March 27, 20269 min read

Previous Year Cutoff Analysis for SSC and Banking Exams 2026: Category-Wise Trends and What Score You Need

Detailed cutoff analysis for SSC CGL, CHSL, MTS, GD, IBPS PO, SBI PO, and IBPS Clerk. Includes 5-year trends, category-wise cutoffs, normalization explained, and target score strategy.

SSC cutoff IBPS cutoff SBI PO cutoff SSC CGL cutoff banking exam cutoff cutoff analysis 2026 category wise cutoff

Cutoffs are the most searched thing after any government exam result is declared — and for good reason. Knowing the cutoff trends tells you exactly what score to target, how your category affects your chances, and whether the exam is getting harder or easier. Let's do a deep dive into SSC and banking exam cutoffs with actual numbers and trends.

How Cutoffs Are Calculated — SSC vs Banking

Before looking at numbers, you need to understand how cutoffs work differently for SSC and banking exams:

SSC (Staff Selection Commission):

SSC conducts exams in multiple shifts across several days
Each shift has a slightly different paper, so difficulty varies
SSC uses normalization to make scores comparable across shifts
Your raw score is converted to a normalized score using a statistical formula
Cutoff is declared on normalized scores, not raw scores
Final merit is based on combined normalized score of all tiers

Banking (IBPS/SBI):

IBPS and SBI exams have sectional cutoffs — you must clear cutoff in EACH section separately, PLUS the overall cutoff
Failing even one section eliminates you, regardless of your overall score
No normalization in most banking exams (all candidates get the same paper in online mode)
Prelims cutoff qualifies you for Mains; Mains cutoff qualifies you for Interview (if applicable)

SSC CGL Cutoff Trends (Tier I — Last 5 Cycles)

Here's how SSC CGL Tier I cutoffs have moved over recent cycles (normalized scores out of 200):

Year/Cycle	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST	EWS
2020	130.00	120.00	110.00	103.00	125.00
2021	137.37	125.36	112.37	104.45	127.27
2022	142.01	130.22	115.46	106.89	132.18
2023	140.57	128.90	113.83	105.93	130.75
2024	144.87	133.15	117.25	108.41	135.62
2025	147.50	135.80	119.90	110.73	138.20

Trend: SSC CGL Tier I cutoff for General category has risen from ~130 to ~147 over 5 years. This means the exam is getting more competitive. The number of serious, well-prepared candidates is increasing every year. What this means for 2026: Target at least 155+ (normalized) if you're General category to be safe. For OBC, target 140+. SC candidates should aim for 125+.

SSC CHSL Cutoff Trends (Tier I)

Year/Cycle	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST	EWS
2020	116.31	107.45	96.14	88.62	110.58
2021	120.87	112.32	99.72	91.25	115.23
2022	126.42	117.85	103.47	94.18	120.75
2023	123.95	115.60	101.83	92.90	118.42
2024	129.70	120.45	106.30	96.85	123.58
2025	132.15	123.20	108.75	98.40	126.30

CHSL cutoffs are lower than CGL because the post level is lower (LDC/DEO vs Inspector/Auditor), but the upward trend is identical.

SSC MTS and SSC GD Cutoff Snapshot

For SSC MTS (10th pass exam), the General cutoff has risen from ~47 in 2021 to ~58 in 2025. For SSC GD Constable, the General cutoff has climbed from ~143 to ~158 over the same period. Both exams show the same upward trend as CGL and CHSL — more prepared candidates every year pushing cutoffs higher.

IBPS PO Cutoff Trends (Prelims — Overall)

Banking cutoffs work differently. Here are IBPS PO Prelims overall cutoffs (out of 100):

Year	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST	EWS
2020-21	56.25	51.50	42.75	35.50	52.80
2021-22	60.75	54.30	45.20	37.80	56.40
2022-23	58.50	52.85	43.90	36.70	54.60
2023-24	62.30	56.45	47.10	39.25	58.75
2024-25	64.80	58.90	49.35	41.50	61.20

IBPS PO Prelims Sectional Cutoffs (approximate range):

Section	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST
English Language	8.00 – 11.00	6.50 – 9.50	4.00 – 7.00	2.50 – 5.50
Quantitative Aptitude	8.50 – 12.00	7.00 – 10.00	4.50 – 7.50	3.00 – 6.00
Reasoning Ability	9.00 – 12.50	7.50 – 10.50	5.00 – 8.00	3.50 – 6.50

Critical point: In banking exams, sectional cutoffs are the real killers. You can score 75/100 overall but if you got only 5 marks in English (below the sectional cutoff), you're eliminated. Balance your preparation across all sections.

SBI PO Cutoff Trends (Prelims)

Year	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST	EWS
2021	62.50	56.00	46.25	38.50	58.30
2022	59.75	53.40	44.10	36.70	55.80
2023	64.20	57.85	48.00	40.15	60.50
2024	67.50	61.30	51.20	42.80	63.75
2025	69.80	63.50	53.45	44.60	65.90

SBI PO cutoffs are consistently 3-5 marks higher than IBPS PO because SBI attracts more serious candidates and the vacancy count is lower.

IBPS Clerk Cutoff Trends (Prelims)

Year	General (UR)	OBC	SC	ST	EWS
2021-22	54.75	49.20	40.50	33.80	50.60
2022-23	58.30	52.45	43.25	36.10	54.80
2023-24	56.80	51.10	42.00	35.20	53.25
2024-25	61.50	55.80	46.15	38.50	57.90

IBPS Clerk cutoffs are state-specific — the cutoff in Bihar or UP is higher than in northeastern states because more candidates apply from those states. The numbers above are approximate national averages.

What Affects Cutoff Levels?

Five factors determine whether the cutoff goes up or down in a particular year:

Factor	Effect on Cutoff
Number of vacancies increases	Cutoff goes DOWN
Number of candidates increases	Cutoff goes UP
Paper difficulty increases	Cutoff goes DOWN
Paper difficulty decreases	Cutoff goes UP
Normalization adjustment	Can swing cutoff either way

In recent years, the number of candidates has been growing faster than vacancies in most exams, which is why cutoffs have been trending upward across the board.

Target Score Strategy — Aim for Cutoff + 20%

Here's the golden rule: never aim for "just the cutoff." Target at least 20% above the expected cutoff.

Exam	Expected 2026 Cutoff (UR)	Your Target Score
SSC CGL Tier I	~150 (normalized)	175+
SSC CHSL Tier I	~135 (normalized)	160+
SSC GD	~160 (normalized)	185+
IBPS PO Prelims	~66 (out of 100)	78+
SBI PO Prelims	~71 (out of 100)	82+
IBPS Clerk Prelims	~63 (out of 100)	74+

Why 20% buffer? Because cutoffs can spike in a particular year if the paper is easy or if vacancies drop. A 20% buffer protects you against unexpected cutoff jumps.

Category-Wise Advantage Analysis

Let's be transparent about how much reservation impacts cutoffs:

Category	Typical Cutoff Difference from General	Example (SSC CGL)
EWS	5-8% lower	~138 vs ~147
OBC (Non-Creamy Layer)	8-12% lower	~135 vs ~147
SC	18-22% lower	~120 vs ~147
ST	25-30% lower	~111 vs ~147
PwBD	35-45% lower	Varies significantly

This data isn't about fairness — it's about realistic target-setting. If you're SC category, your target for SSC CGL Tier I is ~140, not 175. Knowing your realistic target helps you plan preparation time efficiently.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do SSC cutoffs vary by region? No. SSC cutoffs are national — there's one cutoff for General, one for OBC, one for SC, etc. across the country. However, in the allocation stage, your post preference and zone preference matter. Banking exams (IBPS Clerk specifically) DO have state-level cutoffs. Why did the cutoff drop in some years despite more candidates? This usually happens when the paper difficulty increases significantly. If SSC sets a harder paper, even good candidates score lower, which brings the cutoff down. Normalization also plays a role — if one shift was much harder, those candidates get a boost. Should I check coaching institute cutoff predictions or wait for official cutoffs? Coaching institute predictions are usually within 5-8 marks of actual cutoffs for banking exams (since the paper is the same for everyone). For SSC, predictions are less reliable because of normalization. Wait for official results for SSC, but coaching predictions for banking are decent indicators. If I'm OBC but don't have a current Non-Creamy Layer certificate, can I still get OBC cutoff benefit? No. You MUST have a valid OBC-NCL certificate at the time of document verification. If your family income has crossed the creamy layer threshold, you're treated as General category. Many candidates have lost their selection at DV stage because of expired or invalid OBC certificates.