Are you waiting for the official notification for the State Bank of India (SBI) Clerk 2026 exams? Here, we will give you an idea about the expected SBI Clerk Prelims 2026 vacancy, tentative exam dates, and exam pattern based on previous year trends. So that candidates who are preparing for the SBI Clerk exam should start their preparation early and stay ahead of the competition.

Let’s take a look at the expected date of SBI Clerk Prelims 2026 exam.

SBI Clerk 2026 – Key Highlights

SBI Clerk Prelims Exam Date 2026 (Expected)

The official SBI Clerk 2026 exam dates have not been released yet. However, based on previous recruitment cycles, the expected schedule is as follows:

Note: All dates mentioned above are tentative and based on the 2025 recruitment cycle. SBI will release the exam dates on official website of SBI. Visit SBI official website daily for latest update.

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How Many Vacancies are expected for SBI Clerk 2026?

The vacancies for SBI Clerk 2026 have not been announced. In SBI Clerk 2025, the total vacancies were 6,589 for the post of the Junior Associate. For 2026, a similar or higher number of vacancies are expected.

It is important to note that vacancies are released state wise and category wise.

SBI Clerk Prelims Exam Pattern 2026

Key Points

• The total time period for SBI Clerk prelims exam is 60 Minutes (1 Hour)
• Each section in the SBI Clerk Prelims has a separate time limit
• For every wrong answer, there is a negative marking of 1/4^th 
• There is no sectional cut –off, with the help of overall cut-off, candidates will be shortlisted for mains exam.
• Approx. 10 times the number of vacancies are shortlisted for mains

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Previous year SBI Clerk Statistics (2025)

By understanding the competition level, student can plan better:

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SBI Clerk Prelims Cut – off 2026 – What to expect?

Basically the SBI Clerk Prelims cut off 2026 are announced only after the exam. Here are the expected safe score based on previous year’s trend and expert analysis.

Expected Safe Score – SBI Clerk Prelims 2026

State – wise Cut-off Trend (Prelims)

Note: SBI does not set Cut-offs in advance. Each year, they change according to the number of open positions, the complexity of the exam and level of the competition.

Key Factor that affect cut off:

• Total number of vacancies (state – wise)
• Number of Candidates appearing per shift
• Difficulty level of each shift
• Normalization adjustment applied post – exam

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Is SBI Clerk harder than IBPS Clerk?

Yes, as compared to IBPS Clerk, the SBI Clerk is slightly more difficult. For both the exams the syllabus and the exam pattern are almost same but the level of the questions – especially in Reasoning and Quantitative Aptitude – is higher in SBI Clerk.

Also the level of competition is higher in SBI because brand value attracts more aspirants.

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FAQs

Ques: What is the expected SBI Clerk Prelims exam date 2026?

Ans: Last week of September 2026 is the expected date of SBI Clerk Prelims exam 2026, based on the 2025 recruitment cycle pattern.

Ques: When will the SBI Clerk 2026 notification be released?

Ans: The official notification of the SBI Clerk 2026 is expected to be released in July/August 2026 on the official website of SBI.

Ques: How many shifts are there in SBI Clerk Prelims?

Ans: The Prelims exam is conducted in 4 shifts per day across different days.

Ques: Is the SBI Clerk Prelims exam marks counted in final selection?

Ans: No, in final selection, the marks of SBI Clerk Prelims exam are not counted. Candidates will be selected on the basis of SBI Clerk Mains exam marks.

Ques: Is there negative marking in SBI Clerk Prelims 2026?

Ans: Yes, In SBI Clerk Prelims exam, there is a negative marking of 0.25 marks for every wrong answer. 

Ques: Is there a sectional cut-off in SBI Clerk Prelims?

Ans: No, there is no sectional cut-off in SBI Clerk Prelims. Only an overall state-wise and category wise cut-off applies.

Ques: How many sections are there in SBI Clerk prelims?

Ans: There are 3 sections in Prelims including English Language, Numerical Ability, and Reasoning Ability.

Ques: Is the SBI Clerk Prelims exam subjective or objective?

Ans: The SBI Clerk Prelims exam is fully MCQ based with no subjective questions in it.

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