JEE Main 2026 Result and Cut-Off: What You Need to Know

The wait is over. JEE Main Session 1 results for 2026 are now available. If you appeared for the exam, you can download your scorecard using your application number and password from the official website.

But here's what matters most: understanding the cut-off percentiles and what they mean for your journey ahead.

What Are the Expected Cut-Offs?

The cut-off is the minimum percentile you need to qualify for JEE Advanced and participate in JoSAA counselling. Without meeting this threshold, your path to IITs and top engineering colleges gets blocked.

Based on previous year trends, here's what you can expect for 2026:

For General Category students, the qualifying percentile sits around 93 to 95. If you fall under GEN-EWS, you're looking at approximately 80 to 82 percentile.

Here's the breakdown for other categories:

OBC (Other Backward Classes): 79 to 81 percentile
SC (Scheduled Caste): 61 to 64 percentile
ST (Scheduled Tribe): 48 to 50 percentile
PwD (Persons with Disability): 0.001 to 1.0 percentile

These numbers are estimates based on historical data. The actual cut-offs will be declared along with the results.

How Does NTA Calculate Your Percentile?

You might wonder why NTA uses percentiles instead of raw marks. The answer is simple: fairness.

JEE Main conducts multiple shifts across different days. Each shift has papers with varying difficulty levels. A question paper on one day might be tougher than another. So comparing raw scores wouldn't be fair to students who faced a harder paper.

This is where normalisation comes in. NTA uses a formula to level the playing field:

Percentile = (Number of candidates with score equal to or less than yours / Total candidates in your session) × 100

Your percentile tells you how you performed compared to other students in your shift. A 95 percentile means you scored better than 95% of students who took the exam in your session.

The normalisation process balances out the difficulty differences across shifts, making the evaluation fair for everyone.

What's on Your JEE Main Scorecard?

Once you download your scorecard, you'll find several important details. Check each one carefully because you'll need this information for the next steps in your admission process.

Your scorecard includes:

Your full name as registered
Roll number and application number
Parent or guardian details
State code of eligibility
Subject-wise marks and percentiles for Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics
Your total marks and overall percentile score
All India Rank (AIR)
Category rank (if applicable)
Your qualifying status for JEE Advanced

That last point is critical. If your scorecard shows you've qualified for JEE Advanced, you can proceed to register for the next level. This is your gateway to IITs.

What Happens Next?

If you've cleared the cut-off, your focus shifts to JEE Advanced preparation. This exam is the final hurdle before IIT admission. Mark your calendar and start preparing because the competition only gets tougher from here.

For those who didn't make the cut-off, remember that JEE Main has two sessions. Session 2 gives you another chance to improve your score. Many students perform better in their second attempt because they know what to expect.

Even if IITs aren't in your immediate future, your JEE Main score opens doors to many excellent engineering colleges through JoSAA counselling. NITs, IIITs, and GFTIs all accept JEE Main scores for admission.

Download Your Scorecard

Head to the official NTA website and log in with your application number and password. The scorecard is available for download in PDF format. Save multiple copies because you'll need to upload it during various admission processes.

If you spot any errors in your scorecard, contact NTA immediately. Name misspellings or incorrect dates of birth can create problems later during document verification.

Your JEE Main journey represents months of hard work and dedication. Whether you're celebrating a great score or planning your next move, remember that this is just one step in your engineering career. There are multiple paths to success, and your determination matters more than any single exam result.