UPSC Prelims 2026 was conducted on 24 May 2026, and candidates across the country are now eagerly checking their answers and expected scores. The paper this year was moderate to difficult, with strong focus on current affairs, environment, economy and analytical questions. CSAT was also considered lengthy by many students. In this blog, Launchpad IAS provides the unofficial answer key for both GS Paper 1 and CSAT (Paper 2) for Set A. Students can use this answer key to calculate their probable marks, analyse performance and understand the changing trend of UPSC questions.
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 GS Paper-1 Answer Key
(Unofficial Answer Key by Launchpad IAS)
Test Booklet Series: A
Exam Date: 24 May 2026
| Q. No. | Answer | Q. No. | Answer |
| 1 | (d) | 51 | (c) |
| 2 | (a) | 52 | (a) |
| 3 | (c) | 53 | (b) |
| 4 | (b) | 54 | (d) |
| 5 | (b) | 55 | (b) |
| 6 | (a) | 56 | (b) |
| 7 | (d) | 57 | (a) |
| 8 | (a) | 58 | (c) |
| 9 | (c) | 59 | (d) |
| 10 | (c) | 60 | (a) |
| 11 | (d) | 61 | (d) |
| 12 | (a) | 62 | (d) |
| 13 | (c) | 63 | (a) |
| 14 | (b) | 64 | (d) |
| 15 | (b) | 65 | (d) |
| 16 | (b) | 66 | (a) |
| 17 | (a) | 67 | (b) |
| 18 | (d) | 68 | (a) |
| 19 | (d) | 69 | (c) |
| 20 | (b) | 70 | (a) |
| 21 | (b) | 71 | (b) |
| 22 | (b) | 72 | (c) |
| 23 | (d) | 73 | (d) |
| 24 | (d) | 74 | (b) |
| 25 | (c) | 75 | (c) |
| 26 | (c) | 76 | (c) |
| 27 | (a) | 77 | (b) |
| 28 | (d) | 78 | (b) |
| 29 | (c) | 79 | (c) |
| 30 | (b) | 80 | (c) |
| 31 | (a) | 81 | (c) |
| 32 | (b) | 82 | (c) |
| 33 | (b) | 83 | (c) |
| 34 | (b) | 84 | (a) |
| 35 | (b) | 85 | (a) |
| 36 | (b) | 86 | (c) |
| 37 | (c) | 87 | (a) |
| 38 | (b) | 88 | (c) |
| 39 | (b) | 89 | (c) |
| 40 | (c) | 90 | (d) |
| 41 | (c) | 91 | (a) |
| 42 | (b) | 92 | (c) |
| 43 | (c) | 93 | (b) |
| 44 | (b) | 94 | (b) |
| 45 | (b) | 95 | (a) |
| 46 | (c) | 96 | (c) |
| 47 | (b) | 97 | (c) |
| 48 | (b) | 98 | (d) |
| 49 | (c) | 99 | (a) |
| 50 | (b) | 100 | (a) |
Paper Analysis Highlights
- Strong focus on Environment & Ecology
- Many questions mixed Current Affairs + Static
- Art & Culture remained important
- Analytical questions increased
- Statement-based questions dominated the paper
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 CSAT (GS Paper-II) Answer Key
(Unofficial Answer Key by Launchpad IAS)
Test Booklet Series: A
Exam Date: 24 May 2026
| Q. No. | Answer | Q. No. | Answer |
| 1 | (d) | 41 | (c) |
| 2 | (a) | 42 | (b) |
| 3 | (c) | 43 | (c) |
| 4 | (b) | 44 | (b) |
| 5 | (b) | 45 | (b) |
| 6 | (a) | 46 | (c) |
| 7 | (d) | 47 | (b) |
| 8 | (a) | 48 | (b) |
| 9 | (c) | 49 | (c) |
| 10 | (c) | 50 | (b) |
| 11 | (d) | 51 | (c) |
| 12 | (a) | 52 | (a) |
| 13 | (c) | 53 | (b) |
| 14 | (b) | 54 | (d) |
| 15 | (b) | 55 | (b) |
| 16 | (b) | 56 | (b) |
| 17 | (a) | 57 | (a) |
| 18 | (d) | 58 | (c) |
| 19 | (d) | 59 | (d) |
| 20 | (b) | 60 | (a) |
| 21 | (b) | 61 | (d) |
| 22 | (b) | 62 | (d) |
| 23 | (d) | 63 | (a) |
| 24 | (d) | 64 | (d) |
| 25 | (c) | 65 | (d) |
| 26 | (c) | 66 | (a) |
| 27 | (a) | 67 | (b) |
| 28 | (d) | 68 | (a) |
| 29 | (c) | 69 | (c) |
| 30 | (b) | 70 | (a) |
| 31 | (a) | 71 | (b) |
| 32 | (b) | 72 | (c) |
| 33 | (b) | 73 | (d) |
| 34 | (b) | 74 | (b) |
| 35 | (b) | 75 | (c) |
| 36 | (b) | 76 | (c) |
| 37 | (c) | 77 | (b) |
| 38 | (b) | 78 | (b) |
| 39 | (b) | 79 | (c) |
| 40 | (c) | 80 | (c) |
CSAT 2026 Analysis Highlights
- Reading comprehension was lengthy
- Logical reasoning was moderate to difficult
- Maths section was calculation-heavy
- Many students may find time management difficult
- Decision-making and analytical reasoning dominated the paper
Source Paper: https://launchpadeducation.in/upsc-prelims-question-paper-2026-out-complete-exam-analysis-by-launchpad-ias/
This answer key is prepared using expert analysis, multiple reputed institute discussions and detailed paper review. However, a few answers may vary across institutes until the official UPSC answer key is released after the final result process is completed.