NEET UG · Exam pattern

NEET Exam Pattern 2027: Questions, Marks, Duration and Marking Scheme

NEET UG is one paper of 180 compulsory multiple-choice questions in 3 hours, marked out of 720. Each right answer gets +4, each wrong answer −1. This is the pattern NTA used for NEET 2025 and NEET 2026.

For 2027 the Education Ministry has announced a move to a computer-based test. NTA has not published the NEET 2027 information bulletin yet, so below we keep what is confirmed apart from what is still open.

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Facts last checked: 1 October 2026.

Questions: 180
Duration: 3 hours
Total marks: 720
Marking: +4 / −1 / 0

Subject-wise questions and marks

The NEET 2025 and NEET 2026 paper. Biology is half the paper, split equally between Botany and Zoology.

NEET questions and marks by subject
Subject	Questions	Marks	Share of paper
Physics	45	180	25%
Chemistry	45	180	25%
Biology: Botany	45	180	25%
Biology: Zoology	45	180	25%
Total	180	720	100%

Marking scheme

+4Correct answerEach question has four options and one correct answer.
−1Wrong answerOne mark is taken off for every wrong answer.
0Not answeredLeaving a question blank costs nothing.

Paper format

Mode: Pen and paper on an OMR sheet in 2025 and 2026. Announced to become a computer-based test from 2027.
Question type: Multiple choice, four options, one correct answer. All 180 questions are compulsory.
Languages: 13 languages: English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu.

How NEET marks are calculated

Multiply the right answers by 4, then subtract one mark for each wrong answer. Blanks add nothing.

Worked example

150 right, 20 wrong, 10 left blank (150 + 20 + 10 = 180).

Right: 150 × 4+600
Wrong: 20 × 1−20
Blank: 10 × 00
Score580 / 720

A wrong answer is 5 marks worse than a right one and 1 mark worse than a blank. The arithmetic of a pure guess between four options works out to +0.25 marks on average, but each wrong guess still costs a mark; ruling out options before you answer is what makes guessing worthwhile.

NEET score calculator

Enter how many you got right and wrong out of 180. The rest count as unattempted.

150 × 4 = 600, minus 20 for wrong answers, 10 unattempted (0)

Score: 580 / 720

How the NEET pattern has changed

Section B with optional questions was added in 2021 and dropped from 2025, when NTA went back to 180 compulsory questions in 3 hours.

NEET exam pattern by year
Year	Questions	Time	Mode
2019 and 2020	180, all compulsory	3 hours (180 min)	Pen and paper (OMR)
2021	200 (Section A 35 + Section B 15 per subject); answer 180	3 hours (180 min)	Pen and paper (OMR)
2022 to 2024	200 (Section A 35 + Section B 15 per subject); answer 180	3 h 20 min (200 min)	Pen and paper (OMR)
2025 and 2026	180, all compulsory	3 hours (180 min)	Pen and paper (OMR)
2027	Not announced yet	Not announced yet	Computer-based test (announced May 2026)

Marking (+4 / −1 / 0) and the 720-mark total were the same in every year shown.

Practise in the real pattern

Full-length mocks with +4 / −1 marking, and a free All-India Mock every Sunday where everyone sits the same paper.

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NEET exam pattern: common questions

How many questions are there in NEET?

In NEET 2025 and NEET 2026 there were 180 questions, all compulsory: 45 Physics, 45 Chemistry and 90 Biology (45 Botany and 45 Zoology). NTA will confirm the NEET 2027 pattern in its information bulletin.

What is the total mark and duration of NEET?

720 marks (180 questions × 4) in 3 hours, that is 180 minutes. From 2022 to 2024 the paper had 200 questions with 180 to answer, in 3 hours 20 minutes; NTA went back to 180 questions in 3 hours from 2025.

Is there negative marking in NEET?

Yes. A correct answer gets +4, a wrong answer −1, and a question left unanswered gets 0. So 150 right and 20 wrong scores 600 − 20 = 580.

Is there still a Section B or optional questions?

No. Section B with optional questions was used from 2021 to 2024. From NEET 2025 every question is compulsory.

Will NEET 2027 be online?

In May 2026 the Union Education Minister said NEET-UG will be a computer-based test from 2027, and NTA has since started looking for test centres. NTA has not yet published the NEET 2027 bulletin, so the number of shifts, any score normalisation and the exact pattern are not confirmed yet.

How are ties broken when two students have the same score?

NTA lists its tie-breaking rules in each year's information bulletin, and they have changed in recent years. We have not copied them here; check the NEET 2027 bulletin on neet.nta.nic.in when it is released.

Sources

NEET is conducted by the National Testing Agency. The official information bulletin on neet.nta.nic.in is the final word on the pattern; we update this page when it changes.