NEET UG · subject
NEET Physics preparation: where the 45 questions come from
Physics is 45 of the 180 questions in NEET UG and 180 of the 720 marks, and it is where most ranks are lost — not because the chapters are exotic, but because four or five repeated slips cost marks in otherwise correct work. This page ranks every unit by weightage, names the mistake each one usually catches, and shows what to practise next. 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.
Quick answer
- NEET Physics has 45 compulsory questions worth 180 of the 720 marks, marked +4 for a correct answer and −1 for a wrong one.
- Electrostatics, Current Electricity, Optics and modern physics between them typically carry 13–21 of those 45 questions in recent papers.
- Class 11 mechanics and thermal physics is roughly half the paper, so a dropper who skips Class 11 loses marks twice over.
- NTA publishes no chapter weightage: every count on this page is BrainStride’s analysis of past papers and is written as a range.
The ten heaviest Physics units
Question counts are BrainStride’s analysis of recent NEET papers, not official figures — NTA publishes no chapter weightage. Average questions per paper, most recent sessions.
Every NEET Physics unit
All 20 units of the NEET Physics syllabus, in official order. Unit names match the syllabus tracker and the NEET syllabus page, so nothing is counted twice.
| Unit | Class | Typical questions | What it tests | The mistake it catches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Physics and Measurement | 11 | 1–2 Q | Dimensions, errors | Rounding significant figures at every step instead of only at the end. |
| 2. Kinematics | 11 | 2–3 Q | Graphs, algebra | Choosing a positive direction and then abandoning it halfway through. |
| 3. Laws of Motion | 11 | 2–3 Q | Free-body diagrams | Writing friction as μmg on an incline instead of μmg cos θ. |
| 4. Work, Energy and Power | 11 | 2–3 Q | Application | Using energy conservation while a non-conservative force is still doing work. |
| 5. Rotational Motion | 11 | 2–4 Q | Hard, formula-heavy | Recalling I for the wrong axis instead of applying the parallel-axis theorem. |
| 6. Gravitation | 11 | 1–2 Q | Formula recall | Mixing orbital speed and escape speed, which differ by a factor of √2. |
| 7. Properties of Solids and Liquids | 11 | 2–4 Q | Mixed recall and numericals | Reading a stress–strain graph for the wrong modulus, or dropping the area term. |
| 8. Thermodynamics | 11 | 2–3 Q | Sign conventions | Using the chemistry sign convention for work instead of the physics one. |
| 9. Kinetic Theory of Gases | 11 | 1–2 Q | Recall + single step | Putting temperature in Celsius into rms speed and mean energy formulas. |
| 10. Oscillations and Waves | 11 | 2–4 Q | Application | Ignoring the phase difference when two SHMs or two waves are combined. |
| 11. Electrostatics | 12 | 3–5 Q | Application | Adding potentials as vectors, or adding fields as scalars. |
| 12. Current Electricity | 12 | 3–5 Q | Circuit reduction | Reducing a network by habit without checking which points sit at the same potential. |
| 13. Magnetic Effects of Current and Magnetism | 12 | 3–4 Q | Application | Applying the right-hand rule and then dropping the sign of the charge. |
| 14. Electromagnetic Induction and Alternating Currents | 12 | 2–4 Q | Application | Losing the direction Lenz’s law gives, or using peak values where rms belongs. |
| 15. Electromagnetic Waves | 12 | 1–2 Q | Recall | Ordering the spectrum by wavelength when the question asks by frequency. |
| 16. Optics | 12 | 3–5 Q | Sign conventions | Dropping the Cartesian sign convention midway through a mirror or lens problem. |
| 17. Dual Nature of Matter and Radiation | 12 | 2–3 Q | Recall + single step | Mixing electronvolts and joules in the photoelectric equation. |
| 18. Atoms and Nuclei | 12 | 2–3 Q | Recall + calculation | Confusing binding energy per nucleon with total binding energy. |
| 19. Electronic Devices | 12 | 2–3 Q | Recall | Reading a circuit as common-emitter when the question draws common-base. |
| 20. Experimental Skills | 11–12 | 1–2 Q | Recall | Getting the least count right and then forgetting the zero error. |
Ranges overlap and are rounded, so chapter ranges do not add up exactly to a unit or subject total. Counts shift by a question or two every year.
Which NEET Physics chapters should you start with?
Start with the chapters that are both heavy and fixable. Electrostatics, Current Electricity and Optics carry 9–15 questions between them in recent papers, and their errors are usually procedural — a sign convention dropped, a circuit reduced by habit — rather than conceptual. Modern physics adds 4–6 Q for a syllabus you can finish in a fortnight.
Leave Rotational Motion and the harder parts of Properties of Solids and Liquids for after that. They are worth 2–4 Q and 2–4 Q, but they take the longest to become reliable.
How do you practise Physics for NEET, as against JEE?
The same chapters appear in both, but NEET rewards speed on single-step numericals rather than multi-concept problems. You have roughly a minute a question across the paper, so the skill being tested is recognising the standard form quickly and finishing it without arithmetic slips.
That makes timed sets of 15–20 questions more useful than long problem sessions. Mark every question you got right but slowly — those are the ones that cost marks later.
What does BrainStride do with your Physics mistakes?
Every wrong answer is tagged as a concept gap, a silly error or time pressure, and that tag picks what you practise next. A chapter you keep missing returns tomorrow, and the day after, until the error rate falls. You can see the same picture yourself in the NEET exam pattern and qualifying marks pages.
The five Physics mistakes that repeat
Patterns our subject mentors see most often — illustrative, not measured. Sample observations; replace with measured data before launch.
Friction without cos θ
Why it happens
On an incline, μmg is the flat-ground answer your hand writes before your head catches up.The fix
Draw the normal force first, every time. If the surface is tilted, the normal is mg cos θ and friction follows it.Sign conventions abandoned midway
Why it happens
Kinematics, optics and thermodynamics each have their own convention, and switching chapters switches habits.The fix
Write the convention at the top of the rough work before the first line of algebra, then never re-derive it mid-problem.Units left unconverted
Why it happens
cm, g and kV walk into a formula unnoticed when you are working quickly.The fix
Convert everything to SI in the first line, before substituting. It costs five seconds and saves four marks.Moment of inertia from memory
Why it happens
The standard results are for specific axes, and the question rarely uses that axis.The fix
Ask which axis the question uses before recalling I, then apply the parallel-axis theorem deliberately.Accuracy collapse in the last stretch
Why it happens
With 180 questions in 180 minutes, the final section is answered under the most pressure.The fix
Leave the questions you are unsure about for a marked second pass, and stop guessing once the marking scheme is against you: −1 for a wrong answer, 0 for a blank.Where to go after NEET Physics
Everything here is free and open — no sign-up needed for the tools.
- SubjectNEET ChemistryWhere NCERT lines turn into 45 questions.
- SubjectNEET BiologyThe 90 questions that decide the rank.
- SyllabusNEET syllabus, unit by unitEvery unit mapped to its NCERT chapter, with what changed.
- PatternNEET exam pattern and marking180 questions, 720 marks, +4 and −1 — and what that does to guessing.
- ToolSyllabus trackerTick off all 72 NEET chapters and see what is left.
- ToolNEET score calculatorCorrect and incorrect counts per subject, scored the way NTA scores them.
- ToolNEET rank predictorMarks to an all-India rank band, with the qualifying check for your category.
- CutoffsNEET qualifying marks by categoryWhat 2023, 2024 and 2025 actually needed, and why 2025 moved.
How the Physics content here is checked
Every solution is reviewed by a subject teacher before it ships, explanations are audited weekly, and a one-tap report sends any question straight to a mentor.
Read the editorial policy- Reviews the NEET Physics solution bank before release
- Audits mechanics and electricity explanations weekly
- Weightage ranges come from our own reading of past papers, never from an official source that does not publish them.
- Report anything that looks wrong and it is fixed or explained within 48 hours.
NEET Physics: common questions
How many questions come from Physics in NEET UG?
NEET UG Physics has 45 compulsory questions worth 180 of the paper’s 720 marks, under the pattern NTA has used since 2025. Each correct answer earns +4 and each wrong answer costs −1, with no negative marking for a blank. Chapter-wise counts shift slightly every year, so treat any weightage figure — including ours — as a range.
Which are the most important chapters in NEET Physics?
In recent NEET papers, Electrostatics (3–5 Q), Current Electricity (3–5 Q), Optics (3–5 Q) and modern physics (4–6 Q) carry the most questions, with mechanics spread across several units. These are BrainStride estimates from past papers, not official weightage, because NTA does not publish chapter-wise weightage for NEET UG.
Is NEET Physics harder than Biology?
Physics is fewer questions than Biology but costs more ranks, because it is calculated rather than recalled and negative marking punishes rushed arithmetic. Biology is 90 of the 180 questions, so it decides the rank; Physics decides whether you keep the marks Biology earned you. Most students need daily Physics practice and weekly Biology revision, not the reverse.
Is NCERT enough for NEET Physics?
NCERT is enough for the syllabus and the formulas, but not for the practice. NEET Physics questions are single-step numericals written under time pressure, and the NCERT exercises are too few to build that speed. Use NCERT to fix concepts and definitions, then practise timed sets of past-paper-style questions chapter by chapter.
How much of NEET Physics comes from Class 11?
Roughly half. Ten of the 20 NEET Physics units are Class 11 — mechanics, thermal physics, oscillations and waves — and they appear every year. Droppers who focus only on Class 12 lose marks twice: once in the Class 11 questions, and again in Class 12 chapters such as Current Electricity that assume Class 11 mechanics.
How do I stop losing marks to silly mistakes in Physics?
Name the mistake rather than resolving to be careful. BrainStride tags every wrong answer as a concept gap, a silly error or time pressure, and uses that tag to choose your next practice set — accuracy drills for slips, explanations for gaps. Reviewing your own error log weekly does the same job without the app.
Official sources
- NEET UG — National Testing Agency (information bulletin and syllabus)neet.nta.nic.in
- National Medical Commission — NEET UG syllabuswww.nmc.org.in
- NCERT textbooks, Class 11 and 12ncert.nic.in/textbook.php
Pattern and marking facts on this page follow the NEET UG pattern used since 2025. Confirm the 2027 details in the official bulletin when it is released.
Which four Physics chapters are costing you the most marks?
Twenty minutes of diagnostic answers that, then writes the daily plan that closes them. Free, no card.
Chapter guides for this subject
Formulas, the mistakes that cost marks, worked examples and a quiz — free, no account.