What are the books needed for UPSC Civil Services Exam preparation? Which IAS books should be studied for Prelims and Mains?
Taking inputs from toppers, we have prepared a detailed list of the best IAS books available in the market.
Aspirants can click on each link to buy books online at discounted prices.
NCERT Textbooks (Class 6-12)
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NCERT 40 Books Set for UPSC Exams (English Medium)
- Social Science Books (Class 6-12)
- Sociology (Class 11-12)
- English (Publication Language)
- 6000 Pages - 06/07/2020 (Publication Date) - NCERT (Publisher)
GS Manual for Prelims (All-in-One Guide)
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General Studies Manual Paper-1 2020
- Manohar Pandey (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 1664 Pages - 09/19/2019 (Publication Date) - Arihant Publications (Publisher)
UPSC Previous Year Question Papers
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25 Years UPSC IAS/ IPS Prelims Topic-wise Solved Papers 1 & 2 (1995-2019)
- Disha Experts (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 604 Pages - 06/25/2019 (Publication Date) - Disha Publication (Publisher)
Standard Textbooks for UPSC Prelims
There are no replacements for standard reference textbooks for UPSC preparation. Click to buy online the textbooks for each subject mentioned in the UPSC syllabus (Prelims and Mains).
Indian History and Culture
Indian Geography and World Geography
Indian Polity and Constitution
Indian Economy
Science and Technology
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Science and Technology: for Civil Services Preliminary and Main Examination
- Ravi Agrahari (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 704 Pages - 07/20/2019 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill (Publisher)
Environment – Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change
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Environment By Shankar (7th) Revised Edition (2019-2020 Session)
- Shankar (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 364 Pages - 06/07/2020 (Publication Date) - Shankar IAS Academy (Publisher)
Current Affairs
CSAT (For those weak in CSAT)
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Cracking the CSAT Paper-2
- Arihant Experts (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 981 Pages - 07/08/2019 (Publication Date) - Arihant Publications (Publisher)
Additional IAS Books for UPSC Mains (Click on the links to buy online)
For mains, most books for Prelims are useful. In addition to those, the following books should also help.
Essay (UPSC Mains Essay Paper)
India Since Independence (Part of UPSC Mains GS1 Paper)
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Post Independence India: For Civil Services Examinations
- Snehil Tripathi, Sonali Bansal (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 224 Pages - 11/10/2018 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill Education (Publisher)
World History (Part of UPSC Mains GS1 Paper)
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World History
- Krishna Reddy (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 450 Pages - 10/31/2017 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill Education (Publisher)
Indian Society (Part of UPSC Mains GS1 Paper)
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Indian Society: Themes and Social Issues (For civil services and state services examinations)
- Hasnain, Nadeem (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 368 Pages - 11/16/2019 (Publication Date) - McGraw-Hill (Publisher)
Governance (Part of UPSC Mains GS2 Paper)
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Governance in India
- M. Laxmikanth (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 528 Pages - 08/25/2014 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill Education (Publisher)
Foreign Relations of India (Part of UPSC Mains GS2 Paper)
Sale
International Relations for General Studies Preliminary and Main Examination
- Singh, Pavneet (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 776 Pages - 04/20/2019 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill Education (Publisher)
Internal Security (Part of UPSC Mains GS3 Paper)
Challenges to Internal Security of India (Third Edition)
- Kumar, Ashok (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 06/06/2019 (Publication Date) - McGraw Hill (Publisher)
Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude (UPSC Mains GS4 Paper)
Paper-wise All-in-One manuals for UPSC CSE (Mains)
UPSC CSE Mains Previous Year Solved Question Paper Books
Books for UPSC Interview
How to Ace Civil Service Interviews
- Remya Roshni IPS (Ex.) (Author)
- 06/07/2020 (Publication Date) - Malayala Manorama (Publisher)
IAS Books for Optional Subjects
- Books for Optional subjects in UPSC Mains (Open the link and scroll down).
Books used for additional reference by toppers
- India’s Ancient Past – R.S. Sharma. (Ancient India – Text Book)
- History Of Medieval India – Satish Chandra. (Medieval India – Text Book)
- History Of Modern India – Bipan Chandra. (Modern India – Text Book)
- India’s Struggle For Independence – Bipan Chandra. (Modern India – Read like a story)
- The Wonder That Was India – A.L. Bhasham. (Ancient India and Culture)
- A Brief History of Modern India – Spectrum (For quick reference – Modern India)
- World Geography – Majid Husain (World Geography)
- Physical Geography – Savindra Singh (Physical Geography)
- Human Geography – Majid Husain (Human Geography – Social and Economic)
- Introduction to the Constitution of India – D. D. Basu (Constitution)
- Science and Technology – Sheelwant Singh
- Environmental Studies: From Crisis to Cure – Rajagopalan. (Environment)
- Environment for Civil Services Prelims and Mains – Khuller. (Environment)
- Analytical Reasoning – M. K. Pandey (CSAT – Paper 2: Analytical Reasoning)
- Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning – R. S.Aggarwal (CSAT Paper 2: Reasoning)
- Essays for Civil Services – Pulkit Khare
- India Since Independence – Bipan Chandra
- India After Gandhi – Ramchandra Guha
- History of the World – Arjun Dev
- Mastering Modern World History – Norman Lowe
- Modern World History – Uddipan
- Social Problems In India – Ram Ahuja.
- Social Change in Modern India – M N Srinivas
- Indian Society – Senthil
- Governance in India – M.Karthikeyan
- Pax Indica – Shashi Tharoor.
- India and the World by Surendra Kumar.
- Internal Security – M.Karthikeyan.
- India’s Internal Security – Rajkumar.
- India’s National Security: A Reader – Bajpai.
Latest UPSC Books (New Releases)
- Latest UPSC CSE Books: Click To Buy New Releases For UPSC Preparation.
- Subject Specific Book-List for IAS exam (For extra reference of each subject).
IAS Books in the Hindi Language
For many of the books listed above, corresponding books in the Hindi language are available in the market. Hindi medium students may check the link UPSC Books in the Hindi Language to buy online at discounted prices.
Books for Other Exams (Click on the links to buy online)
Links to UPSC Books at online Stores! (Click on the links to buy online)
- The full list of UPSC books available in Amazon.
- The full list of UPSC books available in Flipkart.
- Recommended list of UPSC books available in Flipkart.
Free Online Resources For IAS Prelims and Mains
- NCERT Books Download.
- Yojana Magazine Download.
- Kurukshetra Magazine Download.
- IGNOU Books Download.
- Clear IAS Online Study Materials.
ClearIAS Prelims Mock Test Series
As you may know, only when tested in an exam atmosphere with negative marking, you can improve the ability to deliver in the actual exam hall. Try for free the UPSC Prelims online mock exams by ClearIAS – in the new innovative platform which integrates learning with test-taking. You would be surprised to find how fast you can learn!
Tips regarding IAS book selection
- There is no single book which covers all topics of IAS exam Prelims and Mains. However, if you are short on resources and time, you may start from the Manuals (All-in-One Guides) for Prelims and Mains. Take mock exams, and refer additional text-books as and when time is available.
- Considering the competition and vast syllabus, UPSC exam preparation cannot be done without collecting some essential books.
- Photostats or PDFs supplied by coaching coaching institutes may not give you the right information and broad perspective. If you are an IAS/IPS/IFS aspirant, you should invest in good text books.
- Quality books act as add-ons to your online preparation and help a lot in self-study. If you follow ClearIAS Test-based approach to clear UPSC Prelims, most of the books mentioned above will get automatically covered as per the mentioned timetable.
- If you are running short of time to finish the syllabus before the exam, you may better focus on concise books instead of bulky ones. You can use Modern India by Spectrum (Rajiv Ahir IPS) then, which is a small book which covers almost all major points given in Modern India by Bipan Chandra. Similarly, you may just focus on Indian art and culture by Nithin Singhania IAS, for culture topics.
- ClearIAS.com publishes reviews on new IAS books in the market under our Book Review section. Publishers/authors can send us samples for review. Readers too can post the reviews about the UPSC books they bought in the comment section. That will be helpful for other aspirants for book selection.
- We keep updating this page when new books worth the time and money of candidate appear in the market. So come back to check this page again!
©ClearIAS.com
©ClearIAS.com
Additional Update: If you are a beginner, and wish to get an all-in-one book to start your preparation, don’t miss this post – Is there a single book which covers all topics for IAS exam (Prelims and Mains)?
Great exerts! really help full!
Thanks Bro..I was in a search for finding books for main Exam new pattern..Thanks for ur great help
do we need to follow all the books or we need to select like in case of history for mains History Of Modern India by Bipan Chandra
India’s Struggle For Independence – Bipan Chandra
both these books have overlapping contents…..
During the early stages of preparation, select only one or two basic books for each subject. For History, India’s Struggle For Independence by Bipan Chandra is a better choice. But later on, you should expand your book base for each subject. The strategy for selecting the books is outlined in the link : https://www.clearias.com/smart-work-ias-preparation/. All the best!
Hello ClearIAS.com…….. Your information is so nicely arranged .. Thank you for it
But, Please tell me, is the above books list as per the new 2013 Mains pattern ?????????
Where, new GS-1,2,3,4 papers are added ???????
Yes, the above list of IAS books are as per the latest pattern of civil services after the GS Papers 1,2,3,4 are added by UPSC in 2013.
I have just passed 12th so please give me strategies for clearing iAS How I’ll clear OAS in one attempt.
Dear Yogesh,
Appreciate your interest at this early age. Read the link below:
https://www.clearias.com/strategy-and-books-for-early-birds-to-clear-ias-exam/
All the best!
Thnk u for ur all infornation.iam E&C engineer. iam confused in choosing option subject between public administration and electrial engineering. I want ur suggesion.pls help me.
Dear Saraswathi, As we have stated in the post – https://www.clearias.com/select-ias-mains-optional-latest-upsc-syllabus/ – selection of the optional subject is a personal choice where the priority should be given to candidate’s interest, availability of materials (online and offline) and scope of guidance and peer study (if necessary).
We do acknowledge the fact the Public Administration is a more popular optional than Electrical Engineering. But there are positives and negatives for both these subjects and you have to weigh the merits and demerits of the same, based on your background. Select Electrical Engineering only if you have genuine interest in it, and only if you are confident enough that you will get proper materials and guidance for the same. Guidance and materials for Pub Ad, are relatively easy to find. But that does not mean that you should take Pub Ad. If possible, talk personally to candidates who wrote IAS mains taking these subjects as the optionals. Go through the syllabus and past question papers of the same.
We at ClearIAS.com is of the opinion that all optional subjects have equal chances of success as proved by many candidates hailing from diverse backgrounds. Take a decision after thorough analysis. All the best!
plz in hindi medium
Dear Pankaj,
For UPSC exam books in Hindi, you may refer the following link : UPSC Books in Hindi Language
Thanks for your service through this website.
I have been in to various fields as of now. like completed BE – ECE and then MBA – Marketing.
Worked in Sales for around 3 yrs now.
But UPSC exam is new to me. I really want to clear this. Any suggestion ???
What are the options (Political science/ pub ad) available according to the latest Syllabus??
Books You have mentioned above for free really match the Books you have mentioned at the top???
I am from Chennai.
Thanks
plz sagestion english grammer book sir…..
Dear Ravikiran,
English Grammar books as such are not needed for IAS exam, but for compulsory English paper we suggest the book Compulsory English For UPSC Mains
Dear Nelson,
First of all we appreciate your interest in Civil Services. Almost all of the queries you asked is clearly answered in the previous posts. We suggest you to go through them. All the best!
sir i went through the whole post. it is really a complete roadmap to follow. but how to prepare for current affairs apart from hindu?IE? role of magazines? is chronicle sufficient?
sorry, typo hindu/IE
The Hindu or Indian Express newspaper should normally get you 75 percent or more marks of all current affairs related questions. Latest editions of India Year Book and Manorama Yearbook 2014 will also be a sure help. Go for magazine like Cronicle or Frontline if you have ample time and need deeper analysis on selected topics. Suggested websites include PRSindia, IDSA and of-course ClearIAS.com 🙂
Sir, i just have been started preparing upsc…. But i m confused from what to start…?
Dear amol,
Start from UPSC syllabus and previous year question papers of UPSC Prelims and Mains. It’s available in this website. Then go into detail some the easy topics. You may refer NCERT texts or standard text books for IAS for that. After gaining confidence, you may shift to higher topics.
Hello Sir,
I was glad that i found this website and it is very useful to all aspirants. many of us, have doubts in newspaper reading- what are topics we need to focus in a newspaper???, what are the important news we need to look after?. I would be happy if you could answer my question.THANKS IN ADVANCE:)
Focus on news related to Foreign Policy of India, Social Issues, Parliament, Judiciary, Centrally Sponsored Schemes, Governance, Recent Bills, Economy related news, Environment, Science and Technology etc. Don’t miss editorials. Leave out news related to local politics, Bollywood, cricket etc.
hey sir !! mai i request u if someone sorry mostly not everybody has that kind of whole budjet to buy such costly books or google dont provide those books to read but those r the important to get for the dream !! are they r not available for download ???? the information u given was fantastic i appreciate nad pls make those ebooks for everybody to download !!
I will attemt CSAT in 2014 & main also in marathi medium so plz sujest me best book for upsc pre. in marathi language and for subject public administration & Geography
Thank you so much for giving the crucial information related upsc. Its very good for candidate. (Uday patil . Belgaum).
sir i want to start prepration for ias and for that i want to buy books. so please tell me how i stsrt my prep from base and also names of the books
how can i prepare the ias examination
sir i’m in tamil medium student.i will attempt for upsc exam in 2014.mains language selected for tamil.so pls tamil useful tamil medium books on prelim and mains examination
Bingo……..
Hello sir I am a central government employee ageing 27, my wish is to become Civil servant, please give the details of all the posts and their pay scales which comes under UPSC
Hi,right now I am in class 12th. What are your suggestions for me right now ?
sir here are good information about upsc books. sir I have problem for choosing optional in optional i’m interested in LAW subject then can I choose it and i’m complete my b.com and now I want do L.L.B so its a right decision. tell me sir pls
sir we proud for your guide line
thanks sir for guiding us so much…
Hello sir, I have sent a mail to the email id provided by you. please kindly check.
Waiting for your reply.
Sir mai Hindi medium se hu. Mera dream ek IAS bannaa hai pr koi mujhe guidelines nhi de rha hai please aap mujhe guide kre.
Hello sir how to start for ias recommend books for begners
but some books like bipin chandra , ncert sumit sarkar ,modern history r.l.shukal etc not essaily available in the market
sir i want to start prepration for ias and for that i want to buy books. so please tell me how i stsrt my prep from base and also names of the books…..????
ggd evening sir < i want to wish become a IAS officer plz sir suggest me which book useful for IAS exam pri and main plz sir reply me i m waiting…….
sir i am studying bsc 2nd year iam an ias aspirant i wanna start my preparation from this year i am so confused how to begin my preparation so please guide me to start my preparation please sir please help me pleassssssssssssssssse
hello sir..
i pursued my b.tech in computer sciences stream and planning to prepare for UPSC exam..i m bit panic in choosing optional subject..initially i thought economics or psychology would b fine but later i came to know that it should need some ground work as i am unaware of those basic concepts..therefore i thought history is a better choice..pls justify..if not suggest a good subject
regards in advance
recently i passed class 12th so please provide me guidance related to syllabus of ias exam.so please sir gudie me
which subject will be better to choose as an optional?
sir plz reply , the link u hv given for indian economy is of 4th edition but there is also a 5th edition buk in the market of the same writer…… which buk should i rely upon?????
Dear Anas, always go for the latest edition. We will be updating the link soon. Thanks.
Dear Barkha,
Please read the post on optional subject selection in http://www.clearias.com. This is entirely a personal choice and the priority should be for your interest/taste for the subject. All the best!
thanx a lot for ur response sir……. sir one more question dat i want to ask is that are the new NCERT buks of economics are according to UPSC syllabus n from which class buks should i start and must i start to study regularly???????