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    GATE XL Cutoff 2026: Category-wise Qualifying Marks & Previous Year Trends

    GATE XL Cutoff 2026: Category-wise Qualifying Marks & Previous Year Trends

    RanjeetaUpdated on 19 Mar 2026, 05:28 PM IST

    GATE XL Cut Off 2026: IIT Guwahati will release the GATE 2026 cutoff for XL on the official website, gate2026.iitg.ac.in . Meanwhile, aspirants can check this page for the expected GATE Life Sciences cutoff. Based on the previous year’s GATE cutoff data, the XL branch is expected to have a cutoff percentile of 30 to 33, for general category. Last year, the GATE qualifying marks for Life Sciences was 31.3 for the general, 20.1 for the SC/ST branch and 28.1 for the OBC. The GATE cutoff percentile for XL might be different this year, since it is entirely based on the difficulty level of the exam and the number of participants. It is the minimum score that candidates need to get to clear the exam. The GATE exam 2026 for XL was held on February 7.

    LiveGATE 2026 Result LIVE (OUT): IIT Guwahati MTech entrance exam result at gate2026.iitg.ac.in; toppers, branchesMar 20, 2026 | 1:15 PM IST

    After checking their results, candidates should analyse their ranks, explore college options, and prepare for counselling. Using tools like college predictors and cut-off analysis can help in making informed decisions about future academic pathways.

    Read More

    This Story also Contains

    1. GATE XL Cutoff 2026
    2. GATE XL Cutoff - Marks VS Ranks Expected
    3. Previous Year’s GATE XL Cutoff Percentile
    4. GATE XL Cutoff - Marks VS Rank, Previous Year
    5. How to Calculate GATE 2026 Score?
    6. GATE 2026 Marking Scheme
    7. Factors Affecting the GATE XL Cutoff
    GATE XL Cutoff 2026: Category-wise Qualifying Marks & Previous Year Trends
    GATE XL Cutoff 2026: Category-wise Marks, Previous Trends

    Also, check the GATE score predictor to find out the best GATE colleges based on the exam scores. Read the article below to find the completed details on the GATE XL cutoff 2026.

    GATE XL Cutoff 2026

    Candidates can speculate on the expected cutoff for the GATE 2026 exam based on the latest trends. Knowing the expected cutoff trends will help candidates plan exam preparation and set a realistic exam score. It will help students to estimate their admission chances in top GATE accepting institute or recruitment in Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). Check below the expected GATE Cutoff 2026 for the Life Sciences paper in different categories as provided the GATE result:

    Category

    Expected GATE Cutoff

    GEN

    36.3

    OBC-NCL/EWS

    32.6

    SC/ST

    24.1

    GATE XL Cutoff - Marks VS Ranks Expected

    Students must be aware that raw marks don’t reflect the relative performance due to the normalisation process in every exam session. Therefore, candidates must check the GATE marks vs ranks to finalise their GATE performance. Here, the expected GATE marks vs raks has been calculated based on the latest trends.

    Expected GATE Marks vs Rank 2026

    Rank

    GATE Score (Out Of 100)

    1-10

    85-90

    10-50

    82-87

    50-100

    80-85

    100-200

    78-83

    200-500

    76-81

    500-1000

    74-79

    1000-2000

    72-77

    2000-5000

    70-75

    5000-10000

    60-65

    Previous Year’s GATE XL Cutoff Percentile

    To have a better understanding of the upcoming GATE XL cutoff, candidates can check out the previous year’s cutoff trends. The cutoff trends vary across the different categories. Tabulated below are the GATE cutoff percentiles for the life sciences paper from 2022 to 2025.

    GATE Exam Year

    Qualifying Marks for GATE Life Sciences (XL paper)

    Cut-off

    (GEN)

    Cut-off

    (OBC-NCL/EWS)

    Cut-off

    (SC/ST/PwD)

    2025

    31.3

    28.1

    20.8

    2024

    29.3

    26.3

    19.5

    2023

    32.9

    29.6

    21.9 3

    2022

    33.9

    30.5

    22.5

    GATE XL Cutoff - Marks VS Rank, Previous Year

    Candidates can check the toppers' raw marks out of 100 vs their scores out of 1000 in the GATE Life Sciences paper.

    Test Paper Year

    Name of the Candidate

    Raw Marks

    (out of 100)

    GATE Score

    (out of 1000)

    2025

    YUGANSH BHATIA

    78.67

    1000

    2024

    SIDDHANT BHARDWAJ

    77.33

    1000

    2023

    ADVITA SHARMA

    73.33

    1000

    2021

    SOURANKUR CHAKRABARTI

    74.33

    983

    How to Calculate GATE 2026 Score?

    The exam authority calculates the candidate's GATE raw score by using the normalisation formula. The normalisations of marks are done across all the exam sessions with the idea in mind that candidates' abilities are distributed equally in all exam sessions. This allows exam authorities to maintain fairness while calculating scores of each session. Check below the formulas for calculating the actual GATE scores and the normalised GATE score.

    GATE Normalisation Formula

    GATE_2026_Normalisation_Formula

    GATE Score Calculation Formula

    GATE_Score_Calucation_Formula

    GATE 2026 Marking Scheme

    To calculate their GATE cutoff, candidates must have an overall idea of the GATE marking scheme. Check the table for the marking scheme process.

    Question Type

    Marks

    Negative Marking

    Multiple Choice Question (MCQ)

    1 marks

    For a 1-mark MCQ, 1/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer.

    Multiple Choice Question (MCQ)

    2 marks

    For a 2-mark MCQ, 2/3 marks will be deducted for a wrong answer.

    Multiple Select Question (MSQ)

    1 or 2 marks

    There is no negative marking for wrong answer(s) to MSQ or NAT questions.

    Number Answer Type (NAT)

    Factors Affecting the GATE XL Cutoff

    Candidates must note that the GATE cutoff trends is not consistent every year. There are many factors in play the affects the GATE cutoff. Find below the pointer affecting the GATE XL cutoff.

    Exam Difficulty Level

    Candidates can expect the GATE cutoff to be low if the paper is difficult and the GATE cutoff to be higher if the exam paper is easy.

    Number of GATE participants

    The total number of students participating in the GATE exam also affects the GATE cutoff trends. If there is higher registration for the GATE exam, the cutoff rises, and competition also increases.

    Candidate Performance

    The GATE cutoff trends will shift dynamically based on candidates' performance in the GATE exam. Note that if the overall performance of the candidates is higher thet GATE cutoff will rise, and if the performance drops, the cutoff trend also falls.


    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    Q: What is the GATE XL cutoff 2026?
    A:

    The expected GATE XL cutof 2026 is 30 to 33 for the general category.

    Q: When will the final GAET XL cutoff be released?
    A:

    The final GATE XL cutoff will be released after the exam.

    Q: What is the date for the GATE XL 2026 exam?
    A:

    The GATE Life Sciences paper was held on February 7, 2026.

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    Questions related to GATE

    On Question asked by student community

    Have a question related to GATE ?

    Every PSU has different cut-off marks and eligibility. Hence, it is suggested to apply for PSU after checking the eligibility. Also, they do not reveal the marks of the finally selected candidates. So, wait for the final merit list.

    Yes. You can. GATE eligibility specifies that students in their 3rd year and above can appear for the exam. Since the results are valid for 3 years, you can use the same for your admissions.

    If you score 500 marks in GATE2026, your chances of getting into good engineering colleges (especially NITs, IIITs and some older IITs) are strong for most disciplines, while top branches like CSE/EEE/ECE at older IITs may still require higher ranks. Your GATE AllIndia Rank (AIR) with 500 marks usually falls