GATE PYQ: Previous Year Question Papers 2016–2026

This page lists GATE previous year question papers for 11 years, 2016 to 2026, with 48 official PDFs (question papers and answer keys). GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) is conducted by IISc Bangalore or one of the IITs, in rotation, and covers General Aptitude, Engineering Mathematics and the subject paper for your branch. Pick a year below for the paper, answer key and a timed practice plan; confirm dates and pattern on gate2027.iitm.ac.in.

Explore: Question papers by year · Papers by branch · Syllabus & pattern · Pattern changes · FAQ

Year-wise question papers

GATE 2027 has not been held yet. IIT Madras is organising it on 6, 7, 13, 14, 20 and 21 February 2027, with revised syllabi and a new Robotics and Automation paper. The GATE 2027 page has the dates and what changes; the papers below are the ones to practise from.

Papers by branch

GATE is not one exam paper. Each branch has its own paper code, and you should practise only on yours. We have separate year-wise pages for the three largest engineering papers.

Each branch also has its own syllabus page: CS, EE, ME, CE, EC, DA, CH, IN, PI, BT, XE, MA and PH. The year pages below this hub cover the exam as a whole.

About GATE

GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) is the national exam for M.Tech and M.E. admission at the IITs, NITs and many other institutes, and for direct PhD admission in some programmes. Several public sector companies, such as those in power, oil and energy, also use GATE scores to shortlist graduate engineers. A score stays valid for three years.

The exam is organised by IISc Bangalore and the seven older IITs in turn, on behalf of the National Coordination Board. The organiser changes every year, and so does the official GATE website, which is run by that year’s institute. The exam is held in late January or February and is fully computer-based.

There are now 30 test papers, one for each branch or subject area. Each paper is 3 hours long, has 65 questions and is out of 100 marks. Fifteen marks come from General Aptitude, which is common to all papers. Most engineering papers also include engineering mathematics, and the rest is your core subject.

Past papers are especially useful for GATE because the syllabus for each paper is stable and the questions often test the same ideas year after year. If you solve ten years of your branch’s papers topic by topic, you will see which parts of each subject are tested repeatedly and how deep the questions go. The general syllabus and eligibility rules are on the GATE syllabus and pattern page.

How the paper has changed since 2016

The basic format has not changed in the last ten years: 65 questions, 100 marks, 3 hours, on a computer. What has changed is the type of question, the number of papers, and who can apply.

The marking scheme is worth knowing well before you start practising. Questions carry 1 or 2 marks. A wrong MCQ answer costs one third of the question’s marks, so −1/3 on a 1-mark question and −2/3 on a 2-mark question. Multiple select questions (MSQs) have one or more correct options, and you get marks only if you choose all of them and nothing else. There is no partial credit and no negative marking for MSQs. Numerical answer type (NAT) questions have no options and no negative marking, and the official key gives a range of accepted answers.

When you solve a paper from 2016 to 2020, remember it has no MSQs. Some of its MCQs would be harder as MSQs, since you would have to be sure of every option. When you review those papers, check every option on its own, including the ones you did not pick.

Papers with large numbers of candidates, CS among them, have at times been held in more than one session. In those years, marks were normalised across sessions before the score was calculated, so the two sessions are not directly comparable by raw marks.

What the papers show, section by section

General Aptitude (15 marks)

General Aptitude has 10 questions in every paper: 5 of 1 mark and 5 of 2 marks. It is the easiest place in the paper to gain marks and the easiest place to lose them through carelessness. The questions cover verbal ability (grammar, vocabulary, sentence completion and short reading passages), quantitative aptitude (percentages, ratios, averages, simple data interpretation) and logical reasoning. Since the 2021 revision, spatial reasoning questions with shapes, paper folding and patterns also appear.

Because GA is common to every paper, you can practise on GA sections from other branches too. That gives you many more questions than your own paper alone. Students who score well in their core subject sometimes lose 4 or 5 marks here through rushed reading, which can be the difference of hundreds of ranks.

Engineering Mathematics

In most engineering papers, engineering mathematics carries around 13 marks. Linear algebra (rank, eigenvalues, systems of equations), calculus, differential equations, probability and statistics, and numerical methods come up in most years. Complex variables and transforms appear in some branches. In CS, the mathematics section also includes discrete mathematics, such as sets, relations, graph theory and combinatorics.

The questions are usually direct and short. If you lose marks here, it is almost always because you have not practised enough, not because the questions are hard. Solve every past question for your branch on each topic, and keep a short sheet of results you keep forgetting.

Core subject

The core section carries the rest of the marks and decides your rank. Each branch has its own pattern of subjects that show up every year. In CS, that means algorithms, data structures, operating systems, databases, computer networks, theory of computation, digital logic and computer organisation. In EE, it is network theory, signals and systems, electrical machines, power systems, control systems and power electronics. In ME, it is thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, strength of materials, theory of machines, manufacturing and heat transfer. The branch pages above go into each in more detail.

When you review your core section, sort misses by subject and then by topic within the subject. You will usually find that a handful of topics account for most of the lost marks. For NAT questions, also check whether your answer was outside the accepted range because of an early rounding step or a units mistake.

Notes on recent years

2024 and 2025 were set by IISc Bangalore and IIT Roorkee. 2024 added the Data Science and AI paper, bringing the total to 30. The format of the existing papers stayed the same, so these are the best papers to keep for your final month.

2021 to 2023 were the first years with MSQs. They show how the examiners use MSQs. A common style lists four statements about one concept and asks you to pick every true one. 2021 also opened GATE to third-year students and allowed candidates to take two papers from a set of allowed combinations.

2019 and 2020 added the Statistics and Biomedical Engineering papers. The 2020 exam was held in February, before the pandemic, so it ran normally.

2016 to 2018 follow the same 65-question format with only MCQs and NATs. They are still very useful for your core subject, since the syllabus for most engineering papers has barely changed since then. Check the current syllabus for your paper before solving them, in case a topic has been moved or dropped.

For any question where the answer is disputed, use the final answer key released by that year’s organising institute, not a coaching solution. The final key sometimes changes an answer or accepts more than one.

Using old papers in your preparation

With a year or more to go

Study one subject at a time, and after each subject, solve every past GATE question on it from your branch. Ten years of papers usually gives you enough questions on each subject to see what is tested and at what depth. Keep a notebook of the questions you got wrong and the idea behind each.

Many students start GATE preparation in the third year of their degree. If that is you, solve the GA section of one past paper every week from the start. It takes about 20 minutes and you will barely need to study for it later.

With about six months to go

Finish the syllabus first. Then sit one full paper every weekend under exam conditions, using only the on-screen virtual calculator, the same as the real exam. Start with the older papers and move towards the recent ones.

Spend the day after each paper on review. Your weekday study should come from the list of topics where you lost marks, not from a new set of notes.

In the last three months

Sit two full papers a week, at the time of your session. Keep 2024 and 2025 for the final month. Go back to your error notebook before each paper and redo the questions you got wrong the first time.

If your paper has been held in two sessions in past years, solve both sets. They are two separate papers on the same syllabus, so they double your practice for those years.

Mistakes students make with past papers

The most common mistake is practising on the wrong papers. A GATE CS student solving ME or EE questions is wasting time, apart from the GA section. Make sure every paper you sit is from your own paper code.

The second is ignoring General Aptitude and engineering mathematics. Together they are close to 30 marks in most engineering papers, and both are easier to score in than most of the core subject. A strong core score with a weak GA score is one of the most common reasons for a rank that is lower than expected.

Many students also practise with a physical calculator, then struggle with the virtual one on the day. It is slower and you will make more input errors on it. Use an on-screen calculator for every full paper you sit.

Finally, do not trust unofficial answer keys for older papers. Coaching keys for GATE sometimes differ from the final official key, and if you learn the wrong answer you will get the next similar question wrong too.

FAQ

Where can I get GATE previous year question papers?

Each year’s organising institute publishes the question papers and answer keys for all papers on its GATE website. Our year pages host the official papers and link to the original files, and the branch pages for CS, EE and ME list papers for those branches by year.

How many years of GATE papers should I solve?

Solve at least ten years of your own paper, topic-wise first and then as full timed papers. The core syllabus for most engineering papers has been stable, so even the 2016 to 2018 papers are useful. Keep 2024 and 2025 for your final month.

What is the GATE exam pattern?

Each paper has 65 questions for 100 marks in 3 hours, on a computer. General Aptitude carries 15 marks in every paper, and most engineering papers also have about 13 marks of engineering mathematics. Questions are MCQs, MSQs and numerical answer type, worth 1 or 2 marks each. Check the current information brochure for your paper.

Is there negative marking in GATE?

Only for MCQs. A wrong answer costs one third of the marks for that question. MSQs and numerical answer questions have no negative marking. MSQs give marks only when you choose every correct option and no wrong one.

Should I solve GATE papers from before MSQs were introduced?

Yes. MSQs started in 2021, but the papers from 2016 to 2020 test the same core syllabus. When you review an MCQ from those years, check every option on its own as if it were an MSQ. That builds the habit you need for the newer papers.

Can I use General Aptitude questions from other branches?

Yes. The GA section is common to all GATE papers, so the GA questions from any branch in any year are good practice for you. Since there are 30 papers, this gives you far more GA practice than your own paper alone.

Can I use a physical calculator in GATE?

No. Only the on-screen virtual calculator is allowed. Practise your full papers with a virtual calculator so you get used to its speed and layout before the exam.

Who conducts GATE each year?

GATE is organised in turn by IISc Bangalore and seven IITs on behalf of the National Coordination Board. The organising institute runs the official website for that year, so check which institute is in charge before looking for the brochure, answer keys and results.

Where to get the official papers

Each year’s organising institute publishes the GATE brochure, papers, answer keys and results on its own GATE website. For GATE 2027 that is IIT Madras, at gate2027.iitm.ac.in. For the latest cycle, use the site of that year’s organising institute. We link to official sources and add notes on each paper, but the current information brochure is the final word on dates, pattern and eligibility.