The NEET qualifying marks 2026 are the minimum marks a candidate must secure to pass the exam. Only such candidates who secure the qualifying marks for NEET 2026 will be eligible for the admission. The NEET qualifying marks 2026 for OBC, General, SC, and ST varies and will be provided by the NTA along with the declaration of result. Based on the previous year trends and total students this year, the expected qualifying marks for NEET 2026 could be 720 - 150 for General category, and 149 - 118 for OBC/ SC/ ST category.
The NEET qualifying marks 2026 depends on several factors such as exam difficulty level, and total students appearing in the exam. NTA has set certain qualifying percentile criteria for each category and only such students who score in the range of this criteria are declared pass and are eligible for the AIQ and State counselling of NEET UG. Read the full article to know comprehensive details on NEET 2026 qualifying marks, including minimum marks to qualify NEET for government college, expected qualifying marks for NEET 2026, and previous year qualifying marks.
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The NEET qualification marks 2026 will be announced by the NTA along with declaration of NEET result 2026. Aspirants who want to get admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH courses must score equal or more than these NEET UG 2026 qualifying marks to be eligible for admission.
| Category | Qualifying Percentile | Qualifying Marks |
|---|---|---|
UR/EWS | 50th percentile | To be announced |
OBC / SC / ST | 40th percentile | To be announced |
UR/EWS - PwBD | 45th percentile | To be announced |
OBC / SC / ST - PwD | 40th percentile | To be announced |
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The NEET UG 2026 qualifying marks depend on several factors. Considering some of the factors, the expected qualifying marks for NEET 2026 are as follows -
| Category | Qualifying Percentile | Expected Qualification Marks |
|---|---|---|
UR/EWS | 50th percentile | 690 - 150 |
OBC / SC / ST | 40th percentile | 149 - 118 |
UR/EWS - PwBD | 45th percentile | 148 - 130 |
OBC / SC / ST - PwD | 40th percentile | 130 - 118 |
The qualifying marks for NEET UG exam has seen both increase and decrease due to several factors. However, to get an estimate of the approximate NEET 2026 qualifying marks, it is necessary to know the previous year qualifying marks of NEET UG.
| Category | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
UR/EWS (50th %ile) | 686 - 144 | 720 - 164 | 720 - 137 | 715 - 117 |
OBC (40th %ile) | 143 - 113 | 163 - 129 | 136 - 107 | 116 - 93 |
SC (40th %ile) | 143 - 113 | 163 - 129 | 136 - 107 | 116 - 93 |
ST (40th %ile) | 143 - 113 | 163 - 129 | 136 - 107 | 116 - 93 |
UR/EWS-PH (45th %ile) | 143 - 127 | 163 - 146 | 136 - 121 | 116 - 105 |
OBC/SC/ST-PH (40th %ile) | 126 - 113 | 145 - 129 | 120 - 107 | 104 - 93 |
Around 50% to 56% of students qualify NEET each year, meaning roughly half of all candidates clear the exam. In recent years, about 10 to 13 lakh students qualify annually despite rising participation. For example, 2025 saw 12.36 lakh qualifiers, 2024 had 13.15 lakh, 2023 had 11.45 lakh, and 2022 recorded 9.93 lakh qualified candidates.
The qualification marks for NEET 2026 depends on several factors. Some of the factors influencing the NEET qualifying marks 2026 are as following -
Number of Students Appearing: More students mean more competition. In 2026, around 26 lakh students are expected to take the exam, which can increase the cutoff.
Difficulty Level of the Exam: If the NEET 2026 question paper is tough, students usually score lower, so the cutoff goes down. If the paper is easy, scores go higher and the cutoff increases.
Overall Student Performance: If many students score very high marks, the NEET cutoff will rise. If performance is average or low, the qualification marks may decrease.
Number of Seats Available: More medical seats can slightly reduce competition during admissions, making it a bit easier to get a seat.
Reservation Rules: Different categories have different qualifying percentiles (General: 50%, OBC/SC/ST: 40%). These rules affect the cutoff marks for each category.
Once the NTA announces the qualifying marks of NEET 2026, candidates need to follow these steps -
1. Download Your Scorecard
Students need to download their NEET 2026 scorecard from the official website neet.nta.nic.in. The scorecard of NEET 2026 includes the candidates AIR, category-wise rank, total marks, and other important information. This scorecard is required in the later stage of counselling and admission process
2. Know Your NEET UG 2026 Counselling Options
Candidates who secure the minimum qualifying marks of NEET 2026 can get admission through two main types of counselling: All India Quota (AIQ - 15% seats) conducted by MCC. The AIQ counselling of NEET 2026 includes government colleges, AIIMS, JIPMER, deemed & central universities.
The State quota (85% seats) counselling is managed by counselling authorities of each state separately. Only the students with state domicile are eligible for this quota.
3. Counselling Process (Online)
The NEET counselling 2026 will be conducted in multiple rounds both for AIQ and state quota counselling. Candidates need to register themselves for counselling, fill their choices of course and college, and confirm their seats.
On Question asked by student community
With over 200 marks in NEET and OBC NT-B category, you may have chances in private BDS colleges through state quota or stray rounds in Maharashtra and Gujarat, especially since your budget is up to Rs 5.5 lakh per year. You can check the top BDS colleges in Gujarat or
With a score of 360 and ST category status, you have a realistic chance for a government MBBS seat in Jammu and Kashmir. Historically, the ST cutoff for state quota seats in J&K has been lower than the national average, often falling within the 340 to 380 range. Your performance
You are not eligible for the
Mukhyamantri Medhavi Vidyarthi Yojana (MMVY)
due to the 85% requirement for CBSE students, but you can still pursue your MBBS with a 230 NEET score through alternative scholarships and financial aid,
particularly if you are from a low-income family.
(https://www.myscheme.gov.in/schemes/mmvy)
A score of 429 puts you in a competitive position for BVSc, though your chances depend significantly on your category and the state you belong to. You can check the admission chances by using the link provided below and entering the required information.
Link: NEET College Predictor
Hi Student,
With a score of 335 marks in NEET you can get a seat in BDS in the top private colleges in India. But securing seat in Government BDS colleges is not possible.
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