SLPRB does not announce a cut-off in advance. It publishes final cut-off marks after selection, unit by unit and category by category. This page gives the official figures for the last completed Civil constable recruitment (Rc.No.161/SLPRB/Rect.2/2022, cut-offs revised on 08-08-2025) and the qualifying marks that apply in 2026. Every figure is from an SLPRB document linked in the sources.
Two different numbers: qualifying marks and cut-off
| Term | What it means | 2026 figure |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifying marks (prelims) | The minimum to pass the prelims and reach the PMT/PET | 40% OC (incl. EWS), 35% BC, 30% SC/ST |
| Qualifying marks (final written) | The minimum to be considered at all in the final | 40% / 35% / 30% |
| Cut-off | The marks of the last candidate selected in a unit and category | Published after selection |
Arithmetic from the scheme: on a 200-mark paper, 40% is 80 marks, 35% is 70 and 30% is 60. These are pass marks, not selection marks. The real cut-offs (below) were far higher.
Final cut-off, PC (Civil), Rc.161/2022
SLPRB's revised list (08-08-2025) gives cut-offs out of 200 for each police unit, with separate columns for General and Women and for special categories (Home Guards, ex-servicemen, MSP, CPP, NCC and others). The table below summarises the range across units for the main columns.
| Category | Lowest unit | Highest unit |
|---|---|---|
| OC General | 138 | 155 |
| OC Women | 134 | 141 |
| BC-A General | 120 | 149 |
| BC-B General | 110 | 144 |
| BC-D General | 123 | 154 |
| SC General | about 117 | 138 |
| ST General | about 112 | 121 |
- Highest OC General: Srikakulam (SKL), 155.
- Lowest OC General: 138, for units including Chittoor (CTR) and Kadapa (KDP).
- In the PDF the reserved-category columns are densely packed and some cells are blank where no candidate was selected. The SC and ST ranges above are therefore marked "about". Check your own unit's row in the official PDF before using it.
- We have not reproduced the cut-offs for BC-C, BC-E, EWS or the special categories here. They are in the same PDF.
How to read these numbers
- The range is wide. OC General runs from 138 to 155, a 17-mark spread for the same paper. Where you compete changes the target.
- These are 2022 numbers. In that cycle the final paper was also 200 questions for 200 marks, so the scale is comparable. But the 2026 vacancies, local rules and paper difficulty are different.
- Women's columns can be lower or close. OC Women ran from 134 to 141, a narrower band than OC General.
Turning a cut-off into a target
Arithmetic from the 2022 figures: a cut-off of 155 out of 200 is 77.5% of the paper; 138 is 69%. With 180 minutes and no penalty clause, reaching 140 means about 140 correct answers, or 60 questions you can afford to get wrong or leave. Reaching 155 leaves room for only 45.
| 2022 OC General cut-off | Share of 200 | Questions you could miss |
|---|---|---|
| 138 | 69% | 62 |
| 145 | 72.5% | 55 |
| 150 | 75% | 50 |
| 155 | 77.5% | 45 |
These are straight calculations from a 200-mark paper with one mark a question, not predictions for 2026.
Why units differ (our explanation)
The official PDF gives figures; it does not explain them. The usual reasons a unit's cut-off ends up higher or lower are:
- Posts against applicants. A unit with few posts in a community column and many strong applicants ends up with a higher last-selected mark.
- Local reservation. Most posts go to locals of that area, so the strength of the local pool decides much of the cut-off.
- Women and special-category columns. These are filled separately, so they move independently of the General column.
None of this is published by SLPRB. It is a guide to reading the table, not a forecast.
What is different in 2026
Compared with Rc.161/2022, SLPRB kept the structure (200-question prelims, PMT/PET, 200-question final) and changed the rules around it:
| Factor | Position in Rc.91/2026 |
|---|---|
| Paper structure | Unchanged from 2022 |
| Local cadre | New regime under the Presidential Order 2025: first 5% open, 95% local only |
| SC reservation | SC sub-classification (Ordinance 2 of 2025) |
| PMT / PET | Digital measurement, electronic timing, explicit no re-test clause |
| PC (Civil) vacancies | 542 (provisional) |
Two of these affect cut-offs directly:
- 95% local. Under G.O.Ms.No.172 GA (Ser.D), 02-09-2026, the first 5% of posts are filled from everyone (locals and non-locals) and the remaining 95% from locals only. Competition is largely within your local area.
- SC sub-classification. SC seats are now split into sub-groups, so 2022 SC cut-offs cannot be compared directly with 2026.
2026 vacancies
PC (Civil), PC (AR), Firemen and Jail Warders share one notification and one written test. Provisional vacancies: Civil 542, AR 285, Firemen 158, Jail Warder (Men) 150, Jail Warder (Women) 21, for a total of 1,156. The notification has a district-wise table; the largest Civil allocations are NTR City (44) and Tirupati (42).
Jail Warders, Firemen and PC (AR)
The figures on this page are for PC (Civil) only. Firemen and Jail Warders write the same papers under Rc.91, and PC (AR) adds a 100-mark PET to a written test graded to 100, so their cut-offs are on different lists or different scales. This page does not reproduce them.
When will the 2026 cut-off come?
After the final written test and final selection. As on 2026-10-08, even the application and prelims dates are not yet announced; SLPRB says they will come through a press release.
How to use the 2022 numbers
- Pick your unit's row in the official PDF and note the General and Women figures for your community.
- Set a target a little above it in mocks, because 2026 conditions differ. That is our advice, not an SLPRB figure.
- Track your score on full 200-question papers under the real 3-hour limit. See the exam pattern and the preparation plan.
On Pareeksha a 10-question mini-mock and the Daily Dangal are free; full-length mocks, previous-year papers and topic practice are Pro.
Related: Syllabus · Exam pattern · Preparation strategy