IFSCA vs RBI vs SEBI: Choosing Your Regulator Exam
Three officer exams, three very different bets: scale at RBI, markets at SEBI, and a small premium-pay intake at IFSCA.
Choose RBI Grade B for central banking's breadth and the largest intake. Choose SEBI Grade A for a capital-markets career with top-tier Grade A pay. Choose IFSCA Grade A for the strongest entry gross of the three and a ground-floor seat at a young unified regulator, if a GIFT City posting and a roughly 20-post intake suit you.
That is the short answer. The table below puts the three exams side by side on their last notified cycles, all drawn from the same dataset, and the sections after it cover what the table cannot: how the careers and the exams differ in kind.
You save ₹700 today
- Phase I full mocks
- Phase II stream banks
- IFSC framework coverage
One payment, no subscription
The Three Exams, Side by Side
RBI and SEBI figures are from their 2024 cycles; IFSCA's from its 2025 cycle:
Vacancies (last cycle)
RBI Grade B
94 (66 General)
SEBI Grade A
97, all streams
IFSCA Grade A
20 (General 12, Legal 4, IT 4)
Starting pay
RBI Grade B
Basic ₹55,200; gross ~₹1.16–1.55 lakh/month
SEBI Grade A
~₹1,49,500/month gross; CTC ~₹22–24 LPA
IFSCA Grade A
Basic ₹62,500; gross ~₹1.80 lakh/month
Posting
RBI Grade B
RBI offices nationwide
SEBI Grade A
SEBI offices, Mumbai-centred
IFSCA Grade A
GIFT City, Gandhinagar
Streams
RBI Grade B
3
SEBI Grade A
6
IFSCA Grade A
3 in 2025
Written structure
RBI Grade B
1 paper + 3 papers
SEBI Grade A
2 papers + 2 papers
IFSCA Grade A
2 papers + 2 papers
Interview marks
RBI Grade B
75
SEBI Grade A
15% of selection
IFSCA Grade A
50
Age limit
RBI Grade B
21–30, with relaxations
SEBI Grade A
Max 30, with relaxations
IFSCA Grade A
Max 30, with relaxations
| Factor | RBI Grade B | SEBI Grade A | IFSCA Grade A |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vacancies (last cycle) | 94 (66 General) | 97, all streams | 20 (General 12, Legal 4, IT 4) |
| Starting pay | Basic ₹55,200; gross ~₹1.16–1.55 lakh/month | ~₹1,49,500/month gross; CTC ~₹22–24 LPA | Basic ₹62,500; gross ~₹1.80 lakh/month |
| Posting | RBI offices nationwide | SEBI offices, Mumbai-centred | GIFT City, Gandhinagar |
| Streams | 3 | 6 | 3 in 2025 |
| Written structure | 1 paper + 3 papers | 2 papers + 2 papers | 2 papers + 2 papers |
| Interview marks | 75 | 15% of selection | 50 |
| Age limit | 21–30, with relaxations | Max 30, with relaxations | Max 30, with relaxations |
Three Different Careers, Not Three Versions of One
RBI is the central bank: monetary policy, banking regulation, supervision, currency, with a nationwide office network and the largest officer cadre of the three. SEBI is the securities-market regulator, concentrated on markets work from a Mumbai-anchored base. IFSCA is the youngest and smallest, but its jurisdiction is the widest per officer: one authority covering banking, markets, insurance and funds within the IFSC.
The pay ordering at entry gross runs IFSCA, then SEBI, then RBI's range, but the gaps are modest next to the differences in institution size, posting geography and career shape. A candidate optimising purely for salary is choosing between the wrong variables.
The aptitude sections overlap. Test yourself once, learn about all three.
Overlap for Candidates Preparing More Than One
All three test reasoning, quantitative aptitude, English and financial-sector awareness in their screening phases, and all three lean on financial system, markets and management material in their main phases. The exam-specific blocks are RBI's Economic & Social Issues paper and descriptive-heavy format, SEBI's accounting, costing and Companies Act depth, and IFSCA's IFSC framework block. A season targeting two of the three is common; the shared core makes the marginal cost of the second exam mostly its unique block.
Compare Current Notifications, Not Old Cycles
Vacancies and pay above are from each exam's last notified cycle in our data: 2024 for RBI and SEBI, 2025 for IFSCA. All three regulators restate figures per notification. Use this table for shape, and the current notifications on rbi.org.in, sebi.gov.in and ifsca.gov.in for decisions.
Regulator Comparison FAQs
Which regulator exam pays the most at entry?expand_more
On last notified gross figures, IFSCA Grade A: about ₹1.80 lakh per month, against SEBI's roughly ₹1,49,500 and RBI's ₹1.16 to 1.55 lakh range. Institutional and posting differences matter at least as much as those gaps.
Which exam is easiest to get into?expand_more
None is easy; all three had double-digit-to-hundred post counts against large applicant pools. RBI and SEBI offered 94 and 97 posts in 2024 respectively, IFSCA just 20 in 2025, though applicant pools differ too, so post count alone does not settle relative difficulty.
Can I prepare for all three together?expand_more
The aptitude and financial-awareness core is shared, and much of the finance and management material transfers. Each exam then adds one distinct block: ESI and descriptive writing at RBI, the commerce-and-law subject width at SEBI, the IFSC framework at IFSCA. Two exams in one season is realistic; three spreads most candidates thin.
Next steps
- Salary & Careerarrow_forward
- What Is IFSCAarrow_forward
- RBI Grade B Guidearrow_forward
- SEBI Grade A Guidearrow_forward
No signup. Whichever you pick, the baseline test is free.