Quick Summary: The JEE Main 2026 cutoff for the General category is the minimum score needed to qualify for JEE Advanced. It is projected to remain within the 93-95 percentile, according to previous years. This is not the same as the college admission cutoffs. Students who score above it are only allowed to proceed to the next stage. The blog also covers the previous trends, factors that influence cutoffs, the range of expected marks, and reasons why cutoffs vary each year.
JEE Main Cutoff for General 2026 – To appear in JEE Advanced, every student must score a required minimum percentile, which is known as the JEE Main qualifying cutoff. This value is different from the score used for college allotment. The JEE Main cutoff 2026 works as the basic filter because only students who score higher than the JEE Main cutoff percentile are allowed to move ahead for JEE Adv. The NTA JEE Mains cutoff is important for top colleges like IITs, as admission starts only after meeting this condition. The National Testing Agency will officially announce the JEE Main 2026 cutoffs on its website, jeemain.nta.nic.in. Once declared, the JEE Main 2026 cutoff for the General category will also be updated here.
The cutoff for college admission is shared separately during each round of JoSAA counselling. Looking at earlier year data, the expected JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category is 93.1023262. Candidates can also go through the past year JEE Main cutoff for general mentioned in this article.
Students should understand that this JEE Main cutoff is only used to qualify for the exam. The qualifying score is released along with the JEE Main result. As per the session 2 outcome, in paper 1, 12 candidates from the General category scored a perfect 100 percentile and became the JEE Main 2026 January session toppers. In paper 2, 2 candidates also achieved 100 percentile. Scroll further to read more about the JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General.
Read More:
- JEE Main 2026 Cutoff Prediction: Category-Wise Qualifying and Safe Marks
- JEE Main Exam Time 2026: Exam Day Shift Timing & Paper Schedule
JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category
NTA will declare the category-wise JEE Main cutoff percentile through online mode. The JEE Main 2026 General cutoff will be made available on jeemain.nta.nic.in. Until the official release, students can check the previous year JEE Main cutoff for general and other categories here.
Previous Year JEE Main Cutoff for General
Past year analysis of the JEE Main Cutoff for General shows that the qualifying percentile usually stayed between 87.89 and 93.23. For complete clarity, candidates can refer to the table given below.
JEE Main 2025 Cutoff
| Candidate Category | Cutoff Percentile (JEE Main 2025) |
| General Category | 93.1023262 |
| Economically Weaker Section (EWS) | 80.3830119 |
| Other Backward Classes (OBC-NCL) | 79.4313582 |
| Scheduled Caste (SC) | 61.1526933 |
| Scheduled Tribe (ST) | 47.9026465 |
| Persons with Disability (PwD) | 0.0079349 |
Check Out: JEE Main 2026 Marks vs Rank vs Percentile
JEE Main 2020 -2024 Cutoff for General Category
| JEE Main Exam Year | General Category Cutoff (Percentile) |
| 2020 | 90.3765335 |
| 2021 | 87.8992241 |
| 2022 | 88.4121383 |
| 2023 | 90.7788642 |
| 2024 | 93.2362181 |
What Does Historical Data Says for JEE Main 2026 General Cutoff?
Based on previous years and current estimates, the JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category is likely to stay between 93.5 and 95 percentile, with slight changes due to exam difficulty and the number of candidates. This implies that qualifying marks can be in the range of 90120 (in JEE Advanced) with the higher goal of scoring above 200 marks (95 percentile and above) being more assured in the best NITs and IIITs. The JEE Main cutoff percentile varies each year but usually remains in the low 90s for general candidates, and stays near 80–81 for OBC, 61–62 for SC, and 48–49 for ST categories.
Check Out: How To Calculate JEE Main 2026 Rank From NTA Percentile Score
How is JEE Main Cutoff Calculated?
There is no clear rule followed by NTA to decide the JEE Main cutoff 2026. Still, some key points are looked at while deciding the NTA JEE Mains cutoff. The main factors linked with the cutoff are mentioned below.
- Number of students appearing for the exam
- Difficulty level of the question paper
- Total seats available
Even though these are not the only reasons affecting the cutoff, students should understand that the JEE Main cutoff of the previous year changed mainly because of these points.
Check Out: What is a Good NTA Score in JEE Main 2026?
Minimum marks in JEE Mains to qualify for JEE Advanced 2026
The JEE Main 2026 cutoff for the General category is expected to stay between nearly 100 and 92 percentile. This estimate is based on last year’s cutoff trend and exam difficulty. To know the minimum score required in JEE Mains to qualify for JEE Advanced 2026, candidates can refer to JEE Main 2026 marks for the 92 percentile. It is likely to be around 77 to 80 marks. Aspirants should keep in mind that this score depends fully on the difficulty level of JEE Mains and overall performance of candidates.
Factors Affecting the JEE Main Cutoff for General
The points given below help in deciding the JEE Main Cutoff for General 2026.
- Past year trends of JEE Main cutoff for general
- Total number of candidates who appeared in JEE Main
- Overall performance of students
- Difficulty level of the JEE Main 2026 cutoffs
FAQs on JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category
Q: Has the JEE Main 2026 result been released?
No, the Main 2026 result has not announced yet. The January session results are likely to be released by approximately February 12, 2026 and the April results by approximately April 20. Exams are still underway; all students are expected to continue checking the official NTA site (idiom site) to get updates and download scorecards.
Q: What is the expected JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category?
The JEE Main cutoff 2026 for the General category is expected to be around 93-95 percentile, which roughly means 80–95 marks out of 300. The last cutoff will be based on the difficulty of the exam and the performance of the students in the exam. The official NTA JEE Mains cutoff will be announced after the exams.
Q: When will the JEE Main cutoff 2026 be announced?
The JEE Main 2026 cutoff for the General category is likely to be released after Session 2 results in April 2026. The January session cutoff may come in mid-February, but the final JEE Main qualifying cutoff is usually declared after Session 2 for JoSAA counselling and JEE Advanced eligibility.
Q: What percentile is 120 marks in JEE Main cutoff percentile?
Scoring 120 marks in JEE Main 2026 marks usually gives a percentile between 96 and 97. The exact percentile depends on how tough or easy the exam shift was.
Q: How many types of JEE Main cutoff are there?
There are two types of JEE Main cutoff. One is the qualifying cutoff in JEE Advanced created by NTA. The other is the cutoff for college admission, decided by JoSAA, which varies by college, branch, and category. One decides eligibility, the other decides the seat.
Q: What is the JEE Main cutoff for General 2026 for IIITs?
Under the JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General, top IIITs usually need 97–99 percentile, which is about 140–200+ marks. The mid-level IIITs usually take (take with a grain of salt idiom synonym) 95-97 percentile or about 130-150 and above marks. JoSAA publishes final cutoffs and the highest-ranked seats in CSE typically require ranks of less than 10,000.
Q: Is 75 percent in Class 12 required for JEE Main?
There is no such requirement that one needs to have 75% marks to appear in JEE Main. Students however require 75 percent or the top 20 percentile marks in Class 12 to be able to get admission into NITs, IIITs and CFTIs. SC and ST candidates must have more than 65%. This is applicable in counselling and not the exam.
Q: What is the JEE Main admission cutoff 2026?
The JEE Main 2026 General cutoff for qualifying is expected to be around 93–95 percentile. The NITs and IIITs admission cutoffs are higher in many cases (above 120 marks or more) to secure admission in top branches and institutes.
Q: What is the JEE Main Cutoff 2026 for General Category for CSE?
According to the recent analysis, CSE has an average General category closing rank of less than 5,000 AIR in leading NITs. Top NITs close around 1,000 -3,000 AIR, whereas mid-tier NITs close around 5,000-25,000 AIR.
