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UPSC Previous Year Question Papers PDF (Prelims, Mains)

March 29, 2023

UPSC Previous Year Question Papers for Civil Services Exam: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts the Civil Service Exams annually for All India Services and various Central Civil Services positions. The official website of UPSC provides the UPSC Civil Services Previous Year Papers for 2021, 2020, 2018. By analyzing the UPSC Previous Year Question Papers, one can comprehend the UPSC Civil Services Exam Pattern and difficulty level. In this article, we have provided 30+ UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDFs for the Prelims & Mains Exam to aid your preparation. These UPSC Civil Services Question Papers/ UPSC CSE Previous Papers PDF will also assist you in managing your time during the examination.

UPSC Previous Year Question Papers

Practicing UPSC Civil Services Previous Year Papers is an effective way to prepare for the UPSC Civil Service Exam, as it helps to gauge the weightage of each topic and the level of difficulty of the exam. The UPSC conducts the Civil Service Exam in three stages – Prelims, Mains, and interviews to shortlist eligible candidates. Check and read each section of the current UPSC CSE Previous Papers article to know full details for better preparation.

Candidates can download the previous year’s UPSC Civil Services Question Papers for both Prelims and Mains Exams by clicking on the UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDFs link provided below and start practicing as if they are taking the real exam. Moreover, the given UPSC Previous Year Question Papers are beneficial in understanding the pattern, type of questions, and level of UPSC Prelims & Mains Exam of the previous year.

UPSC Civil Services Previous Year Question Papers

UPSC Previous Year Question Papers Overview

Download UPSC Civil Services Question Papers PDF
Organization	Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
Exam Name	UPSC Civil Services Exam
Exam Level	National
Category	Previous Papers
Exam Mode	Offline
Exam Stages	Prelims, Main Exam, Interview
Education Qualification	Graduates or Relevant Degrees
Age Limit	21 years to 32 years
Exam Frequency	Once in a Year
UPSC Official Website	upsc.gov.in
Aview Home Page	aview.in

UPSC Civil Services Exam Pattern

Before going to download the UPSC Civil Services Previous Question Papers PDF, candidates must check and understand the UPSC Civil Services Exam Pattern for both the Prelims and Mains Exam from this section.

UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern

For each incorrect answer marked in the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 1/3rd of the total mark assigned to that question will be deducted. However, no marks will be deducted for blank answers. In General Studies (Paper I), each question carries 2 marks and a negative marking of 0.66 marks is applicable. Similarly, for CSAT (Paper-II), each question carries 2.5 marks and a penalty of 0.833 marks will be levied for each wrong answer marked. It is important to note that the marks scored in the prelims will not be considered in the final merit list. Also, Paper II of the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination will be considered as a qualifying paper, and a candidate must secure a minimum of 33% marks to pass.

Paper	Subjects	Marks	No. of Question	Duration
I	General Studies (GS)	200	100	2 hours
II	CSAT	200	80	2 hours

UPSC IAS Mains Exam Pattern

The mains examination for Civil Services comprises nine papers in total, out of which two papers are qualifying papers: “Paper A” and “Paper B,” each carrying 300 marks. The qualifying papers consist of “Any Indian Language from Eight Schedule” and “English Language Paper.” Candidates must score a minimum of 25% marks in each qualifying paper, which amounts to 75 marks each. The remaining seven papers are of a scoring nature, and their marks will be included in the final merit list. Candidates can choose to answer all scoring papers in either English or any of the eight scheduled languages. Moreover, for Paper VI and Paper VII, candidates have to select one subject from the provided list as their optional subject.

Qualifying Papers (Non-Ranking)
Paper A	One of the Indian languages to be selected by the candidate from the languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.	300 Marks
Paper B	English	300 Marks
Papers to be Counted for Merit (Ranking)
Paper I	Essay	250 Marks
Paper-II	General Studies I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History, and Geography of the World and Society)	250 Marks
Paper III	General Studies II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice, and International relations)	250 Marks
Paper IV	General Studies III (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management)	250 Marks
Paper V	General Studies IV (Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude)	250 Marks
Paper VI	Optional Subject- Paper 1	250 Marks
Paper VII	Optional Subject- Paper 2	250 Marks
Paper VII	For the optional papers in the Main Examination, UPSC has a list of about twenty-six subjects out of which anyone subject has to be selected by the candidate.	250 Marks
Subtotal (Written Test)		1750 Marks
Personality Test (Interview)		275 Marks
Grand Total		2025 Marks

UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDFs – Download Links

Download UPSC Prelims Previous Year Question Papers along with the UPSC Mains Previous Question Papers pdf for all the subjects from the respective year as tabulated in the below section. You can observe the UPSC Civil Services Previous Year Papers PDF links for the previous years (2021, 2020, 2019). Carefully download these UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDFs and include them in your test practice.

UPSC CSE Previous Papers – 2022

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2022**
Compulsory Subjects	Assamese (Compulsory) Bengali (Compulsory) English (Compulsory) Gujarati (Compulsory) Hindi (Compulsory) Kannada (Compulsory) Kashmiri (Compulsory) Malayalam (Compulsory) Marathi (Compulsory) Nepali (Compulsory) Odia (Compulsory) Punjabi (Compulsory) Sanskrit (Compulsory) Sindhi (Compulsory) Tamil (Compulsory) Telugu (Compulsory) Urdu (Compulsory)
Literature Subjects	Assamese Literature Paper – I Assamese Literature Paper – II Bengali Literature Paper – I Bengali Literature Paper – II English Literature Paper – I English Literature Paper – II Gujarati Literature Paper – I Gujarati Literature Paper – II Hindi Literature Paper – I Hindi Literature Paper – II Kannada Literature Paper – I Kannada Literature Paper – II Maithili Literature Paper – I Maithili Literature Paper – II Malayalam Literature Paper – I Malayalam Literature Paper – II Manipuri Literature Paper – I Manipuri Literature Paper – II Marathi Literature Paper – I Marathi Literature Paper – II Punjabi Literature Paper – I Punjabi Literature Paper – II Sanskrit Literature Paper – I Sanskrit Literature Paper – II Sindhi Literature Paper – I (Devanagari) Sindhi Literature Paper – II (Devanagari) Tamil Literature Paper – I Tamil Literature Paper – II Telugu Literature Paper – I Telugu Literature Paper – II Urdu Literature Paper – I Urdu Literature Paper – II
Optional Subjects	Agriculture Paper – I Agriculture Paper – II Animal Hus. and Vet. Sc. Paper – I Animal Hus. and Vet. Sc. Paper – II Anthropology Paper – I Anthropology Paper – II Botany Paper – I Botany Paper – II Chemistry Paper – I Chemistry Paper – II Civil Engineering Paper – I Civil Engineering Paper – II Commerce and Accountancy Paper – I Commerce and Accountancy Paper – II Economics Paper – I Economics Paper – II Electrical Engineering Paper – I Electrical Engineering Paper – II Geography Paper – I Geography Paper – II Geology Paper – I Geology Paper – II History Paper – I History Paper – II Law Paper – I Law Paper – II Management Paper – I Management Paper – II Mathematics Paper – I Mathematics Paper – II Mechanical Engineering Paper – I Mechanical Engineering Paper – II Medical Science Paper – I Medical Science Paper – II Philosophy Paper – I Philosophy Paper – II Physics Paper – I Physics Paper – II Political Science and IR Paper – I Political Science and IR Paper – II Psychology Paper – I Psychology Paper – II Public Administration Paper – I Public Administration Paper – II Sociology Paper – I Sociology Paper – II Statistics Paper – I Statistics Paper – II Zoology Paper – I Zoology Paper – II
General	Essay
General Studies	General Studies – I General Studies – II General Studies – III General Studies – IV

**Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2022**
General Studies Paper I General Studies Paper II

UPSC Civil Services Question Papers – 2021

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2021**
General	Essay
General Studies	General Studies Paper – I General Studies Paper – II General Studies Paper – III General Studies Paper – IV
Compulsory Subjects	English Assamese Bengali Bodo Gujarati Hindi Kannada Malayalam Marathi Nepali Odia Punjabi Sanskrit Sindhi Tamil Telugu Urdu
Optional Subjects	Agriculture Paper-I Agriculture Paper-II Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science Paper-I Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science Paper-II Anthropology Paper-I Anthropology Paper-II Botany Paper-I Botany Paper-II Chemistry Paper-I Chemistry Paper-II Civil Engineering Paper-I Civil Engineering Paper-II Commerce and Accountancy Paper-I Commerce and Accountancy Paper-II Economics Paper-I Economics Paper-II Electrical Engineering Paper-I Electrical Engineering Paper-II Geography Paper-I Geography Paper-II Geology Paper-I Geology Paper-II History Paper-I History Paper-II Law Paper-I Law Paper-II Management Paper-I Management Paper-II Mathematics Paper-I Mathematics Paper-II Mechanical Engineering Paper-I Mechanical Engineering Paper-II Medical Science Paper-I Medical Science Paper-II Philosophy Paper-I Philosophy Paper-II Physics Paper-I Physics Paper-II Political Science and International Relations Paper-I Political Science and International Relations Paper-II Psychology Paper-I Psychology Paper-II Public Administration Paper-I Public Administration Paper-II Sociology Paper-I Sociology Paper-II Statistics Paper-I Statistics Paper-II Zoology Paper-I Zoology Paper-II

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2021**
Literature Subjects	Bengali Paper-I Bengali Paper-II English Paper-I English Paper-II Gujarati Paper-I Gujarati Paper-II Hindi Paper-I Hindi Paper-II Kannada Paper-I Kannada Paper-II Maithili Paper-I Maithili Paper-II Malayalam Paper-I Malayalam Paper-II Manipuri Paper-I Manipuri Paper-II Marathi Paper-I Marathi Paper-II Punjabi Paper-I Punjabi Paper-II Sanskrit Paper-I Sanskrit Paper-II Sindhi Paper-I Sindhi Paper-II Tamil Paper-I Tamil Paper-II Telugu Paper-I Telugu Paper-II Urdu Paper-I Urdu Paper-II

**Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2021**
General Studies Paper – I General Studies Paper – II

UPSC Civil Services Previous Year Papers – 2020

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2020**
Compulsory Subjects	English Compulsory Assamese Compulsory Bengali Compulsory Bodo Compulsory Gujarati Compulsory Hindi Compulsory Kannada Compulsory Maithili Compulsory Malayalam Compulsory Marathi Compulsory Nepali Compulsory Odia Compulsory Punjabi Compulsory Sindhi (Arabic) Compulsory Sanskrit Compulsory Tamil Compulsory Telugu Compulsory Urdu Compulsory
Optional Subjects	Agriculture Paper – I Agriculture Paper – II Animal Husbandry and Vet. Science Paper – I Animal Husbandry and Vet. Science Paper – II Anthropology Paper – I Anthropology Paper – II Botany Paper – I Botany Paper – II Chemistry Paper – I Chemistry Paper – II Civil Engineering Paper – I Civil Engineering Paper – II Commerce and Accountancy Paper – I Commerce and Accountancy Paper – II Economics Paper – I Economics Paper – II Electrical Engineering Paper – I Electrical Engineering Paper – II Geography Paper – I Geography Paper – II Geology Paper – I Geology Paper – II History Paper – I History Paper – II Law Paper – I Law Paper – II Management Paper – I Management Paper – II Mathematics Paper – I Mathematics Paper – II Mechanical Engineering Paper – I Mechanical Engineering Paper – II Medical Science Paper – I Medical Science Paper – II Philosophy Paper – I Philosophy Paper – II Physics Paper – I Physics Paper – II Political Science and IR Paper – I Political Science and IR Paper – II Psychology Paper – I Psychology Paper – II Public Administration Paper – I Public Administration Paper – II Sociology Paper – I Sociology Paper – II Statistics Paper – I Statistics Paper – II Zoology Paper – I Zoology Paper – II
Literature Subjects	Assamese Literature Paper – I Assamese Literature Paper – II Bengali Literature Paper – I Bengali Literature Paper – II English Literature Paper – I English Literature Paper – II Gujarati Literature Paper – I Gujarati Literature Paper – II Hindi Literature Paper – I Hindi Literature Paper – II Kannada Literature Paper – I Kannada Literature Paper – II Maithili Literature Paper – I Maithili Literature Paper – II Malayalam Literature Paper – I Malayalam Literature Paper – II Manipuri Literature Paper – I Manipuri Literature Paper – II Marathi Literature Paper – I Marathi Literature Paper – II Odia Literature Paper – I Odia Literature Paper – II Punjabi Literature Paper – I Punjabi Literature Paper – II Sanskrit Literature Paper – I Sanskrit Literature Paper – II Sindhi (Arabic) Literature Paper – I Sindhi (Arabic) Literature Paper – II Tamil Literature Paper – I Tamil Literature Paper – II Telugu Literature Paper – I Telugu Literature Paper – II Urdu Literature Paper – I Urdu Literature Paper – II
General Studies	General Studies Paper – I General Studies Paper – II General Studies Paper – III General Studies Paper – IV
General	Essay

**Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2020**
General Studies Paper-I General Studies Paper-II

UPSC Mains Previous Year Question Papers PDF – 2019

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2019**
Literature Subjects	Assamese Literature Paper – I Assamese Literature Paper – II Bengali Literature Paper – I Bengali Literature Paper – II English Literature Paper – I English Literature Paper – II Gujarati Literature Paper – I Gujarati Literature Paper – II Hindi Literature Paper – I Hindi Literature Paper – II Kannada Literature Paper – I Kannada Literature Paper – II Maithili Literature Paper – I Maithili Literature Paper – II Malayalam Literature Paper – I Malayalam Literature Paper – II Manipuri Literature Paper – I Manipuri Literature Paper – II Marathi Literature Paper – I Marathi Literature Paper – II Oriya Literature Paper – I Oriya Literature Paper – II Punjabi Literature Paper – I Punjabi Literature Paper – II Sanskrit Literature Paper – I Sanskrit Literature Paper – II Sindhi (Devanagari) Literature Paper – I Sindhi (Devanagari) Literature Paper – II Tamil Literature Paper – I Tamil Literature Paper – II Telugu Literature Paper – I Telugu Literature Paper – II Urdu Literature Paper – I Urdu Literature Paper – II
General	Essay

**Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2019**
Optional Subjects	Agriculture Paper – I Agriculture Paper – II Animal Husbandry and Vet. Science Paper – I Animal Husbandry and Vet. Science Paper – II Anthropology Paper – I Anthropology Paper – II Botany Paper – I Botany Paper – II Chemistry Paper – I Chemistry Paper – II Civil Engineering Paper – I Civil Engineering Paper – II Commerce and Accountancy Paper – I Commerce and Accountancy Paper – II Economics Paper – I Economics Paper – II Electrical Engineering Paper – I Electrical Engineering Paper – II Geography Paper – I Geography Paper – II Geology Paper – I Geology Paper – II History Paper – I History Paper – II Law Paper – I Law Paper – II Management Paper – I Management Paper – II Mathematics Paper – I Mathematics Paper – II Mechanical Engineering Paper – I Mechanical Engineering Paper – II Medical Science Paper – I Medical Science Paper – II Philosophy Paper – I Philosophy Paper – II Physics Paper – I Physics Paper – II Political Science and IR Paper – I Political Science and IR Paper – II Psychology Paper – I Psychology Paper – II Public Administration Paper – I Public Administration Paper – II Sociology Paper – I Sociology Paper – II Statistics Paper – I Statistics Paper – II Zoology Paper – I Zoology Paper – II
Compulsory Subjects	English Compulsory Assamese Compulsory Bengali Compulsory Dogri Compulsory Gujarati Compulsory Hindi Compulsory Kannada Compulsory Maithili Compulsory Malayalam Compulsory Marathi Compulsory Nepali Compulsory Oriya Compulsory Punjabi Compulsory Sanskrit Compulsory Sindhi Compulsory Dev Tamil Compulsory Telugu Compulsory Urdu Compulsory
General Studies	General Studies Paper – I General Studies Paper – II General Studies Paper – III General Studies Paper – IV

**Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2019**
General Studies Paper-I General Studies Paper-II

UPSC Previous Year Question Papers – Frequently Asked Questions

How many papers will be there in the UPSC Civil Services Prelims Exam?

Paper 1 of General Studies and Paper 2 of Aptitude test (CSAT) are the two papers in the UPSC Civil Services Mains Exam.

What is the negative marking scheme in the UPSC Exam?

For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate, one-third (0.33) of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as a penalty.

How many papers will be there in the UPSC IAS Mains Exam?

A total of 9 papers will be there in the UPSC IAS Mains Exam.

Where can I download the UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDF?

Candidates can download the UPSC Previous Year Question Paper PDFs from the official site @ upsc.gov.in. And to help you all, we have provided the links for those model papers in our article.