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    NEET 2026 Cut off Increased: Why Has the Qualifying Cutoff Gone Up This Year?

    NEET 2026 Cut off Increased: Why Has the Qualifying Cutoff Gone Up This Year?

    #NEET
    Sonia VatsUpdated on 17 Jul 2026, 05:19 PM IST

    The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced the NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff along with the results, and this year the minimum qualifying marks have increased across almost all categories. As per the NEET result, the General/EWS qualifying cutoff has risen to 213 marks, while the cutoff for OBC, SC and ST candidates has increased to 177 marks. The jump in NEET cutoff has surprised many aspirants, especially since the re exam was considered moderate to difficult by a large section of students.
    Also check: Re NEET 2026 Cutoff Live Updates

    This Story also Contains

    1. NEET 2026 Cutoff Increased: Category-wise Qualifying Marks Comparison
    2. NEET 2026 Cutoff Increase: Reasons Behind the Higher Qualifying Marks
    3. Impact of Higher NEET 2026 Qualifying Cutoff on MBBS Admissions
    4. NEET 2026 Qualifying Cutoff vs Admission Cutoff: Know the Difference
    5. NEET 2026 Result Statistics That Led to the Cutoff Increase
    NEET 2026 Cut off Increased: Why Has the Qualifying Cutoff Gone Up This Year?
    NEET 2026 Cut off Increased: Why Has the Qualifying Cutoff Gone Up This Year?

    Candidates must know that the NEET qualifying cutoff is determined by percentile, candidate performance and overall competition rather than a fixed score. Here's a detailed look at why the NEET 2026 cutoff has increased and what it means for medical aspirants.

    NEET 2026 Cutoff Increased: Category-wise Qualifying Marks Comparison

    Candidates can check the NEET UG 2026 category-wise qualifying cutoff from the table mentioned below.

    NEET UG Cutoff 2026 vs 2025

    Category

    NEET 2026 Cutoff

    NEET 2025 Cutoff

    General/EWS

    715–213

    686–144

    OBC/SC/ST

    212–177

    143–113

    General-PwD

    212–195

    143–127

    SC/ST/OBC-PwD

    194–177

    126–113

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    NEET 2026 Cutoff Increase: Reasons Behind the Higher Qualifying Marks

    Overall Candidate Performance: Although many students found the paper lengthy, the overall performance of candidates was stronger than last year. A larger number of candidates scored in the mid and high-score range, pushing the qualifying marks upward while maintaining the prescribed percentile.

    Tough Competition: More than 11.21 lakh candidates qualified for NEET 2026, reflecting intense competition for limited medical seats. Even a small increase in average scores across lakhs of candidates can lead to a noticeable rise in qualifying marks.

    Percentile-Based Cutoff System: One of the biggest reasons behind the increase is that NEET qualifying cutoff is percentile-based, not mark-based. If candidates perform better overall, the marks corresponding to these percentiles automatically increase. This is exactly what has happened in NEET 2026.

    Must Check: Re NEET 2026 Marks vs Rank

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    Impact of Higher NEET 2026 Qualifying Cutoff on MBBS Admissions

    The higher NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff will not directly affect MBBS admissions. The qualifying cutoff only determines a candidate's eligibility for counselling, while admission to MBBS colleges depends on factors such as All India Rank (AIR), category, seat availability, reservation policy and counselling cutoffs. Therefore, even though the qualifying marks in NEET have increased this year, candidates should focus on their rank and previous years' opening and closing ranks to assess their admission chances.

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    NEET 2026 Qualifying Cutoff vs Admission Cutoff: Know the Difference

    The NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff is the minimum score required to become eligible for the counselling process. The NEET 2026 admission cutoff is the rank or score at which candidates secure an MBBS, BDS or other medical seat. The qualifying cutoff is released by NTA with the Re NEET 2026 result and is based on percentile, whereas the admission cutoff varies depending on factors such as All India Rank (AIR), category, seat availability, reservation policy and counselling trends. Therefore, qualifying NEET 2026 does not guarantee admission to a medical college.

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    NEET 2026 Result Statistics That Led to the Cutoff Increase

    The NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff increased mainly due to the overall performance of candidates. This year, 11.21 lakh candidates qualified for the medical entrance exam, while 138 students scored above 690 marks. The highest score was 715 out of 720, with no candidate securing a perfect score. A larger number of candidates scoring in the higher mark range pushed the percentile higher, resulting in an increase in the NEET 2026 qualifying cutoff across all categories. As the cutoff is percentile-based rather than mark-based, better overall performance naturally leads to higher qualifying marks.
    Also read: Re NEET 2026 AIR 1 | Re NEET 2026 AIR | Re NEET 2026 AIR 3

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