01 — Overview
JEE Main at a glance
| Full name | Joint Entrance Examination (Main) |
|---|---|
| Conducting body | National Testing Agency (NTA), Ministry of Education |
| Official website | jeemain.nta.nic.in |
| How often | Twice a year: Session 1 (January) and Session 2 (April) |
| Mode | Computer-based test, in two shifts a day |
| Papers | Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech), Paper 2A (B.Arch), Paper 2B (B.Planning) |
| Paper 1 format | 75 questions, 300 marks, 3 hours |
| Marking | +4 correct, −1 wrong, 0 unattempted |
| Languages | 13: English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu |
| Attempts | Three consecutive years, with up to two sessions each year |
| Leads to | NITs, IIITs and GFTIs through JoSAA, state and private colleges, and eligibility for JEE Advanced |
02 — Schedule
JEE Main 2027 important dates
The following dates are listed in NTA's JEE Main 2027 Information Bulletin. Candidates should monitor the official portal for further notices or amendments.
| Event | Session 1 – January 2027 | Session 2 – April 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Online application | 24 October – 22 November 2026 | 5 January – 3 February 2027 |
| Last date for fee payment | 22 November 2026, 11:50 PM | 3 February 2027, 11:50 PM |
| Application with late fee | 23–26 November 2026 | 4–7 February 2027 |
| Correction window | 27–29 November 2026 | 8–10 February 2027 |
| City intimation slip | 30 December 2026 | 12 March 2027 |
| Admit card | 13 January 2027 | 25 March 2027 |
| Examination dates | 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 28 January 2027 | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 April 2027 |
| Question paper / answer key | To be notified by NTA | To be notified by NTA |
| Result | No fixed date specified in the bulletin | No fixed date specified in the bulletin |
To complete before launch, Replace every "Expected" row with the exact date as soon as NTA publishes the JEE Main 2027 information bulletin, and update the review date above.
03 — Exam authority
Who conducts JEE Main?
The National Testing Agency, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Education, sets the paper, runs the exam at centres across India and abroad, and publishes answer keys, scores and ranks. Admission itself is handled separately: JoSAA runs counselling for NITs, IIITs and GFTIs, and states run their own counselling for state colleges.
04 — Exam options
Papers in JEE Main
B.E. / B.Tech
Subjects: Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics.
B.Arch
Subjects: Mathematics, Aptitude and Drawing.
B.Planning
Subjects: Mathematics, Aptitude and planning-based questions.
When students say "JEE Main", they almost always mean Paper 1. The rest of this page is about Paper 1.
05 — Paper structure
Exam pattern in brief
Each subject has 25 questions: 20 multiple-choice questions (Section A) and 5 numerical-value questions (Section B). All questions are compulsory. A correct answer earns 4 marks.
Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics
+4 correct, −1 incorrect, 0 unattempted
Computer-based test
06 — Before you apply
JEE Main eligibility criteria
- There is no age limit.
- You must have passed Class 12 (or equivalent) in the previous two years, or be appearing in the current year. For JEE Main 2027, that means Class 12 in 2025, 2026 or 2027.
- Class 11 students cannot write the exam.
- For an NIT, IIIT or GFTI seat, you also need 75% in Class 12 (65% for SC/ST) or a place in the top 20 percentile of your board. This applies at admission, not when you write the exam.
07 — What to study
JEE Main syllabus
The syllabus is based on NCERT Class 11 and Class 12 Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, and NTA publishes the official version in the information bulletin. NTA rationalised the syllabus in 2024, so check that your books and modules follow the current version. Use these guides: .
- JEE Main syllabus — official topic list
- Chapter weightage — based on VMC's analysis of past papers
- Subject strategies for Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics
08 — From exam to admission
From JEE Main to a college seat
- Register for Session 1, Session 2 or both on the NTA website.
- Write the exam in your allotted city and shift.
- Check the provisional answer key and challenge any answer you believe is wrong within the window provided.
- Get your NTA score. Because papers differ across shifts, NTA converts marks into a percentile-based score for each shift. A percentile is not a percentage of marks.
- Get your All India Rank after Session 2. If you wrote both sessions, your better NTA score is used, subject to official rules.
- Qualify for JEE Advanced if you are within the number of candidates set by the Joint Admission Board each year (about 2.5 lakh across categories in recent years).
- Apply through counselling: JoSAA for NITs, IIITs and GFTIs (and IITs using your JEE Advanced rank), plus state counselling such as JAC Delhi.
09 — College options
What can your JEE Main rank get you?
| Goal | What decides admission | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| NITs, IIITs and GFTIs | JEE Main rank, through JoSAA | NIT list, IIIT list |
| IITs | JEE Advanced rank. JEE Main only makes you eligible to write it. | IIT list, IIT vs NIT |
| Delhi state colleges (DTU, NSUT, IIIT-Delhi, IGDTUW) | JEE Main rank, through JAC Delhi | State counselling |
| Other state and private colleges | JEE Main score or the college's own exam | BITSAT and other exams |
To estimate where you stand, use a rank predictor and college predictor, and compare with JoSAA closing ranks.
10 — Study plan
How to prepare for JEE Main 2027, based on your timeline
| Time to the exam | What to focus on | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| Two years (Class 11) | Build concepts chapter by chapter, keep pace with school, and start topic tests early. | Study plans |
| One year (Class 12) | Finish the syllabus by December, balance board exams, and start previous-year papers. | Preparation strategy |
| Drop year | Find the chapters that cost you marks, rebuild them first, then test every week. | Plans by student profile |
| Last three months | Full-length mocks under exam conditions, analysis of every mock, and short revision cycles. | Mock test strategy, revision strategy |
| Exam week | Light revision, fixed sleep, and an attempt plan for the paper. | Exam-day strategy |
If you have a score in mind, score targets show what each range demands. For study material, see best books for JEE Main and previous-year papers.
Mistakes that cost students marks
A large share of inorganic and physical chemistry questions follow NCERT closely.
JEE Main tests speed as much as understanding; 75 questions in 180 minutes leaves little room.
Wrong numerical answers carry negative marking, so attempt them only when you have worked them out.
The second session costs nothing in terms of score, because only the better one counts.
A mock you do not review teaches you very little. Note why each mark was lost: concept, calculation, or time.
11 — Learn with VMC
Preparing for JEE Main with VMC
Vidyamandir Classes (VMC), one of India’s leading institutes for JEE, NEET, Olympiads, and School & Board Exam preparation, was founded in 1986 by four IIT Delhi graduates, fondly known as the Famous Bhaiyas. With a glorious legacy spanning four decades, VMC stands as a symbol of academic excellence, student success, and continuous growth. Today, with a presence across 26+ cities in India and the expansive reach of VMC Online, connecting students across the country and around the globe, VMC continues to empower aspirants to turn their dreams into reality.
Vidyamandir Classes offers a comprehensive range of Offline and Online courses for students from Class 6 to 12, as well as Class 12 pass-outs, preparing for JEE, NEET, Olympiads, and School & Board Exams.
To explore our courses and discover our students’ past results, visit www.vidyamandir.com.
Aspiring to be a part of the VMC family? Take the VIQ (Vidyamandir Intellect Quest), our flagship admission-cum-scholarship test, to unlock exciting scholarship opportunities and take the first step towards your academic goals.
You can also visit your nearest VMC centre to learn more about our programmes and find the right course for your aspirations.
12 — References
Official sources
Exam rules can change from year to year, so always confirm dates and eligibility with the official bodies: NTA ( jeemain.nta.nic.in ), the Joint Admission Board for JEE Advanced ( jeeadv.ac.in ), and JoSAA for counselling ( josaa.nic.in ). For unfamiliar terms, see the exam glossary.
13 — FAQs