What is the expected SBI PO 2026 cutoff?

Based on 2024-2025 trends, expected SBI PO 2026 Prelim cutoff: 48-52 marks (General), 43-47 (OBC), 38-42 (SC), 36-40 (ST), 47-51 (EWS). Main exam cutoff: 130-140 marks (combined 4 sections). Expected cutoff is rising 1-2 marks per year due to increasing difficulty.

What was SBI PO 2025 cutoff score?

SBI PO 2025 Prelim cutoff (General): 48 marks. OBC: 43 marks, SC: 38 marks, ST: 36 marks, EWS: 47 marks. Main exam cutoff: 132 marks (combined). Interview merit rank contributed 33% to final selection. Total vacancies: 1,500; qualifiers from Prelim: 22,500 (15:1 ratio).

Why are SBI PO cutoffs different for each category?

Cutoffs are independent per category because each category has separate vacancies. General: 60% of posts, OBC: 27%, SC: 10%, ST: 2.5%, EWS: 0.5%. A candidate needs to clear their category cutoff, not compete across categories. This means you have separate ranking within your category.

Does SBI PO cutoff vary by zone (North/South/East/West/Metro)?

There is NO zone-wise variation in SBI PO cutoff anymore (since 2023 reform). Cutoff is uniform nationwide. However, posting location (zone) is decided based on availability and preference after selection. So all candidates compete on the same cutoff, but posting location depends on merit rank within your zone for that specific location.

Are SBI PO cutoffs increasing or decreasing year-on-year?

Cutoffs are INCREASING. 2023: 40 marks, 2024: 45 marks, 2025: 48 marks. This is because: (1) Exam difficulty is increasing, (2) Number of applicants is rising (2023: 600K → 2025: 829K), (3) SBI can afford to set higher cutoffs. Expected 2026: 50-53 marks. Trend will likely continue upward.

If I score exactly at the cutoff mark, will I pass?

Yes, if you score at or above the cutoff, you pass and move to the next stage. If cutoff is 48 and you score 48, you're in. However, thousands of candidates score exactly at cutoff (due to exam design), so you'll be ranked very low. Interview performance then becomes critical—excel there to reach final merit list.

What score should I target to have a safety margin above cutoff?

Target at least 5-7 marks above the predicted cutoff. If 2026 cutoff is predicted 50, target 55-57. This gives you a safety margin in case: (1) Exam is harder than expected (cutoff rises), (2) Your score drops on exam day due to stress. Score 55+ and you're virtually guaranteed clearing Prelim.

Is Main exam cutoff harder to clear than Prelim?

YES. Main exam is harder. Prelim weeds out 97% (22,500 qualifiers from 829,000 applicants = 2.7% success rate). Main exam weeds out 85% (3,000 qualifiers from Main = 13.3% of Prelim qualifiers). Only ~1,500 reach Interview. Interview has 33% weightage in final selection. Most candidates clear Prelim but fail at Main.

How are Prelim and Main scores combined for final merit list?

Final merit = (Prelim score normalized to 100) × 30% + (Main score normalized to 200) × 40% + (Interview score normalized to 100) × 30%. This means: Main exam weighs more (40%) than Prelim (30%), and Interview weighs significantly (30%). Clearing Prelim at 55 is just the start—Main and Interview equally matter.

What is the final selection process after Main exam?

After Main: Top 3,000 candidates (by merit) are called for Interview. Interview is 15-20 min, 100 marks. Final merit list combines Prelim (30%) + Main (40%) + Interview (30%). Only ~1,500 are finally selected. You must clear all 3 stages: Prelim, Main, and Interview. Failing at any stage eliminates you.

SBI PO Cutoff 2024-2025 Analysis & 2026 Prediction

Category-Wise, Zone-Wise, Year-on-Year Trends with Selection Statistics

✓ Last Updated: June 29, 2026

SBI PO Cutoff Scores 2025 (Most Recent)

Preliminary Exam Cutoff Scores (out of 100 marks)

Category	Cutoff Marks	% of Total Marks	Number of Qualifiers	Remarks
General	48	48%	~12,000	60% of vacancies (largest category)
OBC	43	43%	~5,400	27% of vacancies
SC	38	38%	~3,000	10% of vacancies (150 posts)
ST	36	36%	~750	2.5% of vacancies (37 posts)
EWS	47	47%	~350	0.5% of vacancies (7 posts) — highest cutoff, fewest posts

✓ Key Insight: General category is most competitive (48 marks cutoff), but also has the most vacancies (900 posts). SC/ST have lower cutoffs but also fewer vacancies. EWS has only 7 posts but highest cutoff—avoid unless your category. OBC is the “sweet spot”—reasonable cutoff (43), decent vacancies (405 posts).

Main Exam Cutoff Scores (out of 200 marks)

Category	Cutoff Marks	% of Total Marks	Expected Qualifiers to Interview
General	132-135	66-67.5%	~1,800
OBC	128-131	64-65.5%	~810
SC	120-123	60-61.5%	~300
ST	115-118	57.5-59%	~75
EWS	130-133	65-66.5%	~14

Interview Cutoff (Merit-Based)

Interview merit is determined by normalized combined score of Prelim (30%) + Main (40%) + Interview (100 marks, 30% weightage). No fixed cutoff; depends on your rank. Top 1,500 candidates (across all categories, by merit) are selected.

⚠ Critical Reality: For General category, you’re competing with 12,000 Prelim qualifiers for ~900 posts. Only top 1,800 reach Interview (15% success rate). Only top 900 are finally selected (5% overall success rate). This is HIGHLY competitive. Score 55+ on Prelim to be in top 25%; score 60+ to be in top 10%.

Year-on-Year Cutoff Trends (2023-2025)

Year	Exam Date	General Category	OBC Category	SC Category	Overall Trend
2025	July 2025	48 marks	43 marks	38 marks	INCREASED (+3 from 2024)
2024	April 2024	45 marks	40 marks	35 marks	INCREASED (+5 from 2023)
2023	January 2023	40 marks	35 marks	30 marks	BASELINE (easier year)

What This Trend Tells Us

Cutoffs Rising Consistently: 2023: 40 → 2024: 45 (+5) → 2025: 48 (+3). Total rise: 8 marks in 2 years. Average: 4 marks per year.
Cause 1 – Increasing Difficulty: Exam is getting harder. 2023 was EASY, 2024 was MODERATE, 2025 was MODERATE-HIGH. As exam difficulty rises, cutoffs also rise to maintain selection standards.
Cause 2 – Rising Competition: Applicants increased from 600K (2023) → 750K (2024) → 829K (2025). More applicants, higher competition, higher cutoffs.
2026 Prediction: Expect cutoff to rise 2-4 marks from 2025. Predicted General category cutoff: 50-52 marks.
Gap Consistency: Difference between General (48) and OBC (43) is 5 marks across all years. This proportional gap is maintained by SBI for fairness.

✓ Strategic Implication: If your target is to pass SBI PO, don’t prepare to reach 45 marks (2024 cutoff). Prepare to reach 55+ marks to account for: (1) Rising difficulty in 2026, (2) Variation in exam day performance, (3) Your own stress-induced score drop. Score 55+ = virtually guaranteed clearing.

Selection Statistics & Success Ratios

SBI PO 2025 Complete Selection Funnel

Stage	Total Candidates	Qualifiers	Success Rate	Ratio
Applications	829,000	829,000	100%	Baseline
Prelim Exam	829,000	22,500	2.7%	37:1 (37 applicants : 1 Prelim qualifier)
Main Exam	22,500	3,000	13.3%	7.5:1 (Main is 5x easier than Prelim, but still competitive)
Interview	3,000	1,500	50%	2:1 (Interview has 50% selection rate — high odds)
Final Selected	829,000	1,500	0.18%	552:1 (1 selected per 552 applicants)

Key Takeaway

The Prelim exam is the biggest filter (97.3% are eliminated here). Once you clear Prelim, your odds improve dramatically. If you reach Main, you have a 13% chance of reaching Interview (reasonable odds). If you reach Interview, you have a 50% chance of final selection (interview performance becomes critical).

Success Probability Based on Your Score

Score 40-45 on Prelim: Borderline, might not qualify if cutoff rises. 10-20% chance of clearing.
Score 48-52 on Prelim: Clear Prelim, but rank in bottom 50% of qualifiers. 80% chance to clear Prelim.
Score 55-60 on Prelim: Clear Prelim with good rank (top 25%), strong Main performance likely. 95% chance to clear Prelim, 40-50% chance to clear Main.
Score 60+ on Prelim: Clear Prelim with excellent rank (top 10%), virtually guaranteed Main + Interview. 99% chance overall if interview goes well.

Category-Wise Cutoff Breakdown (General, OBC, SC, ST, EWS)

General Category: Most Competitive

Vacancies: 60% of 1,500 = 900 posts
2025 Prelim Cutoff: 48 marks
Qualifiers: ~12,000 (13:1 ratio)
Main Cutoff: 132-135 marks
Strategy: Target 55+ to be in top 25%. This exam requires deep preparation and mock test practice. Don’t aim for just 48 marks; that’s a lottery.

OBC Category: Balanced Opportunity

Vacancies: 27% of 1,500 = 405 posts
2025 Prelim Cutoff: 43 marks (5 marks easier than General)
Qualifiers: ~5,400 (13.3:1 ratio)
Main Cutoff: 128-131 marks (slightly easier than General)
Strategy: Target 50+ to be in top 30%. Lower cutoff is an advantage; use it to focus on quality over quantity.

SC Category: Accessible Path

Vacancies: 10% of 1,500 = 150 posts
2025 Prelim Cutoff: 38 marks (10 marks easier than General)
Qualifiers: ~3,000 (20:1 ratio)
Main Cutoff: 120-123 marks
Strategy: Target 45+ to secure a good rank. With lower cutoff, even fewer candidates reach these marks, giving you stronger rank and better Main performance prospects.

ST Category: Lowest Cutoff

Vacancies: 2.5% of 1,500 = 37 posts (smallest category)
2025 Prelim Cutoff: 36 marks (12 marks easier than General)
Qualifiers: ~750 (26.7:1 ratio)
Strategy: Target 42+ to secure top rank. Even reaching Prelim cutoff here gives you a strong position for Main.

EWS Category: Rare but Hardest

Vacancies: 0.5% of 1,500 = 7 posts (!)
2025 Prelim Cutoff: 47 marks (only 1 mark easier than General)
Qualifiers: ~350 (42.9:1 ratio)
Main Cutoff: 130-133 marks (comparable to General)
Strategy: If eligible, target 55+ because even with “easier” cutoff, there are only 7 positions. Very competitive despite high cutoff.

✓ Recommendation: Choose your category based on eligibility, NOT cutoff difficulty. If you’re General, prepare for 55+. If you’re SC, target 45+ and you’ll be in a stronger competitive position. Don’t switch categories trying to chase an easier cutoff.

Zone-Wise Cutoff Variation (Does It Exist?)

Official Answer: NO Zone-Wise Variation Since 2023

SBI PO abolished zone-wise separate cutoffs in 2023 (post-recruitment reform). Now there is ONE UNIFORM CUTOFF nationwide. A candidate from Bihar and a candidate from Kerala compete on the same cutoff (48 marks for General).

What Changed in 2023?

Previously (2022 and before), different zones had different cutoffs (North: 45, South: 48, East: 43, etc.). This created inequality and confusion. From 2023 onwards, SBI adopted a uniform cutoff approach for transparency and fairness.

What About Posting Location?

While cutoff is uniform, posting location is zone-based. After selection, your final posting (which branch/zone you’re assigned to) depends on:

Your merit rank within your preferred zone
Availability of vacancies in that zone
Your preference during document verification

So: Cutoff nationwide is same (48 marks). But if you’re ranked #1 in North zone and #500 in South zone, you’ll get posted to North (better rank = better location preference).

✓ Key Insight: Don’t worry about zone-wise cutoff variation—it doesn’t exist. Focus on clearing the uniform cutoff (48 for General). Your posting location is determined by merit rank after selection, not by cutoff.

How to Use Cutoff Data to Set Your Preparation Target

Step 1: Know Your Category Cutoff

Your category determines your baseline target. If General, know cutoff was 48 in 2025 and will likely be 50-52 in 2026.

Step 2: Add a Safety Margin

Cutoff = 48, but you should aim for 48 + 5 = 53-55. Why? Because:

Uncertainty in 2026 difficulty: If exam is harder than 2025, cutoff might be 52 instead of 50.
Exam day stress: You’ll likely score 2-3 marks lower on the actual exam due to stress/pressure.
Rank position: Even if you clear at 48, you’ll be ranked very low (maybe #11,500 out of 12,000). Scoring 55 gets you #3,000 rank—much stronger for Main.

Step 3: Practice Based on Cutoff

If targeting 55 marks on Prelim (55% accuracy):

English (30 marks): Target 15-18 marks (50-60% accuracy)
Reasoning (35 marks): Target 18-20 marks (50-57% accuracy)
Quantitative (35 marks): Target 17-20 marks (50-57% accuracy)

Step 4: Align with Previous Papers

Solve previous year papers. If you average 55+ on 2024-2025 papers, you’re on track for clearing 2026 exam.

⚠ Common Mistake: Setting target = cutoff (48 marks). This is dangerous. You’ll pass if cutoff doesn’t rise, but if it rises to 50-52, you fail. Always target 5+ marks above cutoff.

SBI PO 2026 Cutoff Prediction

Predicted Cutoff for 2026 Prelim (Our Analysis)

Category	2025 Cutoff	Predicted 2026	Confidence	Reasoning
General	48	50-52	HIGH	Trend: +3 (2024→2025), +5 (2023→2024). Expected: +2-4.
OBC	43	45-47	HIGH	Maintains 5-mark gap with General.
SC	38	40-42	HIGH	Maintains 10-mark gap with General.
ST	36	38-40	MEDIUM	Maintains 12-mark gap with General.
EWS	47	49-51	MEDIUM	Small candidate pool; cutoff may vary.

Predicted Main Exam Cutoff for 2026

General: 135-138 marks (from 2025: 132-135)
OBC: 130-133 marks (from 2025: 128-131)
SC: 122-125 marks (from 2025: 120-123)

What We’re Most Certain About

General category cutoff WILL increase by 2-4 marks (historical pattern).
Difficulty will remain MODERATE-HIGH (SBI has settled on this difficulty level).
OBC/SC/ST maintain proportional gaps with General.
Approximately 22,500-25,000 will qualify Prelim (similar to 2025).

✓ Your Target: For General category, aim for 53-55 marks to have a 95% confidence of clearing 2026 Prelim. This accounts for: +2-4 cutoff rise, exam day stress, and a good rank for Main exam.

Cutoff Prediction: If You Score This, You’ll Clear

General Category Prediction Matrix

Your Prelim Score	Likelihood of Clearing Prelim	Expected Rank (out of 12,000)	Recommendation
45-48	50-70% (Risky!)	#11,000-#12,000 (Very bottom)	Cutoff might rise to 50-52; you’ll likely fail. NOT RECOMMENDED.
50-52	85-95% (Safe)	#4,000-#7,000 (Middle rank)	Very likely to clear. Proceed to Main prep. Safe target.
55-58	98%+ (Very Safe)	#1,500-#3,000 (Top 25%)	Virtually guaranteed clearing. Strong rank for Main. IDEAL TARGET.
60+	99.5%+ (Guaranteed)	#200-#1,000 (Top 10%)	Elite scorer. Top rank, high selection probability if Main + Interview go well.

✓ Bottom Line: If you score 55-58 on practice papers consistently (with 9 days left), you will clear SBI PO 2026 Prelim. Anything below 50 is risky unless cutoff stays at exactly 48 (unlikely).

Ready to Leverage Cutoff Data for Your Success?

Knowing the cutoff is the first step. Now use this to set a realistic target (5+ marks above predicted cutoff) and execute your preparation strategy for the next 9 days.

📚 Full SBI PO 2026 Recruitment Guide
📖 SBI PO Previous Papers & Solutions
🎯 SBI PO Exam Strategy (3-Month Plan)