Where can I practise UPSC Prelims previous year questions with answers?

On the Prelims question papers section at /prelims/pyq — 2,340 questions from 2014–2026, GS Paper I and CSAT, each with the answer key, an explanation and a reason for every wrong option. Reading is free without login; sign in free to practise with instant check and filters.

Which years of UPSC Prelims question papers are covered?

2014–2026, both papers: General Studies Paper I and CSAT Paper II. Year pages carry the verified exam date and the subject split for that paper.

What is free, and what does the paid plan add?

Free with no account at all: all 2,340 previous year questions 2014–2026 with the answer key and a full explanation, each day of current affairs with its questions, and the syllabus and analysis pages. Free with an account: scoring the daily 21 MCQs with your rank, 10 instant-check practice questions a day, 30 turns a day with Guru and Ask Guru, 5 Mains evaluations a month, your Prelims regime and Mains routine, trends and both dashboards. The paid plan (₹299 a month or ₹2,999 a year) removes every limit and adds timed mock tests, the error notebook, Quick Revision and full Mains paper sittings. The daily limit resets at midnight IST.

How are the daily current affairs made?

Every morning we read the previous day’s PIB releases, The Hindu and Indian Express, choose the 21 most Prelims-relevant events — 7 from each — write them in our own words with a link to each original, and set 21 UPSC-format MCQs, one on each event, with +2 / −0.67 marking. Each date has its own page.

How accurate is the AI evaluation for Mains?

The AI first writes a rubric for your question — expected approach, key points, scoring dimensions — then marks on the same four parameters UPSC uses: content, structure, analysis, language. No AI replaces a human examiner, but the rubric makes scoring specific to the question, not generic.

Which Mains papers and subjects are covered?

GS 1–4, Essay and all 25 Optional subjects, in English or Hindi, typed or handwritten. 2,880+ Mains previous year questions from 2021–2026 with rubric and answer directive, a daily question on the clock, and full papers you can sit for three hours.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes. It is a web app, so there is nothing to install: open upscanswercheck.com in your phone’s browser and sign in. On a phone, Home, Practice, Evaluate and Progress sit in a bar at the bottom of the screen, and a handwritten answer can be photographed straight from the camera.

How is this different from ChatGPT?

ChatGPT gives generic feedback. We build a question-specific rubric first and evaluate against it — marks out of 10/15, parameter-wise scores, missed keywords and a proper model answer — and every attempt goes to your dashboard.

Chat with us

हिंदी माध्यम? पूरा पेज हिंदी में पढ़िए

UPSC CSE 2027 · Prelims + Mains

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UPSC aspirant practising Prelims previous year questions and reviewing an AI-evaluated Mains answer

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Type an answer or photograph it. It comes back with marks, what earned them, what is missing and a model answer.

2,340 Prelims previous year questions 2014–2026 with an explanation for every option · daily current affairs with 21 scored MCQs · mock tests on UPSC's clock · Guru, a voice tutor that teaches Prelims topic by topic from government sources · AI evaluation of Mains answers, typed or handwritten, GS 1–4, Essay and 25 optionals — with a weekly plan built from your own results.

Prelims PYQs free to read · Daily MCQs scored free · 5 free Mains evaluations a month · No credit card

See everything inside the app ↓

2-minute intro

Why we built this

A quick hello from Ashutosh Sandhal, co-founder and CEO — what UPSC Answer Check does, and our honest take on what AI evaluation can and can't do.

2,340

Prelims PYQs 2014–2026

2,880+

Mains PYQs 2021–2026

68 books

44,578 govt-source passages

21 MCQs

Daily current affairs

< 30 sec

Mains AI evaluation

Inside the app

Everything you get after signing in

The same menu you will see on the left once you sign in — 25 places, and on each one what is free and what the plan adds.

Prelims

No account needed to read: every PYQ with its explanation at /prelims/pyq, and each day’s current affairs with its questions.

Mains

Progress & help

Dashboard Strengths, gaps and your score trend across every Mains answer. Free
History Every evaluated answer with its feedback, kept. Free
Forum Discuss answers and strategy with other aspirants and our team. Free
English or Hindi Switch the app’s language any time. Mains answers are evaluated in the language you write them in. Free
Help on WhatsApp The green button on every page opens a WhatsApp chat with our team. Free
Works on your phone No app to install: on a phone the places you use most sit in a bar at the bottom of the screen. Free

UPSC Prelims 2027

UPSC Prelims preparation — PYQs, current affairs, mock tests

Thirteen years of real questions with a reason for every option, the day's news turned into MCQs every morning, full papers on the clock, and a tutor that teaches from the government books the questions come from.

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Free to read · 10 checks a day

UPSC Prelims previous year question papers 2014–2026

2,340 questions — 1,300 GS Paper I and 1,040 CSAT — with the answer key, an explanation, and why each wrong option is wrong. Filter by year, subject, topic and difficulty.

Open question papers

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Every morning · scored free

Daily current affairs for UPSC

PIB, The Hindu and Indian Express, summarised for Prelims in our own words with a link to the original — 21 events a day, 7 from each paper — then 21 UPSC-format MCQs, one on each, with negative marking, scored free with your rank for the day.

Today’s current affairs

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Exam mode · paid plan

UPSC Prelims test series and mock tests

All 26 real papers — GS and CSAT, 2014–2026 — on UPSC’s clock: 120 minutes, +2 / −0.67 marking, question palette, autosave, and an attempt-strategy verdict at the end. Plus sectional and current-affairs tests you build yourself.

See the test series

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Government sources · 30 turns a day free

Guru — voice tutor for Prelims GS

Teaches every GS Paper I topic chapter by chapter from 68 government books (44,578 passages — NCERT, NIOS, IGNOU, Economic Survey, Constitution), with a check question after every passage. Ask Guru answers any doubt and cites the passage it used.

Guru — Prelims voice AI tutor

Also: UPSC Prelims syllabus and CSAT syllabus with question counts per topic, what UPSC asks in Polity and six more subject analyses, an error notebook, Quick Revision of the NCERT syllabus, and a readiness dashboard. All Prelims tools →

Real question · UPSC Prelims 2024

Every Prelims PYQ, explained option by option

This is how each of the 2,340 previous year questions is published — the answer, the explanation, and why each wrong option is wrong. Not a PDF of the paper.

UPSC Prelims 2024 · GS Paper I Q36 Geography +2 / −0.67

With reference to the Himalayan rivers joining the Ganga downstream of Prayagraj from West to East, which one of the following sequences is correct ?

Ghaghara – Gomati – Gandak – Kosi

Why wrong: The Gomati joins before the Ghaghara, not after.

Gomati – Ghaghara – Gandak – Kosi

✓ Correct answer

Ghaghara – Gomati – Kosi – Gandak

Why wrong: The Gomati comes first and the Gandak before the Kosi.

Gomati – Ghaghara – Kosi – Gandak

Why wrong: The Gandak joins before the Kosi, not after.

Explanation

Downstream of Prayagraj the Ganga receives its major Himalayan left-bank tributaries in the Uttar Pradesh–Bihar plain.
The Gomati joins first, near Ghazipur (Kaithi) in eastern Uttar Pradesh.
Next the Ghaghara (Saryu) joins at Chhapra, just above Patna in Bihar; then the Gandak joins opposite Patna at Hajipur.
Farthest east, the Kosi joins near Kursela in Katihar district before the Ganga enters West Bengal.
The west-to-east sequence is therefore Gomati – Ghaghara – Gandak – Kosi, option (b).

Question © UPSC, 2024. Explanation and per-option reasoning written by UPSC Answer Check.

Open this question page · All UPSC Prelims question papers 2014–2026 →

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UPSC Mains

UPSC Mains answer evaluation by AI

A rubric is written for your question first, then your answer is marked on content, structure, analysis and language — the four parameters UPSC examiners use. Four ways in.

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Your question, your answer

Paste any UPSC Mains question, then type your answer or photograph your handwritten sheet — English or Hindi. Marks, parameter scores, missed keywords and a model answer in under 30 seconds.

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Answer a PYQ you pick

2,880+ UPSC Mains previous year questions, 2021–2026. Filter by year, paper, subject and marks, write on a timer, and be marked against that question’s own rubric.

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Today’s question, on the clock

One Mains question a day with a timer, evaluated the moment you submit, and a writing streak that counts only the days you wrote.

Today’s question

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Sit a full Mains paper

Any year’s real paper — GS 1–4, Essay or your optional — in its real order for three hours. Every answer is evaluated and added up to a paper score. Part of the paid plan.

See the papers

5 free evaluations every month · English or Hindi · A writing routine planned back from your Mains date · How to write the answer, paper by paper · Mains PYQ database

Real evaluation · nothing hidden

See exactly what you get

An actual AI evaluation of a UPSC Mains answer — marks, parameter scores, feedback, the keywords you missed, and a full model answer, in about 30 seconds. Look before you sign up.

GS Paper 2 · Polity 15 marks 250 words

“Legislature is supreme within its domain, yet it is not sovereign.” Examine this statement in the constitutional context with examples.

AI-generated rubric — built before scoring

Expected approach: supremacy vs sovereignty → constitutional limits → judicial review, with case law.

Key points: Articles 245/246 & 368; Kesavananda Bharati, Minerva Mills, S.R. Bommai; basic structure.

10/15 EXCELLENT

Content 5/5

Structure 5/5

Analysis 4/5

Language 5/5

✅ Strengths

Exceptional use of legal terminology like ‘fons et origo’ and ‘plenary powers’. The answer perfectly balances the two halves of the question using a wide array of landmark judgments (Kesavananda Bharati, Minerva Mills, S.R. Bommai).

🛠 How to improve

To reach the top tier, explicitly note that ‘sovereignty’ in India lies with ‘We, the People’ (Preamble). Adding the I.R. Coelho (2007) case on the Ninth Schedule would strengthen the judicial-review section.

Keywords the examiner looks for — that were missed

Popular SovereigntyWe, the PeopleI.R. Coelho caseL. Chandra Kumar caseNinth ScheduleEssential FeaturesControlled Constitution

Model answer — full version in-app

Introduction. In the British model, A.V. Dicey posited that Parliament can make or unmake any law. However, India adopted Constitutional Supremacy. While the Indian Legislature is supreme within its allocated domain, it is not sovereign — its powers are derived from, and limited by, the Constitution, the fons et origo of all authority.

Legislature is supreme within its domain

1. Plenary legislative power: Under Articles 245 & 246, Parliament and State Legislatures legislate on the Seventh Schedule; within this sphere their authority is exhaustive.
2. Constituent power: Under Article 368, Parliament has the unique power to amend the Constitution.
3. Control over executive: Through motions (no-confidence, censure) and budgetary control, the legislature ensures executive accountability.

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5 free evaluations every month · No credit card needed

How We Compare

UPSC Answer Check vs other platforms

Checked row by row against each product as a signed-in user, including the rows where they are ahead of us.

Feature	UPSC Answer Check You’re here	SuperKalam	CollectorBabu	Coaching test series
Prelims
Prelims PYQs with a reason for every option	GS + CSAT, 2014–2026	GS, 2011–2026	Daily mini-sets	PDF only
Daily current affairs with MCQs, scored	21 a day, free, with your rank	15 a day	No	—
Link to the original article on every item	PIB, Hindu, IE	Page number only	No	—
Full timed papers + sectional tests	26 papers + your own · plan	Yes	No	Paid
Tutor that teaches from government sources and cites the passage	Guru, by voice	Book chat, 5/day free	No	—
A weekly plan read off your own results	Regime + routine	Streak, daily targets	1:1 mentor, ₹39,999+	Fixed schedule
Mains
Typed and handwritten answers	Both	Handwritten PDF	Handwritten PDF	Handwritten
Time to feedback	Under 30 seconds	About 1 minute	24 hours	5–14 days
Question-specific rubric shown before the marks	Yes	Fixed criteria	No	—
Optional subjects evaluated	All 25	7 subjects	8, Combo plan	Per institute
Hindi-medium evaluation	Yes	Beta	English only	Drishti only
Full paper on the clock, every answer marked	3-hour sitting	App only	PDF, 24 hours	Days later
Human examiner reads your answer	No — AI only	No	Yes	Yes
Access and price
Free every month	5 evaluations + daily practice	3 evaluations	₹49 trial	—
Native Android / iOS app	Web app, phone-ready	Yes	Web	—
Price for a year	₹2,999, no auto-renewal	₹7,499	₹13,499+	Mostly opaque
Refund	7-day money-back	No refunds	Trial non-refundable	—

✓ has it · ◐ partly, or at a cost · ✗ does not · — not seen. SuperKalam and CollectorBabu walked through as a signed-in user on 11 September 2026, with their public pricing pages re-read on 23 September 2026; coaching test series from public marketing. Features change — check each provider’s site before deciding.

📄

Why not a PDF of the question paper?

Every site on the "upsc prelims question paper" results page gives you the same PDF UPSC already publishes. A PDF tells you the answer is (b). It does not tell you why (a), (c) and (d) are wrong — and that is the part that stops you repeating the mistake. Each of our 2,340 questions has that written out.

🤖

Why not ChatGPT?

ChatGPT will give you 8/10 on an answer that does not even address the question — we have all seen it. We generate a question-specific rubric first, then evaluate against it: marks out of 10 or 15, parameter-wise scores, missing keywords, and a proper model answer.

🏛️

Why not a coaching test series?

Waiting 10–14 days for a "fine, work on examples" comment does not teach you to write. By the time the copy comes back you have written six more answers with the same flaw. We give dimension-level feedback in seconds, every day, on every answer — for less than one enrollment.

Start free — Prelims and Mains

Prelims PYQ practice free · 5 free Mains evaluations a month · No credit card

Pricing

Start free. Pay only when you want it all.

One plan covers Prelims and Mains. No auto-renewal, and a 7-day money-back guarantee.

The Prelims practice screen on a laptop for a free account: the left menu shows 10/day free beside Practise PYQs, 30/day free beside Guru, and a Plan lock beside Tests, Error notebook and Quick Revision. — A free account, as it looks today. Rows marked **Plan** are what the paid plan adds; everything else is yours free.

Home on a phone for a free account: the full app menu with its Free, 10/day free and Plan labels, and the Home, Practice, Evaluate, Progress and Menu bar at the bottom. — A free account, as it looks today. Rows marked **Plan** are what the paid plan adds; everything else is yours free.

What is free, and what the plan adds

Feature	Free	Plan
Read every PYQ with its explanation, the daily current affairs, syllabus, trends, dashboards, your regime and routine	✓Yes	✓Yes
Score the daily 21 MCQs, with your rank	✓Yes	✓Yes
Practise PYQs with instant check	10 a day	Unlimited
Guru and Ask Guru	30 turns a day	Unlimited
Mains evaluation — typed, handwritten, PYQ or the daily question, one shared count	5 a month	Unlimited
Timed mock tests, error notebook, Quick Revision, full Mains paper	Plan	Included

Daily limits reset at midnight IST; the Mains count resets on the 1st.

FREE

₹0

forever

✓ Every Prelims PYQ 2014–2026 to read; 10 practice checks a day
✓ Daily current affairs — 21 events and 21 MCQs, scored with your rank
✓ Guru and Ask Guru, 30 turns a day
✓ 5 Mains evaluations a month, any paper, English or Hindi
✓ Your regime, routine, trends and dashboards

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no auto-renewal

✓ No daily limits — practice, Guru and Mains evaluation
✓ Timed mock tests and the error notebook
✓ Quick Revision — the NCERT syllabus, read or listen
✓ Full Mains papers on the clock, every answer evaluated
✓ Everything in Free

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YEARLY

₹2,999/yr

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✓ Everything in Monthly, for 12 months
✓ Covers Prelims 2027 and the Mains after it
✓ Charged once; no auto-renewal, 7-day money-back

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UPSC Prelims 2027 and Mains — start free

2,340 Prelims PYQs explained. Daily current affairs, scored. Mock tests on the clock. Guru, a voice tutor, to teach Prelims. AI evaluation for Mains. One account, on your laptop or your phone.

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