JEE Main Cutoff 2026: Expected Category-wise Percentile, Previous Year Trends

The JEE Main 2026 cutoff to qualify for JEE Advanced will be dependent on various factors. Usually, the cutoff increases each year by 1 to 3 percentiles in JEE Main for the general category. However, in 2025, and 2024 the cutoff for the general category remained almost the same. In the years before that, the cutoff has been rising with each year.

Expected Qualifying JEE Mains Cutoff 2026

As per the expert reviews of the past year cutoff data, present year registration and many other factors, here is an expected qualifying cutoff for JEE Main 2026 exam:

Check the factors below that influence the JEE Main cutoffs:

• Number of aspirants who appeared for JEE Main - More is the number of appearing candidates, the higher the cutoff.
• Difficulty level - A more challenging exam session typically results in a lower cutoff percentile because overall candidate performance drops.
• Fixed intake - The number of students who can qualify for JEE Advanced is fixed at approximately 2.5 lakh
• Total number of applications received - Higher registration numbers generally lead to an increase in the qualifying percentile.
• The category under which admission is sought - Cutoffs are determined separately for various categories, including General (CRL), OBC-NCL, EWS, SC, ST, and PwD

Check below how the JEE Main qualifying cutoff for JEE Advanced has been in the past 5 years:

Check the category wise cutoff trends analysis below:

1. Cutoffs have consistently increased across almost all categories from 2021 to 2025. The sharpest rise is visible after 2022.
2. In the general category, there is a steady rise from 2021 to 2024, with slight stabilisation in 2025.
3. For EWS, there was a dip in 2022, followed by a sharp rise post-2022. Cutoff crossed 80 in 2024 and remained close in 2025.
4. OBC-NCL competition has intensified significantly in recent years, with a massive jump in cutoff from 20221 to 2022.
5. The cutoff for SC has nearly doubled from 2021 to 2025.
6. ST category cutoff had a major dip in 2022, but consistently rose after 2022.
7. In PWD cutoff remains extremely low across all years. Minor fluctuations but no major trend shifts.

Know how the JEE Main qualifying cutoff differs from the admission cutoffs below:

1. Type 1: The qualifying cut-off of JEE Main 2026 comprises the minimum score that JEE Main exam aspirants need to secure to be eligible for JEE Advanced. To be eligible for JEE Advanced 2026 candidates have to get more than or equal to the category-wise cutoff of JEE Main 2026. Only those candidates who meet JEE Main qualifying cutoffs become eligible to appear in JEE Advanced for admission to IITs in India. 
2. Type 2: The admission cutoff of JEE Main 2026 is the opening and closing ranks for each institute and is released by JoSAA (Joint Seat Allocation Authority). Candidates must get a minimum rank (closing ranks) for admission to JEE Main participating institutes. JoSAA releases admission cutoffs for all the participating institutes.

Check the table below for a better understanding:

Check below the JEE Main marks vs percentile data for the JEE Main 2026 exam based on previous year trends. This will help you know what percentile you may get based on your JEE Main 2026 marks. Further, you can check what your rank is based on the JEE Mains marks and percentile.

The analysis of JEE cutoff shows that there is an increase for the General category in various years. All other categories have shown a decrease in the qualifying percentile for JEE Mains. Candidates can check the cutoff trends of the last eight years (2021-16) in the following table:

JEE Main Cutoff 2019-2020 (Percentile Started)

JEE Main Cutoff 2018-2016 (Raw Marks)

JEE Main Admission Cutoff for NITs: There are 31 NITs, and admission to each one of them is based on JEE Main ranks and through JoSAA counselling.

• To secure a seat in top tier NITs (Trichy, Surathkal, Warangal), candidates generally need higher percentiles and ranks.
• Computer Science & Engineering is the most competitive branch, typically requiring a rank under 5,000 (99.2+ percentile) for top NITs.
• Core Branches (ECE, Mechanical, Electrical) require ranks between 10,000 to 25,000 (98.0 to 99.0 percentile), which are usually required for top institutes.
• Mid to Lower Tier NITs often require ranks between 30,000 to 60,000 (95.0 to 97.0 percentile).

JEE Main Admission Cutoff for IIITs: For 2026, admission to IIITs is based on JEE Main ranks through JoSAA (Joint Seat Allocation Authority) and CSAB (Central Seat Allocation Board) counselling.

• Top tier IIITs (Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Allahabad) are very competitive, especially for Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) branches.
• Computer Science & Engineering in top IIITs generally requires a percentile of 99.3 to 99.9+ (rank under 10,000 for General).