and also secure marks above the UPSC cut-off in the General Studies paper. Below is the detailed UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern 2026:|
Subject |
Nature Of Paper |
Exam Type |
No. of Questions |
Exam Duration |
Marks |
|
Paper I - General Studies |
Merit Ranking (Marks not counted in Final merit) |
Objective |
100 |
2 Hours |
200 |
|
Paper II - Aptitude Test (CSAT) |
Qualifying |
Objective |
80 |
2 Hours |
200 |
|
UPSC Prelims Total Marks |
400 |
||||
UPSC Mains Exam Pattern 2026
The UPSC Mains is the second stage of the Civil Services Examination and is conducted after candidates qualify the Prelims. This stage is designed to test a candidate’s analytical ability, depth of understanding, clarity of expression, and overall intellectual readiness for administrative roles. The Mains consists of nine descriptive papers, each of which must be completed within a three-hour duration. Out of these, two papers—Indian Language and English—are qualifying in nature, assessing basic proficiency in communication. The remaining seven papers form the merit list and determine the candidate’s score in the written examination.
To clear the qualifying papers, candidates must score at least 25%, while each merit paper requires a minimum of 10% to be considered for evaluation. The combined marks of all merit papers amount to 1750 marks, which play a major role in the final ranking. Below is the detailed structure of the UPSC Mains Exam Pattern 2026:
| UPSC Exam Pattern 2026 Mains | |||
| Paper | Name of Paper | Time Duration | Maximum Marks |
| Qualifying Papers | |||
| Paper A | Indian Language | 3 Hours | 300 |
| Paper B | English | 3 Hours | 300 |
| Merit Papers | |||
| Paper I | Essay | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper II | General Studies-I | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper III | General Studies -II | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper IV | General Studies -III | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper V | General Studies -IV | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper VI | Optional Paper 1 | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional Paper 2 | 3 Hours | 250 |
| Total | 1750 Marks | ||
UPSC Optional Exam Pattern 2026
As per the UPSC Mains Exam Pattern 2026, candidates can choose one optional subject from a list of 48 subjects released by the Commission in the official notification. This optional subject includes two papers—Paper VI and Paper VII—each carrying 250 marks, making the optional subject worth 500 marks in total. The questions in the optional papers are generally of graduation-level difficulty or higher, which is why selecting the right optional is a crucial decision for scoring well in the Mains. Candidates are advised to choose a subject they have strong command over or genuine interest in. Below is the detailed pattern of the UPSC Mains Optional papers:
| UPSC Optional Subject Exam Pattern | |
| Particular | Detail |
| Mode of Exam | Offline Pen and Paper Based |
| Language of Exam | Hindi, English, and regional languages (as per the literature subject) |
| Types of Questions | Descriptive |
| Total Papers | 2 (for each optional subject) |
| Total Marks | 500 (250 each) |
| Time Allotted Per Paper | 3 Hours |
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UPSC Exam Pattern 2026 for Interview
The final stage of the UPSC Civil Services Examination is the UPSC Interview, also known as the Personality Test. In this phase, candidates undergo a comprehensive assessment to evaluate their overall suitability for civil service roles. A panel of experienced members—typically including former bureaucrats, academicians, and subject experts—conducts the interview. The Personality Test usually lasts 20 to 30 minutes and carries 275 marks, which play a significant role in determining the final rank. During the interview, candidates are evaluated on multiple attributes such as mental alertness, clarity of thought, critical thinking, communication skills, leadership potential, decision-making ability, and integrity. The questions asked span a wide range of areas including current affairs, socio-economic issues, personal opinions, and situational judgement, making this stage a holistic test of personality and administrative potential.
| UPSC Interview Pattern 2026 | |
| Particular | Details |
| Duration | 20 to 30 Minutes |
| Venue | UPSC Office, Dholpur House, New Delhi |
| Total Marks | 275 Marks |
UPSC Marking Scheme 2026
The UPSC marking scheme for 2026 is designed to fairly evaluate candidates throughout the Civil Services examination. In the Prelims stage, there are two objective-type papers, and a negative marking system is used. In this negative marking system, candidates face penalties for incorrect answers. Candidates must strategize their approach to minimize errors to avoid unnecessary negative markings and leave unknown questions unattempted since they do not have a negative marking. This negative marking does not apply to the Mains stage, since it has descriptive questions.Negative Marking in UPSC Exam Pattern
As per the UPSC negative marking rules, 1/3rd of marks will be deducted for each wrong answer. Negative marking will apply for incorrect answers as follows:- Each question has four possible answers. If a candidate provides a wrong answer , one-third (0.33) of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as a penalty.
- If a candidate selects more than one answer, it will be treated as incorrect, even if one of the answers is correct, and the same penalty will apply.
- No penalty will be applied if a candidate leaves a question blank with no answer.
| UPSC Negative Marking 2026 | ||
| Paper | No. of Questions | Negative Marking |
| General Studies Paper | 100 | 0.66 |
| CSAT Paper | 80 | 0.83 |