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ICSE Class 10 Books 2025-26

ICSE Class 10 Books: Complete Subject-Wise Guide for 2025-26

If you are preparing for the ICSE Class 10 books selection and board examinations for the 2025-26 session — conducted by CISCE (Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations) — choosing the right textbooks is the first step toward a strong performance. The most widely used books across affiliated schools are from Selina Publishers for Science and Mathematics, with ML Aggarwal as a popular alternative for Maths. These are not government-issued books — NCERT does not publish ICSE textbooks. Instead, CISCE prescribes specific topics and publishers like Selina, Frank, and ML Aggarwal create textbooks aligned to that syllabus. With approximately 2.6 lakh students appearing for Class 10 in 2025-26, the right resource selection is more important than ever.

Class 10 is a high-stakes year for Indian Certificate of Secondary Education students. The external board exams carry 80 marks per subject (for Group I and II subjects), with 20 marks from internal assessments. You need to score at least 33% in each subject to pass. The 2025-26 syllabus has been released by CISCE with no reductions, so every topic counts. The written board exams for 2025-26 are scheduled from February 17 to March 30, 2026, all conducted as pen-and-paper tests. Note that compartment exams have been discontinued; students now have access to improvement exams scheduled for July 1–17, 2026. This page gives you a subject-by-subject breakdown of prescribed textbooks, chapter overviews, PDF downloads, and direct links to worked solutions.

ICSE Class 10 Books: Quick Reference Table

The table below gives you an at-a-glance overview of the key textbooks for each subject in the 2025-26 session.

Subject Primary Textbook Alternative / Reference External Marks
Mathematics Selina Concise Mathematics Class 10 ML Aggarwal Mathematics 80
Physics Selina Concise Physics Class 10 — 80
Chemistry Selina Concise Chemistry Class 10 — 80
Biology Selina Concise Biology Class 10 — 80
English Language CISCE-prescribed passages & grammar texts — 80
English Literature Treasure Chest by Xavier Pinto The Merchant of Venice 80
History & Civics Selina Concise History and Civics Class 10 V.K. Agnihotri 80
Geography Voyage: A Complete Course in Geography G.C. Leong (reference) 80
Hindi Sahitya Sagar by Evergreen Publications Vyakaran Saurabh 80
Computer Applications ICSE Comp. Applications with BlueJ by D.T. Xavier Sumita Arora 80

ICSE Class 10 Books for Mathematics

What You Study in Class 10 Maths (2025-26 Syllabus)

The Maths syllabus for the 2025-26 session covers topics from both pure and applied mathematics. Key areas include Commercial Mathematics (GST, banking, shares), Algebra (quadratic equations, linear inequations, AP/GP), Geometry (circles, tangents, locus, constructions), Trigonometry, Mensuration, Statistics, and Probability. The paper tests both procedural accuracy and conceptual understanding. There are no syllabus releases for 2025-26, so all chapters are examinable.

Exam tip: Maths carries 80 external marks. Always show full working — even a correct answer without steps can lose you method marks. Practice the Statistics and Commercial Mathematics chapters thoroughly; they are straightforward scoring areas. With the board exam on or after February 17, 2026, start timed mock tests by December 2025.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Physics

What You Study in Class 10 Physics (2025-26 Syllabus)

Class 10 Physics under the 2025-26 syllabus includes Force, Work, Energy and Power, Machines (levers, pulleys), Light (reflection, refraction, lenses), Sound, Electricity (current, resistance, domestic wiring), Radioactivity, and Electronics (basic logic gates). The Selina Concise Physics textbook is the standard reference used in almost all CISCE-affiliated schools.

Exam tip: Numerical problems in Physics (from Machines, Light, and Electricity chapters) are a reliable source of marks. Keep a formula sheet and practise unit conversions — a wrong unit can cost you the entire numerical even if the method is correct. Pay attention to the Electricity chapter, which has seen consistent question patterns in past CISCE papers.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Chemistry

What You Study in Class 10 Chemistry (2025-26 Syllabus)

The Chemistry syllabus for 2025-26 is broad and conceptually demanding. Topics include Periodic Table and Periodicity, Chemical Bonding, Acids, Bases and Salts, Analytical Chemistry, Mole Concept and Stoichiometry, Electrolysis, Metallurgy, Organic Chemistry (basics of carbon compounds), and Study of Compounds (Ammonia, Nitric Acid, Sulphuric Acid, Hydrogen Chloride). Equation writing is a critical skill tested in every paper.

Exam tip: Learn all chemical equations with state symbols and conditions. The Mole Concept chapter confuses many students — work through at least 20–25 varied numericals before the exam. The Study of Compounds section is highly predictable; past CISCE papers show similar questions repeated year after year.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Biology

What You Study in Class 10 Biology (2025-26 Syllabus)

Class 10 Biology for the 2025-26 session covers Cell Division (mitosis and meiosis), Genetics (Mendel’s laws, heredity), Human Anatomy (circulatory system, excretory system, nervous system, reproductive system), Plant Physiology (photosynthesis, transpiration, absorption), Pollution, and Evolution. Diagrams are a major component of the Biology paper and carry dedicated marks.

Exam tip: Practise labelling diagrams daily — the heart, nephron, neuron, and reproductive system diagrams appear almost every year in CISCE exams. Genetics problems (monohybrid and dihybrid crosses using Punnett squares) are straightforward if you practise the format consistently from your Selina textbook.

ICSE Class 10 Books for English

What You Study in Class 10 English (2025-26 Syllabus)

CISCE splits English into two separate papers for the 2025-26 board exam. English Language (Paper 1) tests composition writing (essays, letters, notices, reports), grammar (gap-filling, sentence transformation, editing), and comprehension passages. English Literature (Paper 2) covers a prescribed set of texts — typically a drama (Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice), a collection of short stories, and a poetry anthology. Always confirm the exact edition prescribed by your school, as minor variations exist.

Exam tip: For English Language, learn the format of every writing task — a letter written in the wrong format loses presentation marks regardless of content quality. For Literature, prepare character sketches and theme-based answers, not just plot summaries. Both papers are 80 external marks each.

ICSE Class 10 Books for History and Civics

What You Study in Class 10 History and Civics (2025-26 Syllabus)

History and Civics is one paper split into two sections. The Civics portion covers The Union Parliament (Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha), The President, The Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, The Supreme Court, and The High Court. The History portion covers the rise of nationalism in India, the Indian National Movement, the World Wars, and the post-independence era. It is a combined paper worth 80 external marks.

Exam tip: Many students underestimate this subject and leave it for last. The Civics section is highly scoring because the answers are factual and structured — learn the exact powers, functions, and composition of each constitutional body. Use the Selina textbook as your primary source and cross-check facts against the official CISCE syllabus document available on cisce.org.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Geography

What You Study in Class 10 Geography (2025-26 Syllabus)

Geography is divided into two components for the 2025-26 board exam. Paper 1 (Theory) covers Soil Resources, Natural Vegetation, Water Resources (irrigation, rivers), Mineral and Energy Resources, Agriculture, and Industries in India. Paper 2 is a map-based practical paper where students answer questions using topographic sheets and other maps. Both papers are externally assessed.

Exam tip: The map work paper catches students off guard if they haven’t practised with actual topographic sheets. Spend at least one session per week identifying map features, symbols, and grid references. Geography theory answers should always include specific examples — state names, river names, or industry locations — because vague answers do not score marks in CISCE evaluations.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Hindi

What You Study in Class 10 Hindi (2025-26 Syllabus)

Hindi is offered as a second or third language for many students of the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education. The Class 10 paper includes comprehension passages, essay and letter writing, grammar (sandhi, samas, muhavare, sentence rewriting), and prescribed Hindi literature texts (prose and poetry). The marking pattern follows the standard 80 external + 20 internal structure.

Exam tip: Students who focus only on literature and ignore grammar often lose 15–20 marks unnecessarily. Practise one essay and one letter format every week in the months leading up to the February 2026 exam date. Sandhi and samas questions are consistently present across CISCE Hindi papers — make them non-negotiable revision items.

ICSE Class 10 Books for Computer Applications

What You Study in Class 10 Computer Applications (2025-26 Syllabus)

Computer Applications at Class 10 level is primarily a Java programming paper. The 2025-26 syllabus covers Object-Oriented Programming concepts, classes and objects, constructors, arrays (single and double-dimensional), strings and string functions, loops, conditional statements, and user-defined methods. The external exam includes a theory section and a practical programming problem to be written on paper using the BlueJ environment as the reference IDE.

Exam tip: Write Java programs by hand before the 2026 exam — the practical section does not allow you to run code, so you must be confident in syntax without IDE assistance. Focus on string manipulation and array-based programs, which appear in almost every CISCE Computer Applications paper.

Key Exam Facts for ICSE Class 10 (2025-26 Session)

Before you finalise your study plan and book list, here are the critical facts every student should know for the 2025-26 academic session:

  • Full form: ICSE stands for Indian Certificate of Secondary Education
  • Conducting body: CISCE — Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (cisce.org)
  • Board exam dates: February 17, 2026 to March 30, 2026 (pen-and-paper only)
  • Passing criteria: Minimum 33% in each subject separately
  • Total students (approx.): 2.6 lakh Class 10 students appearing in 2025-26
  • syllabus releases: None for 2025-26 — full syllabus is examinable
  • Compartment exams: Discontinued. Replaced by improvement exams (July 1–17, 2026)
  • Mark split: 80 marks external + 20 marks internal assessment per subject

Always verify the latest official notifications directly on cisce.org before the exam, as dates and guidelines can be updated by CISCE.

How to Choose the Right ICSE Class 10 Books

With so many publishers and editions in the market, students often ask which books are actually worth buying. Here is a practical framework:

  1. Start with Selina for Science subjects: Selina Concise textbooks are the de facto standard in ICSE schools for Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. They are written strictly to the CISCE syllabus.
  2. Use ML Aggarwal for deeper Maths practice: If you aim for 90+ in Maths, ML Aggarwal provides more varied and challenging problems than Selina alone.
  3. Cross-check with the official CISCE syllabus: Download the subject-wise syllabus document from cisce.org to confirm every topic in your textbook is actually examinable in 2025-26.
  4. Do not buy too many books: One strong primary textbook per subject, completed thoroughly with solved examples and exercises, beats three half-finished books every time.
  5. Use previous year CISCE papers: These are the single best resource for understanding question patterns. They are available free on cisce.org and on this site. See our Icse Class 10 Previous Year Papers page.

Also check our complete Icse Class 10 Syllabus page and our Icse Class 10 Timetable page for dates and exam schedules.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions


For ICSE Class 10, it is recommended to stick to CISCE-approved textbooks as your primary resource, such as those published by Selina, Frank, or S. Chand for subjects like Mathematics, Science, and English. These ICSE Class 10 books are closely aligned with the official syllabus and cover all topics that appear in board examinations. Supplementing them with previous years’ question papers can further strengthen your preparation.


Yes, ICSE and CBSE follow different syllabi prescribed by their respective boards — CISCE for ICSE and NCERT for CBSE — so their textbooks differ significantly in content depth and structure. ICSE generally has a more detailed and application-based curriculum, especially in subjects like English Literature and Science. CBSE students use NCERT books, while ICSE students should use board-recommended publishers approved by CISCE.


The minimum passing marks for ICSE Class 10 board examinations is 33% in each subject. Students must secure this in both the written examination and internal assessment components wherever applicable. There is no syllabus reduction for the 2026-27 academic year, so students should prepare the complete curriculum.


Selina textbooks are considered highly reliable and comprehensive for ICSE Class 10, and many top-scoring students rely on them as their core study material. However, for scoring above 90%, it is advisable to also practice from additional reference guides and solve past board papers to get familiar with the question patterns. Thorough revision and understanding of concepts from your primary textbook remain the most important factors.


Most bookstores and online platforms sell ICSE Class 10 books both individually and as subject-wise sets, so you can choose based on your needs and budget. It is generally more practical to purchase books subject by subject, especially if you already have certain reference materials. Make sure to verify that the editions you buy are updated for the 2026-27 syllabus before purchasing.