JEE Advanced Cutoff: What You Need to Know About Scores and Qualifying Ranks

When you hear JEE Advanced cutoff, the minimum score or rank required to qualify for admission to Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). Also known as IIT admission cutoff, it’s not just a number—it’s the line between moving forward and starting over. Every year, lakhs of students take JEE Advanced, but only the top few thousand make it past this threshold. And no, the cutoff isn’t fixed. It shifts based on exam difficulty, number of applicants, and how many seats are available across all IITs.

The cutoff isn’t the same for everyone. It varies by category—General, OBC-NCL, SC, ST, and PwD—each with separate qualifying marks. For example, in 2024, the General category cutoff for the top 20,000 ranks hovered around 45% of the total marks, while the PwD cutoff dropped below 20%. This isn’t arbitrary. It’s designed to ensure fairness while keeping competition tight. What you need to know: JEE Advanced qualifying marks, the minimum percentage of total marks required to be eligible for counseling. These aren’t the same as the final admission cutoffs, which depend on your rank and branch preferences. And don’t forget JEE Advanced rank, your position among all test-takers, which matters more than your raw score. Two students with the same score can have wildly different ranks if the exam had uneven difficulty across shifts.

What does this mean for you? If you’re aiming for a top IIT and a popular branch like Computer Science, you’re not just chasing the cutoff—you’re chasing the top 1,000 ranks. But if you’re okay with a newer IIT or a less competitive branch, the cutoff might be much lower. Past trends show that even a 5-10% change in exam difficulty can shift cutoffs by hundreds of ranks. That’s why guessing based on last year’s numbers is risky. You need to focus on consistency, not just a target score. And remember: clearing the cutoff doesn’t guarantee admission. It just gives you a seat at the table. Your final placement depends on your rank, choices, and how many others pick the same branch.

Below, you’ll find real insights from students who made it through, breakdowns of cutoff trends over the last five years, and what to do if you’re just below the line. No fluff. Just what works.