ICSE Class 10 Papers Computer Applications (2017-2026)

This page collects the ICSE Class 10 papers Computer Applications students search for: nine real board question papers dated 2017 to 2026, each downloadable directly as a PDF, no signup needed. Every paper here is the actual two-hour theory exam set for this subject. Read the pattern notes below before you start timing yourself on a paper.

Download ICSE Class 10 Computer Science Question Papers PDF

These are the 9 question papers PDFs hosted on icseboard.org for ICSE Class 10 Computer Science, organised by subject. Each section below explains what those papers cover before the download table.

This set of Computer Applications papers is the actual two-hour ICSE Class 10 board exam paper, split into a compulsory Section A worth 40 marks and a Section B where you attempt any four questions. Across the years covered here, Section A tests object-oriented programming terms, Java data types with their byte sizes, and naming or classifying operators, either as short answers or, from 2023 onward, as multiple-choice items. Use these PDFs for timed practice on both the short-answer and code-tracing question types that recur across editions.

How the Computer Applications Paper Pattern Changed (2017-2026)

Every paper in this set, from 2017 to 2026, is a two-hour theory exam split into two sections. Section A is compulsory and worth 40 marks. Section B asks you to attempt any four questions out of the ones given.

The 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 papers print Maximum Marks: 100 directly under the subject title. The 2017-2020 papers in this set show only the two-hour duration in that spot, with no separate marks line visible.

The biggest change is in Question 1. In 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, it splits into five sub-parts worth 2 marks each: naming a term, classifying a data type, or naming an operator. From 2023 onward, Question 1 becomes a single 20-mark multiple-choice block. Its instructions state: “Do not copy the questions, write only the correct answers.”

Topics That Repeat Across These Papers

Reading nine years of papers together shows which topics come back most often. These are worth practising first.

• Object-oriented concepts – inheritance, abstraction, and class-vs-object questions appear in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2023 and 2024.
• Data type sizes – naming the byte size of char, int, short, float or double is asked in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2025.
• Operators – naming or classifying an operator such as relational, logical, unary or ternary appears in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2023.
• Predicting code output – tracing what a print statement or expression evaluates to is asked in 2017, 2018, 2020, 2024, 2025 and 2026.
• Keywords and packages – naming a Java keyword or the package holding a class comes up in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2025.

How to Use These Papers to Prepare for the Computer Applications Exam

1. Start with the 2017 and 2018 papers to get used to the short-answer Question 1 format.
2. Move to the 2023-2026 papers next. Their Question 1 is a 20-mark multiple-choice block, so time it separately from the rest of the paper.
3. After Section A, pick any four Section B questions and write out full working, since these usually need a Java program or a class definition, not a one-line answer.
4. Check byte-size and keyword answers against your Class 10 textbook notes, since these are the easiest one-word marks to lose to a wrong term.
5. Keep a running list of terms you got wrong – operators, keywords, data types – and re-test yourself on that list before the next paper.

Common Mistakes Students Make With These Papers

• Writing out the full question in the 2023-2026 papers – the instructions ask for only the correct answer, not the copied option text.
• Confusing primitive and non-primitive data types – char, int, float, double and boolean are primitive; arrays, Strings and classes are non-primitive.
• Mixing up length and length() – length is a property of an array, while length() is a method of the String class.
• Skipping Section A practice – all of Section A is compulsory and carries 40 marks, so it cannot be traded for extra Section B time.
• Guessing an operator’s name from memory alone – ?: is the ternary operator, not a comparison operator, and this mix-up shows up across several years.

Worked Practice Questions in the Same Style

These are original practice questions, written in the same style and difficulty as the recurring topics above, with full working shown.

Question 1: State the number of bytes occupied by the boolean and long data types in Java.

Answer: boolean occupies 1 byte. long occupies 8 bytes.

Question 2: Name the operators listed below:

• %
• —
• ||
• instanceof

Answer:

• % is the modulus (remainder) operator.
• — is the decrement operator.
• || is the logical OR operator.
• instanceof is a type-comparison operator.

Question 3 (multiple-choice style): What is the output of the statement System.out.println(‘D’ + 3);?

• (a) D3
• (b) 68
• (c) 71
• (d) G

Answer: (c) 71. The character ‘D’ has the ASCII value 68. Adding an int to a char promotes the result to int, so the statement prints 71, not a letter.

What the Mark Tags [2] and [20] Expect From Your Answer

A [2] mark part, common in the 2017-2020 Question 1 and across other short questions in every year, wants a definition, a named term, or a one-line difference. No working is needed, but the exact wording matters.

The [20] mark Question 1 in the 2023-2026 papers is entirely multiple-choice. You earn marks only by writing the correct answer itself; the papers explicitly warn against copying the question or option text.

Section B questions carry more marks each and usually expect a full Java program or class definition with correct syntax, not just a spoken explanation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are these papers the same length every year?
Yes. Every paper in this set, 2017 through 2026, allows two hours for writing the answers.

Do all nine papers carry 100 marks?
The 2023, 2024, both 2025 papers, and the 2026 paper print “Maximum Marks: 100” in the header. The 2017-2020 papers in this set show only the two-hour duration in that position, with no separate marks line visible.

What is the difference between the two 2025 papers in this set?
This set includes two 2025 papers. Both keep the same two-hour, two-section format described above; use them as two separate timed sittings rather than duplicates.

Do these PDFs include solved answers?
No. These are the original question papers only, useful for timed practice. They do not include worked solutions.

Where can I check the official syllabus for this subject?
The official ICSE syllabus is published by CISCE at cisce.org. Check it each year to confirm the current topic list.

If you need papers for other subjects in this class, the ICSE Class 10 page lists them, and textbook-linked material for this subject sits on the ICSE Class 10 books page.

More ICSE study material on this site

• Class 10
• Class 10 Books
• ICSE Books PDF Free
• ICSE Books

Reference: CISCE-aligned ICSE Class 10 textbook material.