Careers360 Logo
ask-icon
share
    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Explained - Negative Marking & Total Marks

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Explained - Negative Marking & Total Marks

    Chintakuntla Sai GnanUpdated on 11 Dec 2025, 02:46 PM IST

    GATE Marking Scheme 2026 - IIT Guwahati has published the GATE 2026 marking scheme on the official website, gate2026.iitg.ac.in. Candidates can check the GATE marking scheme 2026 on this page. The marking scheme includes details such as the total number of questions, section-wise questions, and mark distribution. In MCQs, incorrect answers will incur a penalty: 1/3 mark for 1-mark questions and 2/3 mark for 2-mark questions, with no negative marking for MSQs or NATs. The GATE exam will consist of a total of 65 questions: 10 questions from General Aptitude (GA) and 55 subject-specific questions. Each question will carry either 1 or 2 marks. The GATE 2026 exam will be held on February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026.

    This Story also Contains

    1. GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Highlights
    2. GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Question Distribution
    3. GATE 2026 Exam Pattern
    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Explained - Negative Marking & Total Marks
    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Explained - Negative Marking & Total Marks

    Students can also attempt the GATE 2026 mock test to understand the marking scheme. The exam will be conducted for 30 test papers. Read this article carefully to understand the GATE 2026 better marking scheme.

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Highlights

    Below is the marking scheme for GATE 2026. Check the number of questions and their mark distribution:

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme

    ParticularsDetails

    Total Number of Questions

    65

    Exam Sections

    General Aptitude: 10 Questions

    Subject Component: 55 Questions

    Marks Carry

    1 or 2

    Type of Questions

    MCQ: Multiple Select Questions

    MSQ: Multiple Choice Questions

    NAT: Numerical Answer Type

    Negative Marking

    1 Mark MCQ: 1 for correct attempt and -⅓ for wrong attempt.

    2 Mark MCQ : 2 for correct attempt and -⅔ for wrong attempt.

    In test papers AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, and TF

    • 15 marks for GA

    • 85 marks for Subject Questions.

    • Including 13 marks for Engineering Mathematics.

    In test papers AR, CY, DA, EY, GE, GG, MA, PH, ST, XH, and XL

    • 15 marks for GA

    • 85 marks for Subject Questions.

    • No mathematics questions.

    XE has a common compulsory section

    XE-A(Engineering mathematics) carry 15 marks

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme Question Distribution

    Below is the section-wise question distribution for all GATE 2026 papers. There will be a total of 30 papers.

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme

    GATE Paper CodeGeneral Aptitude (GA)Subject QuestionsTotal Marks

    AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, and TF


    15

    85

    100

    AR [Part A + Part B (B1: Architecture or B2: Planning)]

    15

    60 + 25

    100

    GE [Part A + Part B (Section I or Section II)

    15

    55 + 30

    100

    GG [Part A + Part B (Section 1: Geology or Section 2: Geophysics)]

    15

    25 + 60

    100

    XE (Section A + Any TWO Sections)

    15

    15 + (2 x 35)

    100

    XH (Section B1 + Any ONE Section)

    15

    25 + 60

    100

    XL (Section P + Any TWO Sections)

    15

    25 + (2 x 30)

    100

    CY, DA, EY, MA, PH

    15

    85

    100

    GATE 2026 Exam Pattern

    Candidates must understand the GATE exam pattern and the GATE 2026 syllabus before starting the GATE exam preparation. Check the latest exam pattern as well.

    GATE Exam Pattern

    ParticularsDetails

    Examination Mode

    Computer based Exam(CBT)

    Language

    English

    Exam Duration

    3 Hours (180 minutes)

    Numbers of Questions

    65

    Marks Carry

    1 or 2

    Type of Questions

    MCQ : Multiple Select Questions

    MSQ : Multiple Choice Questions

    NAT : Numerical Answer Type

    Negative Marking

    1 Mark MCQ : 1 for correct attempt and -⅓ for wrong attempt.

    2 Mark MCQ : 2 for correct attempt and -⅔ for wrong attempt.

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    Q: What is the total marks and duration of GATE 2026?
    A:

    GATE 2026 will be for 100 marks with a duration of 3 hours.

    Q: How much is the negative marking in GATE 2026?
    A:

    For 1-mark MCQs, ⅓ mark is deducted; for 2-mark MCQs, ⅔ mark is deducted. No negative marking for MSQ and NAT questions.

    Q: What is the marking scheme in GATE 2026?
    A:

    Most 1-mark questions carry 1 mark each, and 2-mark questions carry 2 marks each. Wrong attempts will  have negative marking.

    Articles
    |
    Certifications By Top Providers
    Online Certificate Course on Cyber Laws
    Via Indian Law Institute, New Delhi
    Basic Programming using Python
    Via Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
    Software Engineering Essentials
    Via Technical University of Munich, Munich
    Material Science
    Via Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi
    B.Tech Engineering Technology
    Via Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani
    Principles of Digital Communications
    Via Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
    Udemy
     1525 courses
    Swayam
     817 courses
    NPTEL
     773 courses
    Coursera
     697 courses
    Edx
     608 courses
    Explore Top Universities Across Globe

    Questions related to GATE

    On Question asked by student community

    Have a question related to GATE ?

    Hello Dear Student,

    With a GATE CSE score of 503 (OBC-NCL) , admission to M.Tech Computer Science & Engineering (CSE) at Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur is likely to be difficult, as recent OBC cutoff trends for CSE have generally been higher than 500. Careers360's expected 2026 cutoff places

    Hello Dear Student,

    With a GATE score of 381, OBC-NCL rank of 776, and GATE marks of 42.67, admission to IIT Kharagpur for M.Tech is likely to be difficult for highly competitive branches. Recent IIT Kharagpur cutoffs for OBC candidates in popular programmes have generally been much higher than a

    Hello Dear Student,

    Getting M.Tech admission at National Institute of Technology Sikkim with a GATE score of 240 and 5.5 CGPA is very difficult because:

    • CCMT/NIT eligibility for SC/ST candidates usually requires at least around 55% or 6.0 CGPA , and
    • recent SC category GATE cutoffs for many branches are