JEE Main Exam Pattern

The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced changes to the JEE Main 2026 exam pattern on its official website, nta.ac.in. Notably, optional questions in Section B are now discontinued for both Paper 1 (B.E/B.Tech) and Paper 2 (B.Arch/B.Plan) starting from 2026.

Candidates should review the updated JEE Main pattern for details on marking schemes, exam duration, types of questions, and more. The JEE Main 2026 exam for B.E/B.Tech will feature 75 questions across Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, totaling 300 marks. Each section contains 25 mandatory questions, including 20 MCQs and 5 Numerical Value Questions (NVQs), with no optional questions. The JEE Main exams will take place in January and April 2026.

The exam pattern varies for Paper 1 (B.E/B.Tech) and Paper 2 (B.Arch/B.Plan). Below is an overview of the revised format.

JEE Main 2026 Revised Exam Pattern: Paper 1 & 2 Details

NTA has reverted to the pre-pandemic format for JEE Main 2026. Candidates should familiarize themselves with the updated exam structure:

1. Section A – 20 MCQs (Multiple-Choice Questions)
2. Section B – 5 NVQs (Numerical Value Questions)

Section B requires candidates to answer all 5 questions without any optional choices. Below is a table summarizing the JEE Main 2026 exam structure, including the total number of questions, marks, and passing criteria.

Revised JEE Main 2026 Exam Pattern for Paper 1 (B.E/B.Tech)

Particulars	Details
Mode of Exam	Computer-based
Exam Duration	3 hours
Language Options	English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu
Type of Questions	MCQs, Numerical Value Questions
Sections	Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry
Total Questions	75 (25 per section)
Total Marks	300 (100 per section)
Negative Marking	MCQs: -1 for incorrect answers; NVQs: -1 for incorrect answers

Revised JEE Main 2026 Exam Pattern for Paper 2 (B.Arch & B.Plan)

Particulars	Details
Mode of Exam	Computer-based (except Drawing in B.Arch)
Exam Duration	3 hours
Sections for B.Arch	Mathematics, Aptitude, Drawing
Sections for B.Plan	Mathematics, Aptitude, Planning
Type of Questions	MCQs, Numerical Value Questions, Drawing (B.Arch)
Total Questions for B.Arch	77
Total Questions for B.Plan	100
Total Marks for B.Arch	400
Total Marks for B.Plan	400
Negative Marking	MCQs: -1 for incorrect answers; Drawing: No negative marking

NTA JEE Mains Paper Pattern 2026: Types of Questions

Paper	Subject	Types of questions
Paper 1: B.E./B.Tech.	Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) Numerical value questions
Paper 2A: B. Arch	Part-1- Mathematics	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) Numerical value questions
	Part-II: Aptitude Test	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
	Part-III: Drawing Test	Questions to test drawing aptitude
Paper 2B: B.Plan	Part-I: Mathematics	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) Numerical value questions
	Part-II: Aptitude Test	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs
	Part-III: Planning-Based Questions	Objective Type - Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

JEE Main 2026 Subject-Wise Marks Distribution: Paper 1 (B.E/B.Tech)

Subject	Section A (MCQs)	Section B (NVQs)	Total Marks
Mathematics	20	5	100
Physics	20	5	100
Chemistry	20	5	100
Total	60	15	300

JEE Main 2026 Exam Pattern for Paper 2 (B.Arch)

Subject	Number of Questions	Marks
Mathematics	25 (20 MCQs + 5 NVQs)	100
Aptitude	50	200
Drawing Test	2	100
Total	77 Questions	400 Marks

JEE Main 2026 Exam Pattern for Paper 2 (B.Plan)

Subject	Number of Questions	Marks
Mathematics	25 (20 MCQs + 5 NVQs)	100
Aptitude	50	200
Planning Test	25	100
Total	100 Questions	400 Marks

JEE Main 2026 Marking Scheme: Paper 1 & 2

The marking scheme for JEE Mains 2026 papers is consistent across subjects:

• MCQs: +4 marks for each correct answer, -1 for each incorrect answer
• Numerical Value Questions (NVQs): +4 marks for each correct answer, -1 for each incorrect answer
• Drawing Test (B.Arch only): Evaluated out of 100 marks, no negative marking