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JEE Main · Exam pattern
The JEE Main exam pattern for Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech) is 75 compulsory questions worth 300 marks in 3 hours, marked +4 for a correct answer and −1 for a wrong one — numericals included. JEE Main 2027 is expected to follow the pattern NTA has used since 2025.
Quick answer
Based on the 2025 and 2026 papers. NTA confirms the 2027 pattern in its information bulletin.
| Detail | JEE Main Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech) |
|---|---|
| Conducted by | National Testing Agency (NTA) |
| Mode | Computer-based test |
| Duration | 3 hours |
| Subjects | Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics |
| Total questions | 75, all compulsory (25 per subject) |
| Question types | 20 MCQs + 5 numerical-value questions per subject |
| Total marks | 300 (100 per subject) |
| Correct answer | +4 |
| Incorrect answer | −1 (MCQs and numericals alike) |
| Unattempted | 0 |
| Sessions | Two — January and April; the better NTA score counts |
| Result | NTA percentile score, normalised per shift |
| Section | Physics | Chemistry | Mathematics | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section A — MCQs | 20 | 20 | 20 | 60 |
| Section B — numerical value | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| Questions | 25 | 25 | 25 | 75 |
| Marks | 100 | 100 | 100 | 300 |
Section names follow recent NTA papers.
JEE Main 2027 is expected to award +4 marks for every correct answer and deduct 1 mark for every incorrect answer, in both the MCQ and numerical sections. A question you leave blank scores zero. The maximum is 300; because of negative marking, the minimum is −75.
That symmetry matters more than it looks. Until 2024, a wrong numerical answer cost nothing, so guessing a number was free. Since 2025 a wrong number costs a mark, exactly like a wrong option. The maths of guessing has changed: on an MCQ with four options, a pure guess is right one time in four, which averages out to about +0.25 marks — barely worth the time it takes. A guess on a numerical question is almost never right, so on average it costs you close to a full mark.
BrainStride is an AI tutor for JEE, NEET and Olympiad preparation that runs a 20-minute diagnostic, maps your weak chapters and writes a daily plan, with every solution checked by teachers. One thing it tracks is exactly this: how many marks you lose to wrong answers you could have skipped.
The table below shows three students who attempted the paper differently. The student who attempted every question got five more right than the student who skipped fifteen — but finished only 10 marks ahead, because ten extra wrong answers took half of it back.
| Student | Correct | Wrong | Left blank | Score out of 300 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attempts everything | 60 | 15 | 0 | 240 − 15 = 225 |
| Skips what they can’t solve | 55 | 5 | 15 | 220 − 5 = 215 |
| Careful but slow | 50 | 10 | 15 | 200 − 10 = 190 |
Illustrative examples to show the +4/−1 arithmetic.
Two things changed, and both are expected to carry into 2027.
The optional numerical section was removed. From 2021 to 2024, Section B in each subject had 10 numerical questions, of which you answered any 5. Since 2025 there are exactly 5 numerical questions per subject, and all of them are compulsory. You no longer get to pick the numericals that suit you, so a weak chapter can't be dodged in Section B.
Numericals now carry negative marking. A wrong numerical answer costs 1 mark, the same as a wrong MCQ.
No. The paper is still 75 answered questions, 300 marks and 3 hours. What changed is choice: every question on the screen now counts.
Coverage matters more than it did. When you could skip half the numericals, a student could survive with a couple of weak chapters per subject. With 25 compulsory questions per subject, a chapter you've abandoned is marks you've abandoned. The JEE Main syllabus page lists every unit, and the syllabus tracker lets you mark what you've actually finished.
The free diagnostic shows where your wrong answers come from — concept gaps, silly errors or time pressure.
Three hours is 180 minutes, which works out to 2.4 minutes per question on average. In practice, questions are not equal. Many students find Chemistry quickest, Physics in the middle and Mathematics the slowest, but that is a pattern, not a rule — your own mock data is the only honest guide.
A split many toppers describe, and one we'd suggest testing in mocks:
The computer-based test lets you navigate between questions and mark them for review. Read the instructions screen in the NTA bulletin and practise on a mock in the same interface so the navigation costs you no time on the day.
Take full-length mocks under timed conditions and look at where the minutes go, not just the score. Past JEE Main papers from 2025 and 2026, planned on the full current pattern with the mock test generator, are the closest practice to the 2027 format.
Your raw score out of 300 is not what NTA reports. JEE Main runs in many shifts, and no two shifts get the same paper, so NTA converts raw marks into an NTA percentile score within each shift, reported to seven decimal places. Roughly, your percentile says what percentage of candidates in your shift scored at or below you. The NTA information bulletin explains the exact normalisation method.
Two consequences follow. First, a hard shift doesn't punish you: if everyone in your shift found the paper tough, the same raw marks earn a higher percentile. Second, the all-India rank is decided on the percentile, not raw marks. That's why any marks-to-percentile estimate — including ours in the JEE Main percentile calculator — should be a range, not a single number.
No. Both sessions of JEE Main use the same Paper 1 pattern and marking scheme, and NTA uses the better of your two NTA scores. The questions differ by shift; the structure doesn't.
None of these are about knowing the chapter.
Why it happens
Old advice from 2021–2024, when wrong numericals cost nothing, still circulates.The fix
Since 2025 a wrong numerical costs a mark. Enter a numerical answer only when you have actually worked it out.Why it happens
They feel slower, so students push them to the last twenty minutes.The fix
All 15 are compulsory and worth the same 4 marks. Attempt the ones you can solve on the first pass, like any MCQ.Why it happens
The numerical box takes a number, and students lose marks to wrong rounding or unit conversions.The fix
Read the instruction on rounding in each question and convert units before you type.Why it happens
Mark-for-review, palette colours and navigation are unfamiliar under pressure.The fix
Write at least three full mocks in a computer-based interface before Session 1.JEE Main also has Paper 2A for B.Arch and Paper 2B for B.Planning. They have a different structure, including aptitude and, for B.Arch, a drawing test. Most JEE aspirants only write Paper 1, which is what this page covers. If you're applying for architecture or planning, read the Paper 2 section of the official NTA bulletin on jeemain.nta.nic.in.
JEE Main 2027 Paper 1 is expected to have 75 questions, all compulsory: 25 each in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. Each subject has 20 multiple-choice questions and 5 numerical-value questions. This is the pattern NTA has used since 2025; confirm it in the 2027 information bulletin when it is released.
Yes. Since 2025, JEE Main deducts 1 mark for a wrong numerical-value answer, the same as for a wrong multiple-choice answer. A correct answer earns 4 marks and an unattempted question scores 0. Between 2021 and 2024 the numerical section had no negative marking, so older strategy advice about guessing numericals is out of date.
JEE Main Paper 1 is marked out of 300: 75 questions at 4 marks each, split into 100 marks each for Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. With negative marking of −1 per wrong answer, a raw score can technically range from −75 to 300. Your result is reported as an NTA percentile, not raw marks.
JEE Main Paper 1 is a computer-based test held at NTA exam centres across India and abroad, not a paper you take at home. It runs in multiple shifts over several days in each session, and NTA normalises scores across shifts into percentiles so that a harder shift does not disadvantage its candidates.
NTA had not announced any change for JEE Main 2027 as of October 2026, and the 2027 bulletin was not yet out. The safest assumption is the 2025–2026 pattern: 75 compulsory questions, 300 marks, 3 hours, +4/−1 for all questions. Check jeemain.nta.nic.in when registration opens, expected around late October to November 2026.
JEE Main gives 180 minutes for 75 questions, about 2.4 minutes each on average. Most students do better with two passes: answer everything they are confident about first, then return to partially solved questions. Your real split should come from timed mocks, because the time each subject takes differs from student to student.
NTA had not released the JEE Main 2027 information bulletin as of October 2026. Where this page says "expected", confirm against the bulletin once it is out.
The diagnostic uses the current pattern, including negative marking on numericals, and shows which wrong answers you could have skipped.