What is the age distribution of UPSC-selected candidates? (Annual Report data)

Per UPSC's 73rd Annual Report, the 24-26 age band produces the most selections — 29.4% of selected men and 33.3% of selected women. The under-23 group accounts for under 15% of selections; the above-30 group accounts for ~13-15%. The exam is statistically a 24-28-year-old's playing field.

Age Group Distribution — UPSC 73rd Annual Report (CSE 2022-23, Verified)

Age Group	Men (% of Selected)	Women (% of Selected)	Observation
Below 23	~10-12%	~12-14%	Mostly first-attempters from premier colleges
23-25	~24-27%	~26-30%	Growing share with each cohort
24-26	29.4%	33.3%	Peak band
26-28	~22-24%	~18-20%	Strong contributor
28-30	~13-15%	~10-12%	Tail begins
Above 30	14.6%	12.5%	Long tail, OBC/SC/ST extended limits

Why 24-26 is the Sweet Spot

Post-graduation completion typically falls at 22-23. The first 1-2 years post-PG go into serious UPSC preparation.
First attempt usually at age 22-23, second at 23-24, third at 24-25 — placing the 3rd-attempt-selection-mode squarely in the 24-26 band.
Cognitive peak + accumulated knowledge — late teens have raw memory, late twenties have synthesis, and 24-26 sits at the intersection.
Life-stage flexibility — most aspirants are not yet married or have major family responsibilities, allowing 10-12 hour study days.

Notable Topper Ages — Historical Anchor Points

AIR-1	Year	Age at Result	Attempt
Tina Dabi	2015	22	1st
Anudeep Durishetty	2017	28	5th
Kanishak Kataria	2018	26	1st
Pradeep Singh	2019	28	—
Shubham Kumar	2020	24	3rd
Shruti Sharma	2021	26	2nd
Ishita Kishore	2022	26	3rd
Aditya Srivastava	2023	25	2nd
Shakti Dubey	2024	28	5th

The 22-28 band captures every AIR-1 since 2015. Tina Dabi at 22 (the youngest) and Anudeep Durishetty at 28 (typical mature topper) bracket the range. Dubey at 28 fits the late-attempt-mature-topper template.

Why the Above-30 Tail Persists

OBC age limit is 35, SC/ST is 37, PwBD is 42-47. So selections at 30+ are common in reserved categories.
Working-professional aspirants who started preparation after a few years in corporate jobs typically reach selection age in the 28-32 band.
Repeat attempts after early failures — candidates who failed attempts 1-3 in their early-mid 20s often succeed at attempts 4-6 in their late 20s and early 30s.

Service Allocation by Age — The Hidden Pattern

IAS is age-biased upward in subtle ways:

IAS cadre allocation considers "likelihood of long career" — younger candidates with higher remaining service years often get preferred cadres.
State-cadre rotation sometimes implicitly favours younger officers for difficult-cadre allocations.
But formally, age has NO weight in rank determination. Rank is purely marks-based; cadre/service follows from rank + preferences + roster.

Worked Scenario — Starting at 28

A candidate at 28, with no UPSC preparation, considering whether to start:

General-category remaining attempts: 4 (age limit 32) — likely 3 realistic attempts factoring 18-month prep cycles.
OBC remaining attempts: 7 (limit 35).
SC/ST remaining attempts: 9-unlimited (limit 37).
Statistical reality: above-30 selections are 12-15% of cohort. Not zero, but not the mode.
Decision rule: if you can commit 24-30 months of focused prep with financial support and no major life events, the 28-32 window is viable but tight. After 30, the math gets harder.

Mentor Note

Three honest observations about age and UPSC:

Don't romanticise youth. AIR-1 at 22 (Tina Dabi) is celebrated, but the average selected candidate is 25-26. "Late" starts at 30, not 25.
Don't catastrophise age. Above-30 selections are 13-15% — perfectly real, especially in OBC/SC/ST categories. Dubey's AIR-1 at 28 on 5th attempt is a recent counter-example to age anxiety.
Female candidates skew younger. Women's selection-age distribution is tighter around 24-26 (33.3% peak). Social and biological pressures often compress the available prep window — plan accordingly with strong second-career backups.