JEE Main Session 1: How to calculate scores as NTA releases answer key? Check step-by-step guide

The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced the JEE Main 2026 Session 1 Final Answer Key for Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech).

Candidates who had raised objections to the provisional answer key by 6 February 2026 can now access the updated final answer key on the official website.

The JEE Main 2026 Session 1 Final Answer Key PDF is available at jeemain.nta.nic.in. It has been finalised after carefully checking the submitted student concerns against the provisional key. The JEE Main Session 1 Result 2026 will be determined based on this revised final answer key.

Multiple questions across different shifts have been marked as “Drop”. On 21 January 2026 – Shift 2, Question ID 860654995 from Mathematics and Question IDs 8606541010 and 8606541017 from Physics were dropped. On 22 January 2026 – Shift 1, Physics Question ID 444792191 was marked as Drop, according to reports.

Similarly, on 23 January 2026 – Shift 1, Physics Question ID 8606541395 was dropped, and during 23 January 2026 – Shift 2, Physics Question IDs 444792476 and 444792479 were also dropped. On 24 January 2026 – Shift 2, Physics Question ID 444792647 was marked as Drop. Finally, on 28 January 2026 – Shift 1, Mathematics Question ID 444792698 was also dropped.

JEE Main Session 1: How to calculate scores?

Each correct match is awarded +4 marks, while every incorrect answer leads to a deduction of 1 mark. If a question is marked as “Drop” in the final answer key, all candidates who appeared in that particular shift will be granted full marks (+4) for that question, in accordance with NTA policy. For Numerical Value Questions in Section B, marks are given only for correct answers, and a penalty of -1 mark is applied for every incorrect response.

The JEE Main 2026 Session 1 results are likely to be declared online soon. Candidates can access their results through the official website by logging in with their application number and password to download the scorecard.

JEE Main Session 1: How to check the scorecard?

1. Go to the official JEE Main results portal jeemain.nta.nic.in.

2. Find the “Final Answer Keys of JEE(Main)-2026 [Session-I] [Paper-I (B.E. / B.Tech)]” link under the ‘Latest News' section on the homepage.

3. On the login page, fill in your details like application number and password

4. After entering it, move to the results section.

5. Your scorecard will display on the screen.

6. Download and save a copy for later purposes.

The NTA will announce the list of Session 1 toppers, as well as comprehensive performance statistics for all candidates who appeared for the examination, alongside the result announcement.

The NTA will reportedly not accept any additional objections or challenges once the final answer key has been released. The raw marks obtained by candidates are converted into a normalised NTA Percentile Score to maintain fairness across different exam shifts with varying difficulty levels.