SSC CGL Cut Off Trends 2026:
Tier 1 & Tier 2 (2019–2025)
Latest SSC CGL Cut Off Quick Summary
The latest official SSC CGL Tier 1 cutoff for General (UR) category candidates stands at 136.83 (released for the 2025 cycle). For JSO and AAO, the cutoffs were higher due to limited seats. Tier 1 is qualifying; final placement is decided solely by your Tier 2 score.
Interactive Cut-Off Explorer
Explore Cut-Off Marks by Year, Category & Post
Numbers scattered across a dozen yearly tables don't tell you the shape of the trend. Filter below to see the exact historical cutoff for your category and post group, plotted as a trend line.
| Year | Cut Off Marks |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 147.79 |
| 2020 | 132.37 |
| 2021 | 130.18 |
| 2022 | 114.28 |
| 2023 | 150.05 |
| 2024 | 153.19 |
| 2025 | 136.83 |
SSC CGL 2025 Cut Off
All posts except JSO/SI
| Category | Cut Off |
|---|---|
| UR | 136.83 |
| OBC | 130.36 |
| EWS | 127.41 |
| SC | 114.97 |
| ST | 106.36 |
UR Trend (2019–2025)
Unreserved candidates history
| Year | Cut Off |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 147.79 |
| 2020 | 147.00 |
| 2021 | 130.18 |
| 2022 | 114.28 |
| 2023 | 150.05 |
| 2025 | 136.83 |
2024 excluded — available secondary-source figure duplicated 2023's number exactly, which does not hold up as genuine. Verify against official PDF first.
Trend Insights
The cutoff has swung by as much as 36 marks (2022 to 2023) in a single year. There is no stable "safe score." A target of 150+/200 gives comfortable margin; a score in the 130s is a gamble.
Why JSO and AAO Cut Offs Run Higher
Junior Statistical Officer and Assistant Audit Officer/Assistant Accounts Officer posts advertise far fewer vacancies each year than the general SSC CGL post pool, which pushes their cutoffs meaningfully above the "all other posts" figure — often by 15-30+ marks at Tier 1. If you're targeting one of these specifically, benchmark against their own historical cutoff, not the general-post figure.
Tier 1 vs Tier 2 Cut Off — What Each One Actually Means
Understanding the key functional differences between candidate selection thresholds
| Feature | Tier 1 Cut Off | Tier 2 Cut Off |
|---|---|---|
| Decides | Who advances to Tier 2 | Final selection and merit rank |
| Marks are carried forward? | No | Yes — this is your final score |
| Scale | Out of 200 | Out of 450 (Paper I, current pattern) |
A comfortable Tier 1 clear means nothing for final selection — it only buys you the right to compete at Tier 2, where the real cutoff for your rank and post lives. Don't stop preparing once Tier 1 clears; treat it as round one, not the finish line.
Tier 2's structure changed in 2023. See the SSC CGL Exam Pattern for the current Paper I/II/III breakdown. Pre-2023 Tier 2/3 final cutoffs used a different total-marks scale and should not be compared directly against post-2023 figures.
What Actually Moves the Cut Off
Four critical drivers that dictate the shifting selection threshold each year
| Factor | Effect |
|---|---|
| Number of vacancies | More vacancies → generally lower cutoff. Fewer vacancies → generally higher cutoff. |
| Number of candidates appearing | Higher turnout increases competition and can push the cutoff up. |
| Paper difficulty | A tougher paper typically produces a lower cutoff; an easier paper raises it. |
| Normalization | Since the exam runs in multiple shifts, SSC normalizes raw scores to a common scale before setting the cutoff — the published cutoff is always a normalized figure, never a raw score. |
None of these factors move independently — a low-vacancy year with an easy paper and high turnout can still produce a sharp cutoff jump, which is exactly what happened between 2022 and 2023 in the table above.
How to Use This Data to Set Your Target Score
Strategic rules of thumb for turning historical cut-off numbers into a concrete prep plan
Prepare for Peak + Safety Margin
Don't prepare for the base cutoff — target the highest cutoff your category has seen in the last five years, and add a safety buffer of 10–15 marks.
Use Post-Specific Benchmarks
If targeting JSO, AAO, or other specialty posts, anchor your mocks against their higher historical cutoffs rather than general CGL figures.
Track Vacancy Shifts Early
Monitor raw vacancy counts for the cycle. Large fluctuations are the earliest and strongest signals of which way the cutoff will move.
Treat Estimates with Caution
Expected CGL 2026 cutoffs are estimates. The final binding benchmark is exclusively the official PDF result released by the SSC.
Related Pages
Deepen your preparation with more official insights and tools for the SSC CGL 2026 cycle
Ready to clear the SSC CGL 2026 Cut Off?
Practice with Prepgrind's free mocks and check where you rank against cutoff percentiles.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
For all posts except JSO and Statistical Investigator, 136.83 for UR, 130.36 for OBC, 127.41 for EWS, 114.97 for SC, and 106.36 for ST, out of 200.