SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL is the first real decision most SSC aspirants face, and many make it on hearsay: “CGL is for graduates, CHSL is easier.” Both halves are only partly true, and choosing the wrong exam can cost you a full year of preparation.
The honest answer depends on three things: your qualification right now, the salary and post level you are aiming at, and how much preparation time you can genuinely sustain. This comparison covers all three, with pay levels and rules taken from the latest SSC notifications.
The eligibility divide: Class 12 vs a degree
CHSL is built for Class 12 pass candidates. Its posts, Lower Division Clerk (LDC), Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA) and Data Entry Operator (DEO), need a 12th pass from a recognised board. A few DEO posts in specific ministries additionally require Class 12 in the Science stream with Mathematics.
CGL requires a bachelor’s degree in any discipline for almost all posts. A couple of posts add conditions on top: Junior Statistical Officer needs a Statistics background or strong Class 12 Mathematics, as detailed in our SSC CGL age limit and eligibility breakdown.
Age works differently in SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL too. CHSL uses one flat band, 18 to 27 years, for every post. CGL is post-wise, running from 18-27 for clerical posts up to 32 for JSO. A graduate who crosses 27 loses CHSL entirely but may still have years of CGL eligibility left.
Posts and pay levels: where each exam tops out
CHSL has a low ceiling by design. LDC and JSA sit at Pay Level-2 (₹19,900-63,200). DEO posts are better, at Pay Level-4 (₹25,500-81,100), with some DEO posts at Pay Level-5 (₹29,200-92,300). Nothing in CHSL goes above Level-5.
CGL starts roughly where CHSL ends. Its posts run from Pay Level-4 (Tax Assistant, UDC) through Level-5 (Auditor, Accountant), Level-6 (Junior Statistical Officer and similar), Level-7 (Assistant Section Officer, Inspectors, Sub-Inspector CBI) and up to Level-8 for Assistant Audit Officer and Assistant Accounts Officer.
In plain terms, in SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL, the best-paid CHSL entry post is roughly equal to a mid-level CGL entry post, and CGL’s top entry posts start two full pay levels higher than anything CHSL offers.
In-hand salary: approximate ranges
Notifications state pay levels, not in-hand salary, so treat the figures below as approximate in-hand estimates for a metro posting, including DA, HRA and transport allowance, before income tax. Your actual figure will vary with your city category and the DA rate in force.
- CHSL, LDC / JSA (Level-2): roughly ₹30,000-35,000 per month
- CHSL, DEO (Level-4/5): roughly ₹40,000-52,000 per month
- CGL, Tax Assistant / UDC (Level-4): roughly ₹40,000-47,000 per month
- CGL, Auditor / Accountant (Level-5): roughly ₹45,000-53,000 per month
- CGL, ASO / Inspector (Level-7): roughly ₹68,000-80,000 per month
- CGL, AAO (Level-8): roughly ₹72,000-85,000 per month
The takeaway from this SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL salary comparison is not just the starting gap. A CGL Level-7 officer starts at close to double the in-hand pay of a CHSL clerk, and the gap widens with every promotion and pay commission cycle.
Promotion and career growth: the real long-term difference
An LDC entering through CHSL typically moves to UDC after a few years of service, through seniority or the departmental exam route, and can reach Assistant Section Officer level over a long career. It is steady, respectable progress, but most CHSL entrants retire in the middle levels of the hierarchy.
CGL entrants start higher and climb further. An Assistant Section Officer becomes eligible for Section Officer, a Level-8 gazetted post, after the prescribed years of service through the departmental exam or seniority channel, and can rise to Under Secretary and beyond in the Secretariat.
On the executive side, Inspectors in Income Tax, Customs and similar departments progress to Superintendent and then Assistant Commissioner level over a career. No CHSL post offers a comparable ceiling, which is why serious graduates treat CHSL as a safety net, not the goal.
Exam pattern: more similar than you think
In SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL, both exams are now two-tier computer-based tests. Tier-I of both covers the same four areas: General Intelligence and Reasoning, General Awareness, Quantitative Aptitude and English, with 100 questions for 200 marks.
CGL’s Tier-II is the merit-deciding stage and is heavier: it adds computer knowledge and a data entry speed test, and the level of mathematics and English is clearly higher than Tier-I. Final merit in CGL rests mainly on Tier-II performance.
CHSL’s Tier-II combines objective sections with a skill test: a typing test for LDC and JSA candidates (35 words per minute in English or 30 in Hindi) and a data entry skill test for DEO posts. The skill test is qualifying, but failing it ends your selection, so it cannot be ignored.
Because the Tier-I syllabus overlaps so heavily, preparing for CGL automatically prepares you for most of CHSL. The reverse is not true: CHSL preparation does not cover CGL Tier-II depth.
Competition and vacancies
Scale differs sharply between the two. In the latest cycles, CGL has advertised roughly 12,000-plus vacancies in its 2026 notification, while CHSL’s 2026 notification carried roughly 2,500 tentative vacancies. Both exams draw applicants in very large numbers, running into lakhs of applications nationally.
Do not read this as “CHSL is less competitive.” CHSL’s smaller vacancy pool is chased by a huge 12th-pass applicant base, and its cut-offs for popular posts and cities are demanding in their own right. What CHSL genuinely offers is an earlier entry point, not an easier one.
Always confirm the current cycle’s vacancies, dates and rules in the official notification on the SSC website before planning around any number, because tentative vacancies change.
SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL: the verdict for each candidate
You are in Class 12 or just passed, and need a job soon: target CHSL now. It gives you a central government post, a salary and job security while you are young, and nothing stops you from completing graduation alongside and attempting CGL later from a position of safety.
You are a graduate: make CGL your primary target. The entry pay, post status and career ceiling are in a different league. Use CHSL in the same season as a backup if you are still within its 18-27 age band, since the Tier-I preparation is largely shared.
You are a graduate above 27: CHSL is closed to you, so CGL is your SSC route; check your post-wise eligibility carefully before applying. If stenography interests you as another SSC option, see our SSC Stenographer vs SSC CHSL comparison.
You are a commerce graduate weighing private-sector and banking routes too: run this comparison alongside our BCom vs BBA for banking jobs guide, so your degree choice and exam choice pull in the same direction.
That is the whole SSC CGL vs SSC CHSL decision in one line: whichever you choose, choose deliberately. The candidates who struggle are rarely the ones who picked the “wrong” exam; they are the ones who prepared half-heartedly for both and cleared neither.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which has a higher salary, SSC CGL or SSC CHSL?
CGL, by a wide margin. CHSL posts top out at Pay Level-5 (DEO), while CGL posts go up to Pay Level-8 (Assistant Audit Officer). A CGL Assistant Section Officer or Inspector at Level-7 starts at roughly double the in-hand salary of a CHSL clerk at Level-2.
Is SSC CHSL easier than SSC CGL?
The Tier-I papers are similar in pattern and syllabus, but CGL's Tier-II is longer and harder, especially in mathematics and English. CHSL is not easy in absolute terms, though: it has far fewer vacancies and a very large applicant pool, so its cut-offs are still competitive.
Can I prepare for SSC CGL and CHSL together?
Yes, and it is a common strategy. Both Tier-I exams test reasoning, general awareness, quantitative aptitude and English, so one preparation covers both screening stages. Add CGL Tier-II depth work and, if you are attempting CHSL, regular typing practice for its qualifying skill test.
What is the age limit difference between SSC CGL and SSC CHSL?
CHSL has a single age band of 18 to 27 years for all its posts. CGL is post-wise: 18-27 for clerical posts, 18-30 and 20-30 for most officer and inspector posts, and up to 32 years for Junior Statistical Officer. Category relaxations apply on top of these limits in both exams.
Which exam is better for a 12th-pass candidate?
CHSL is the only one of the two open to you right now, because CGL requires a bachelor's degree. The practical path many candidates follow is to take CHSL for an early government job, complete graduation through regular or distance mode, and then attempt CGL for the higher posts.
