IAS Answer Key

UPSC publishes the UPSC Civil Services Examination (IAS) answer key only after the entire selection process for that cycle is complete — not within days of the examination. This is a deliberate policy and it is the biggest single difference from SSC and the RRBs.

When the key appears

Under UPSC's disclosure policy, question papers with answer keys, along with the marks of recommended and non-recommended candidates, are placed on the website after the final result of that examination is declared. For an annual cycle that can be more than a year after you sat the paper.

What this means for you

There is no official key to check your score against in the weeks after the exam, and no challenge window of the kind SSC runs. Unofficial keys published by coaching institutes are estimates and are sometimes wrong. Plan the next stage on the assumption that you have cleared, rather than waiting for a key that will not arrive in time to help.

Where to find past keys

Released keys sit under Examinations → Answer Keys on upsc.gov.in, organised by examination and year.