The paper changed this year, so the numbers candidates are using to guess their chances need to change too.
The NEET PG 2026 result has not been declared yet. Reports tracking the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS), the body that conducts the exam, say it is due by 30 September. NBEMS has not yet put out a notice with an exact date. About 2.66 lakh doctors took the exam on 30 August, and many of them are now checking their expected score against last year’s cut-off of 276. That comparison will mislead them. Here is what has changed, and what candidates should keep an eye on.
The Paper Was Out of 720 Marks, Not 800
This is the change most candidates are missing. NBEMS reduced the paper from 200 questions to 180 this year. So the maximum score dropped from 800 to 720. The marking stayed the same. You get four marks for a right answer and lose one mark for a wrong answer.
Last year’s cut-off of 276 was set on an 800-mark paper. It cannot be used as a target for a 720-mark paper. If you scale it down in the same proportion, it comes to about 248. But treat that only as a rough guide, for the reason explained below.
NBEMS has not officially said why it reduced the number of questions.
How the NEET PG Cut-Off Is Decided
The cut-off is not a fixed number of marks. It depends on how all the candidates performed.
For general and EWS candidates, you qualify if you score at least as much as half of all candidates. This is called the 50th percentile. For SC, ST and OBC candidates, the bar is the 40th percentile. For general candidates with a disability, it is the 45th percentile.
In simple terms, if the paper was hard for everyone, the cut-off marks go down. If it was easy for everyone, the cut-off marks go up. That is why nobody can tell you the exact cut-off before the NEET PG 2026 result comes out.
Last year, 2,30,114 candidates appeared and 1,28,116 qualified. That is more than half. So qualifying is the first step, not the finish line. Your rank decides which seat and which college you can get in counselling.
Check the Answer Key When It Comes Out
This year, NBEMS has said it will publish the answer key along with each candidate’s response sheet. The response sheet shows the option you marked for every question. NBEMS says it is doing this because of the Supreme Court, which in May 2025 directed that answer keys and raw scores be made public.
Reports say the response sheet will come before the NEET PG 2026 result. If that happens, use it. Match your answers against the key and work out your score yourself. If NBEMS opens a window to challenge answers, that will be your chance to point out a wrong answer before it affects your marks. No dates have been announced for this yet.
This is a real change from last year. In 2025, the answer key came out only after the result. It also showed question ID numbers instead of the actual questions, so candidates could not properly check it.
What Happened at the Jaipur Centres
About 2,445 candidates at two exam centres in Sitapura, Jaipur, could not finish the paper on 30 August because the power failed. NBEMS said the power failure was inside the centres and put it down to TCS, the company that conducts the exam, according to Medical Dialogues. Some candidates told the outlet their computers shut down six or seven times during the exam.
These candidates took the exam again on 5 September. NBEMS also formed a three-member committee to look into what went wrong. It is headed by Gayatri Rathore, Principal Secretary of Rajasthan’s medical and health department.
One question is still open. The re-exam was a different sitting from the main exam, and NBEMS has not said how the two sets of scores will be placed on one merit list. Candidates should look for this in the NEET PG 2026 result notice.
The Wise Take
Three weeks of waiting has filled social media with fake release times. Posts claiming the key will come out at a fixed hour keep appearing and keep turning out to be wrong. The only reliable place for the date and time is a notice on natboard.edu.in, the official NBEMS website.
While you wait, keep three things in mind. First, stop comparing your score with 276, because this year’s paper was out of 720. Second, when the answer key comes, check it carefully and raise an objection if you find a mistake. Third, remember that your rank matters more than whether you cleared the cut-off, because the rank decides your seat.
Waiting for a result after years of preparation is stressful. If it is getting too heavy, the government’s free Tele-MANAS helpline is available all day and night on 14416.
A calm, careful reading of the result will help you more at counselling than a quick one.
