Joint Entrance Examination (Main)
The national gateway to NITs, IIITs, GFTIs — and the qualifier for JEE Advanced.
JEE Main is a computer-based entrance test for undergraduate engineering, architecture, and planning programmes across India. Every top NIT and IIIT sits downstream of it, and it's the only route into JEE Advanced.
The exam is heavy on Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics — each treated as an equal-weight subject. Speed, accuracy, and the ability to identify shortcuts matter almost as much as raw conceptual depth.
| Mode | Computer-based test (CBT) |
| Duration | 3 hours (4 hours for PwD candidates) |
| Subjects | Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics |
| Questions per subject | 25 — 20 MCQs (Section A) + 5 Numerical (Section B), all compulsory |
| Total questions | 75 questions, 300 marks |
| Medium | 13 Indian languages, including English and Hindi |
Marking scheme
Correct
+4 for every correct answer
Incorrect
−1 for every incorrect answer (applies to Section A and Section B)
From 2025 onwards, Section B no longer offers optional questions — all 5 numerical items per subject are compulsory, and negative marking applies equally to MCQs and NATs.
Chemistry and Class 12 Physics lean heavily on NCERT. Finish NCERT cover-to-cover before you touch HC Verma, Irodov, or Narendra Awasthi. A lot of direct questions are lifted from NCERT lines.
Topic-weightage in JEE Main is highly predictable. Patterns repeat — solve previous year papers to internalise which topics get the most questions and which traps show up again and again.
Exam endurance is a skill. Even if a topic isn't finished, take a full 3-hour mock every Sunday. It teaches you to triage — skip hard questions, lock easy marks, and manage section balance.
After every mock, log the topics where you lost marks and spend the week before the next mock plugging those gaps. Blind practice plateaus fast; targeted practice compounds.
Maintain a one-page formula sheet per subject. Add shortcuts you discover. By Jan, it should be your only Sunday-morning revision material.
Purpose-built for JEE Main aspirants — not a generic test platform.
Note: This guide covers the evergreen pattern, syllabus, and preparation framework. Registration dates, exam dates, and category-wise cutoffs change every cycle — always verify the latest details on the official National Testing Agency (NTA) notification before you act on timelines.