JEE Mains 2026 Expected Cut-Off: Latest Updates, Percentiles, Ranks & Category-Wise Marks

JEE Mains is the exam which many 12th pass students who appear for. the JEE Mains exams. Students who want to become an engineer and get an admission in IIT NIT appear in this exam.This exam is an opportunity for those students who want to secure an admission in various colleges like NITs and GFTIs for engineering programs. And here comes the main role of JEE Mains exam and it is considered the main entry for those students who want admission to these colleges.

Usually every year many students participate in the JEE Mains exam, and every year this exam is conducted by NTA in two sessions so that it can assure transparent and smooth operation. The first session, which is  JEE Mains Session 1 is usually held in January, and Session 2 is held in April. Students can appear for any one of them or they can try for both sessions and choose their best score to proceed further.

2026 JEE Mains Exam: Latest Update

As we all know, the JEE Mains exam is going smoothly. Testing has begun from January 21, 2026. Dates allotted for paper 1 are 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, and 29, and date of Paper 2 for B.Arch and B.Planning is January 29, 2026.  And NTA is going to take the Session 2 exams in the month of April. It might be fixed between April 2 to April  9. 

However Detailed dates will be released soon on the official website. For all the students appearing for the exam, the cut-off is now the most important factor because the JEE Mains cut-off determines which students qualify for the exam. And after qualifying in this exam students can further participate in JEE Advanced or can opt for different relatable courses and  counseling.

The marks and cut off  number are important for the admission process specially in top engineering colleges. That’s why  scoring good marks in JEE Mains is not just enough; one has to  to achieve good cut off marks too to ensure their admission in renowned and selected college

What is the JEE Mains Cut-off?

The JEE Mains cut-off is nothing but the  minimum marks which are set by NTA. These minimum marks or percentile are considered the main criteria for a student to ensure their admission. Otherwise, students are  considered unsuccessful in the exam. The cut-off marks depend entirely on various factors such as the number of candidates who appeared for the exam, the difficulty level of the exam, the number of shifts in which the exam was conducted, and the normalization process adopted by the National Testing Agency during the exam. 

The cut-off score sometimes clears at the 90th percentile, while at other times it goes above 90.  However, this cut-off score ultimately decides a student’s future, as the cut-off marks are categorized. Usually the JEE Mains cut-off marks are the only criteria which can decide and shape the  student’s career.  In this, those students who have achieved the cut-off score which are set or pre decided by NTA are eligible to appear in JEE Advanced, and that’s where their path to IITs and NITs begins.

Details of JEE Mains Cut-off

Usually JEE Mains has two types of cut-offs from which one is the qualifying cut-off which decides that if a student has cleared the JEE Mains exam and is eligible to appear in JEE Advanced?  And the second one is the admission cut-off, which is used for admission purposes, based on the course and college a student wishes to join. JEE Mains Cut off allows all the  students to get the admission in B.Tech and B.Arch like streams but for this each college has different admission cut-offs. If a student achieves the required cut-off in JEE Mains, they become eligible for college courses and counseling.

Previous Years’ JEE Mains Cut-offs

JEE Mains cut off 2021

JEE Mains cut off 2022

JEE Mains cut off 2023

JEE Mains cut off 2024

JEE Mains cut off 2025

JEE Mains Expected Cut-off for 2026

The National Testing Agency has currently released the following percentile cut-off trends for 2026:

General: Approximately 93 to 95%

OBC-NCL: 80 to 82 percentile

EWS: 80 to 82 percentile

SC: 70 to 62 percentile

ST: 47 to 49 percentile

Difference between JEE Mains Cut-off Percentile, Marks, and Rank

JEE Mains percentiles, marks, and rank are directly relative to each other. However this data might change every year. The cut-off percentile actually shows the total number of  students who appeared in the exam and how many have performed better. This is very different from the rank. Every year  The National Testing Agency decides the All India Rank based on the percentile in JEE Mains. Selection in counseling is done through All India Rankings.

Before admission to any engineering college, a student’s JEE Mains cut-off score is considered, and based on this, they are offered admission to a college and given the opportunity to choose a seat in that college.  Each college has different cut-offs and rank requirements for different courses and the number of seats available in each course.

For example, the best colleges will have the highest cut-off scores, and only students with the highest marks will be able to apply. Colleges slightly lower in ranking will have slightly lower cut-offs. This means that each course requires a different rank and score. For instance, if there are 4000 seats available in Computer Science for general category students, admission to these seats will be given only to those students who have achieved the best All India Ranks. The competition is slightly less in Mechanical engineering, and even less in Civil engineering, which means that with a larger number of seats, admission is guaranteed even with a lower percentile.

Will the 2026 JEE Mains Cut-off decrease or increase?

Looking at the cut-offs from previous years, this year’s cut-off is expected to be approximately the same.However, a difficult paper might lead to a lower cut-off, and the number of candidates also influences the cut-off. Usually NTA considers how many students have appeared in the exam and what was the difficulty level and according to that cut off marks are decided and 2026 data shows the exact similarities with 2025  so we can say that JEE Mains 2026 cut-off will be similar to that of 2025.

Conclusion So overall, the cut-off marks are crucial  numbers in the JEE Mains examination because it is very necessary to get  admission in any engineering college. And if students want to apply for the JEE Advanced, cut off marks are the main essential criteria. Yes there are slight changes in this cut off criteria but these changes are usually based on different factors. So it is very important for any student who is preparing for engineering in IIT or NIT to get  prepare not just to pass this exam but to achieve a better percentile, as a better percentile is crucial for exceeding the cut-off and securing admission to a better college.