SSC CGL Answer Key 2026: Tier-I Key, Challenge Fee, Score Check

The SSC CGL 2026 Tier-I answer key is not out yet: Tier-I runs until 30 October 2026, and SSC publishes the tentative key only after the exam. For comparison, the CGLE 2025 Tier-I key came out on 16 October 2025, three weeks after the main exam window ended on 26 September 2025. The CGLE 2024 Tier-I key was released on 3 October 2024, a week after that exam ended on 26 September 2024.

How is the SSC CGL answer key released?

SSC uploads each candidate's response sheet together with the tentative answer key on ssc.gov.in. You log in with your Registration Number and Password, open "Answer Key Challenge", and are taken to the exam agency's portal. There, your response sheet shows answers in colour: green for a correct choice, red for a wrong choice, yellow for the actual correct answer and grey for unattempted questions. The question and option order may differ from what you saw in the hall, because the challenge module uses one sequence for everyone in a shift. Your own chosen answers are still shown exactly.

How do you challenge the key, and what does it cost?

For each question you dispute, you choose a complaint type, describe the issue, upload a scanned image as supporting proof if needed, then use "Proceed to Pay". Challenges are accepted only online, and only inside the published window; the response sheet is withdrawn once the window closes.

On the fee, the CGLE 2026 Notice (para 13.3) still says ₹100 per question, non-refundable. However, SSC's notice of 22 August 2025 fixed the fee at ₹50 per question until a refund mechanism is ready. SSC's later keys charged ₹50, including the CGLE 2025 Tier-I and Tier-II keys and the Phase-XIV Selection Post key of 9 October 2026. Check the CGLE 2026 key write-up for the final figure.

From the 2026 series, SSC's Challenge/Objection Management guidelines of 10 April 2026 apply:

• A question that is ambiguous, has no correct option or is out of syllabus is discarded, and its marks go to every candidate, whether they attempted it or not.
• If a question has more than one correct option, full marks go to anyone choosing a correct option; a wrong option still attracts negative marks, and unattempted gets zero.
• A translation error is judged separately for that language only.
• The number of challenges against a question does not matter, only their merit.

How do you calculate your SSC CGL score from the key?

Tier-I has four sections of 25 questions each, worth 50 marks per section (200 in all). That means 2 marks per correct answer and 0.50 deducted per wrong answer, so your raw score is 2 × correct − 0.5 × wrong. In Tier-II, Sections I, II and III of Paper-I carry a negative mark of 1 per wrong answer, while Paper-II and Paper-III carry 0.50. Section I of Paper-I has 60 questions for 180 marks, or 3 marks each.

Your raw score is not the final number. Because Tier-I runs in many shifts, marks are normalised under the procedure in SSC's notice of 2 June 2025, and the normalised scores decide merit and cut-offs. Minimum qualifying marks are 30% for UR, 25% for OBC/EWS and 20% for all other categories. There is no re-evaluation or re-checking of scores at any tier.

What happens after the tentative key?

SSC experts review the challenges and the final key is used to process the result. The final key is published only after the result. For CGLE 2025 Tier-I, the result came on 18 December 2025. The final key, response sheets and marks of all qualified and non-qualified candidates followed on 9 January 2026, viewable until 8 February 2026.

SSC CGL answer key in past cycles