SOF vs CREST vs SilverZone vs Unicus vs Unified Council: which olympiad body to choose
By The Sophoz Curriculum Team
The short answer. If the school runs SOF, sit SOF: it is the largest, the cheapest at ₹170, and the one other people recognise. If the school runs nothing, CREST is the most accessible at ₹275 fully online, and Unified Council's NSTSE is the best direct-registration option at ₹350. SilverZone is the only one with three levels. Unicus is the only one with none. None of the five leads to any international competition, whatever the exam names suggest.
The comparison table
| SOF | CREST | SilverZone | Unicus | Unified Council | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | ₹170 + up to ₹30 | ₹275 | ₹125 (reported) | ₹225 | NSTSE ₹350 individual, ₹150 via school; UCO ₹150 |
| Registration | School only | Direct or school | School | Direct | Direct or school |
| Classes | 1-12 | Nursery-12 | 1-12 | KG-11 | 1-10 |
| Exams offered | 8 | 10 | 4 main | 10 | 2 main |
| Levels | 2, for IMO/ISO/IEO only | 2, for some | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Format | Offline, in school | Online, slot booked | Offline | Online, home-based | Offline and online |
| Paper length | 35 Q / 40 M or 50 Q / 60 M, 1 hr | Varies, 45-60 min | Not verified | 25-50 Q by class | 40-60 Q by class, 1 hr |
| Negative marking | Not stated | Not verified | Not verified | Not verified | Explicitly none |
| Free practice | Free sample papers | 2 free practice tests included | Not verified | Not verified | Past papers included with NSTSE |
| Scale claimed | 99,499+ schools, 72 countries | 6,000+ schools, 60+ countries | Not verified | Not verified | Not verified |
Verified 21 September 2026 against each body's own pages except SilverZone, whose figures come from a secondary source and should be confirmed with the school.
SOF: the default, and a reasonable one
Why it wins on default. Largest by a wide margin, cheapest per exam, and the one a school, a relative or a future teacher will actually have heard of. Eight subjects, classes 1 to 12, one hour per paper, results in eight weeks.
The structural limitation that decides it for some families: SOF states that individual registrations are not accepted. If the school does not participate, SOF is simply not available, and the choice moves to CREST or Unified Council. This is not a preference question; it is a gate.
What the paper is like. Four sections, with Logical Reasoning at 25 % of marks in IMO and an Achievers Section carrying 25 % of marks in five questions across every subject and class. Level 2 for IMO, ISO and IEO only, classes 3 to 12 only, with the reasoning section removed at that level.
The criticism worth knowing. SOF's official preparation platform carries content prepared by MTG's editorial board, and MTG publishes the SOF-branded workbooks the questions draw on. Academics at HBCSE have objected publicly to the use of "olympiad" for competitions with no international culmination. Both points are set out in SOF IMO is not the International Mathematical Olympiad.
CREST: the one that works without the school
Why it is the best alternative. Fully online with student-chosen slots between 11:00 and 19:00 IST, direct registration, and two free practice tests included with every registration, alongside free sample papers, past papers, worksheets and revision videos.
Widest coverage in the comparison: Nursery to class 12, across ten exams including a dedicated Reasoning Olympiad, a mental maths paper, a drawing olympiad and summer and winter spelling bees.
The one piece of genuine design work in this category: audio-based questions for Nursery and Grade 1, for children who cannot yet read a question paper independently.
2026-27 windows: CMO Level 1 runs 10 to 19 December 2026, Level 2 on 9 to 10 February 2027. CSO Level 1 runs 3 to 12 December 2026. CEO Level 1 runs 1 to 5 December 2026. A slot must be booked at least two days ahead.
Two honest criticisms. At ₹275 it is 62 % dearer per exam than SOF. And merit certificates, medals or trophies go to the top 50 %, which is a definition of merit broad enough to be worth discounting.
SilverZone: three levels, and the least verifiable
What distinguishes it. Three levels where everyone else runs two or one: Level 1 in October to December, Level 2 reported for February 2027, Level 3 reported for May or June 2027. Four main exams: iOM (mathematics), iOS (science), iIO (informatics) and iOEL (English language), classes 1 to 12.
Reported Level 1 dates: 14 October, 19 November and 8 December 2026. Reported fee: ₹125, which would make it the cheapest in this comparison. Reported Level 2 criteria: top 1,000 rank holders between ranks 4 and 1,003 with at least 50 % marks.
The caution. All of the above comes from Careers360, a secondary source. SilverZone's own site did not return verifiable detail when we checked. We are reporting it because it is the best available, not because it is confirmed. Confirm with the school before registering.
Who it suits. A child who has already sat SOF, enjoyed it, and wants a longer arc. A third level in May keeps the thread alive through the year rather than ending it in February.
Unicus: one level, deliberately
What distinguishes it. Ten fully online, home-based exams at ₹225 or US$15, with no second level, and a syllabus that does not repeat between papers. Paper length scales by class: 25 questions for class 1, 35 for class 2, 40 for classes 3 to 5, 50 for classes 6 to 11.
The two papers nothing else offers: a Critical Thinking Olympiad and an extempore speaking olympiad (UGXO). There is also an Artificial Intelligence Olympiad for classes 1 to 10.
Winter 2026-27 windows run mid to late January 2027 across the five winter papers.
Who it suits. A family that wants one additional exam without committing to a February second level. Being single-level is the feature, not a limitation: it does not consume a second date, a second preparation push, or a second round of expectation.
Unified Council: the one you can register for yourself
Why it matters disproportionately. NSTSE, the National Level Science Talent Search Examination, accepts direct individual registration at ₹350, which includes past papers, a success-series book and postal charges, or ₹150 per student through a school. That makes it the most accessible serious paper in this comparison for a family acting without the school.
Dates: 20 November and 2 December 2026 offline through schools; 24 January 2027 online for individuals.
Pattern: 40 questions for class 1, 50 for class 2, 60 for classes 3 to 10. Sixty minutes, objective, and explicitly no negative marking, which is the only body in this comparison that states its position clearly.
UCO, the Unified Cyber Olympiad, runs classes 2 to 10 at ₹150, with an unusually heavy reasoning weighting: Mental Ability 15, Reasoning 15, Computers 15, English 5. Awards include laptops or tablets for the top three.
Who it suits. Any family whose school does not participate in anything, and any child who enjoys mental-ability work more than subject recall.
Which to choose, in four cases
The school runs SOF. Sit SOF, one or two subjects. Everything else is optional and should stay optional until the child has asked for more.
The school runs nothing. CREST at ₹275 for the online convenience and the free practice tests, or NSTSE at ₹350 for the no-negative-marking paper and the included past papers. Either is a complete answer on its own.
The child has done SOF and wants more. Unicus, because it is single-level and does not add a February commitment. SilverZone if a longer arc through to May appeals, and if the school can confirm the details we could not.
The child is genuinely ahead. None of these. Ei ASSET Talent Search at ₹600 measures against above-level content rather than ranking against year-level content, and from class 8 the IOQM pathway is the real thing. Both are covered in every olympiad exam in India.
The thing all five have in common
None of them leads anywhere outside itself.
Every one of these bodies is a private commercial organisation running its own examinations and publishing its own rank lists. A rank in any of them is a fact about that organisation's cohort in that year. It is not a qualification, it does not feed a selection process, and it has no relationship to the international olympiads that some of the exam names invoke.
That is not a reason to avoid them. It is a reason to keep the fee proportionate to what is actually being bought, which is a structured reason to practise and a comparison against a larger group than the classroom. At ₹170 to ₹350 that is good value. At ₹26,250 of coaching on top of it, the arithmetic changes.
And a last point on the scale figures, since they get quoted in school circulars as evidence of importance: SOF's "99,499+ Schools" and CREST's claimed one million users are self-reported by the bodies selling the exams. We found no independently audited participation figure for any Indian private olympiad body.
Frequently asked questions
Which olympiad body is best in India? SOF is the largest and most widely recognised, at ₹170 per exam, but registration runs through the school only. CREST is the best alternative for a child whose school does not participate, at ₹275 fully online with two free practice tests included. Unified Council's NSTSE is the best direct-registration option at ₹350.
What is the difference between SOF and CREST? SOF is school-routed, offline, ₹170, eight exams for classes 1 to 12, with two levels for IMO, ISO and IEO only. CREST is fully online with student-chosen slots, ₹275, ten exams for Nursery to class 12, includes two free practice tests with registration, and runs a dedicated Reasoning Olympiad. CREST also awards certificates or medals to the top 50 %, which is a broad definition of merit.
Which olympiad has three levels? SilverZone, which reportedly runs Level 1 in October to December, Level 2 in February and Level 3 in May or June. These figures come from a secondary source and should be confirmed with the school, since SilverZone's own site did not return verifiable detail.
Can I register my child for an olympiad without the school? Yes, for several: CREST at ₹275, Unicus at ₹225, Unified Council's NSTSE at ₹350 and UCO at ₹150, Indian Talent Olympiad at ₹500 and Ei ATS at ₹600. SOF does not accept individual registration.
Is there negative marking in these olympiad exams? Unified Council states explicitly that NSTSE and UCO carry no negative marking. SOF's published pattern assigns positive marks per question and does not state a penalty, but SOF does not address the question directly, so it should be treated as unconfirmed rather than assumed. We could not verify the position for CREST, SilverZone or Unicus.
Do any of these olympiads lead to the international olympiads? No. All five are private organisations running their own exams and publishing their own rank lists. India's route to the International Mathematical Olympiad runs through IOQM, RMO and INMO, administered by the Mathematics Teachers' Association and HBCSE-TIFR, with no connection to any of these bodies.
Verified 21 September 2026. SilverZone figures are from a secondary source and unverified against the foundation's own pages.