The wait is finally over for engineering aspirants. As of yesterday, February 16, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has officially released the results for the JEE Main 2026 January Session.
If you sat for the exams last month, the suspense is done—you can now see exactly where you stand.
Here is a breakdown of what happened, how the scoring worked out this time, and what you need to do next.
The Highlights
The competition was fierce, but 12 students managed to hit that magic number, securing a perfect 100 percentile score. It wasn’t just about raw scores, though; the difficulty level was reportedly a bit higher (moderately difficult) compared to last year, making every mark count.
The “Free Marks” and Scoring Confusion
One of the biggest talking points this session has been the final answer key. The NTA had to make some significant adjustments that might have impacted your final score:
- Dropped Questions: In a rare move, the NTA dropped nine questions entirely across various shifts. The good news? If one of those dropped questions was in your specific shift, you were awarded full marks for it, regardless of whether you attempted it or not.
- Multiple Correct Answers: There were also four questions found to have more than one correct option. In these cases, you only got the points (+4) if you marked one of the valid correct options.
How to Check Your Score
If you haven’t looked yet, grab your admit card. You’ll need your Application Number and Date of Birth.
- Head over to the official site: jeemain.nta.nic.in .
- Look for the “JEE Main 2026 Result” link on the homepage.
- Punch in your details and hit submit.
- Make sure to download and save the PDF—you will need this for counselling later.
What About Ranks and Cut-offs?
Don’t panic if you don’t see an “All India Rank” or a qualifying cut-off for JEE Advanced on your scorecard yet. Since this was just Session 1, the NTA doesn’t release those details until after the second session is finished in April. They need to combine the best scores from both sessions to generate the final merit list.
The Perfect Scorers (100 percentile)
- Arnav Gautam – Rajasthan
- Kabeer Chhillar – Rajasthan
- Chiranjib Kar – Rajasthan
- Narendrababu Gari Mahith – Andhra Pradesh
- Pasala Mohith – Andhra Pradesh
- Shreyas Mishra – Delhi (NCT)
- Shubham Kumar – Bihar
- Bhavesh Patra – Odisha
- Anay Jain – Haryana
- Madhav Viradiya – Maharashtra
- Purohit Nimay – Gujarat
- Vivan Sharad Mahiswari – Telangana
What’s Next? (Don’t Miss This Deadline)
Whether you crushed it or want another shot to improve, the clock is ticking for Session 2.
- Next Exam Dates: April 2 to April 9, 2026.
- Registration Deadline: You only have until February 25, 2026, to register for the April attempt.
If you aren’t happy with your January score, this is your chance to turn it around. Good luck!
