NEET 2026 Exam Pattern - Check Marking Scheme, Total Marks, Chapter Wise Weightage, Duration

About NEET 2026 Exam Pattern

The NEET 2026 Exam Pattern is likely to remain the same as the previous year. The NTA revised the NEET exam pattern in 2025 by removing Section B of the exam paper comprising 15 optional questions, and reducing the exam duration from 3 hours and 20 minutes to just 3 hours. According to the NEET 2026 Exam Pattern, the entrance exam will be conducted in offline mode, in a single shift. The tentative NEET 2026 exam date is May 3, 2026. A total of 180 multiple-choice questions will be asked in the exam. All questions are now compulsory to be answered.

For every correct answer, students will be awarded 4 marks in the exam. Similarly, for every incorrect answer, 1 mark will be deducted from the total score. There is no negative marking for unattended questions. The NEET 2026 Exam pattern suggests that a total of 45 questions each from Physics and Chemistry, and 90 questions from Biology (Zoology + Botany) will be asked in the entrance exam. The total marks of the NEET 2026 exam are 720. The entrance exam will be conducted in 13 languages, including Hindi, Urdu, English, Assamese, Bengali, etc.  

NEET Exam Pattern 2026 Highlights

An overview of the important details in NEET 2026 exam pattern has been provided below. 

Changes Introduced in NEET 2026 Exam Pattern

There have been no announcements made by the NTA regarding any new changes in the NEET 2026 exam pattern. However, students can review the recent modifications made to the NEET exam pattern mentioned below. These changes were introduced in 2025 and are likely to be continued in the NEET 2026 exam as well.

• Section B of the NEET 2026 exam question paper has been removed. It comprised 15 optional questions.
• A total of 180 questions in total will be asked in the NEET exam instead of 200. This comes following the removal of the optional questions in NEET.
• The exam duration has been reduced from 3 hours to 20 minutes to 3 hours only. 
• Each section of Physics, Chemistry, Botany, and Zoology will comprise 45 questions in the exam paper for students to answer.

Marking Scheme in NEET Exam Pattern 2026

The NEET 2026 exam pattern consists of a negative marking of -1 mark for every incorrect response and a marking of +4 marks for every correct response. There are no marks awarded or deducted for unanswered questions in the NEET exam. Students can find the NEET exam pattern 2026 marking scheme tabulated below.

Also Read: Minimum Marks Required in NEET 2026 for MBBS

Language Options in NEET 2026 Question Paper

Students can appear for the NEET 2026 exam in 13 language mediums. These include, but are not limited to, English, Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Malayalam, Assamese, Odia, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Tamil, Kannada, and Urdu. They can choose their preferred language medium during the form fill-up process.

NEET 2026 Exam Pattern Subject-wise Weightage

The subject-wise weightage according to the NEET 2026 exam pattern has been provided below for you to draw references from. The following has been divided between the subjects Physics, Chemistry and Biology (Zoology + Botany).

NEET Topic-Wise Weightage 2026

Every topic in the NEET syllabus chapter has a definite weightage proportionate to several questions that are asked in the examination. Students can find the topic-wise weightage for each subject stated below. 

NEET Exam Pattern 2026 Calculation of Scores

According to the NEET Exam Pattern 2026, students can calculate their NEET scores based on the marking scheme defined by the NTA. For each correct response, a student will be awarded with 4 marks while for each incorrect response, a total of 1 mark will be deducted. There is no marks deduction for unanswered questions. Therefore, to calculate the NEET scores, students must analyze the total number of correct answers and multiply the number by 4. Additionally, they must repeat the same and calculate the total marks deducted for incorrect responses. Now, to get the expected NEET score, one must subtract the latter result from the former and the new calculated answer will be the expected NEET score. 

Here is the basic formula to calculate the NEET Exam 2026 marks:

NEET Exam Pattern 2026 Instructions for filling OMR sheet

The important guidelines set by the NTA to fill out the NEET 2026 OMR sheet has been provided in the NEET Exam Pattern 2026. A detailed insight into the same has been mentioned below for reference to all interested students:

1. All students must use the ballpoint pen to answer the questions in the NEET 2026 Exam.
2. Once answered, the responses in the ONR Sheet cannot be undone or modified. 
3. No student is allowed to erase or conceal any information on the NEET OMR sheet.
4. For rough calculations, students are allowed to utilize the test booklet provided along with NEET OMR Sheet.
5. Ensure to accurately write the test booklet code on the OMR sheet.