JEE Main continues to be the most crucial engineering entrance examination in India through which a student can get admission to top technical institutions such as NITs and IIITs apart from serving as a qualifying exam for JEE Advanced. Each year, a huge number of students get ready to write this exam in order to score good ranks and get assured engineering seats. The outcomes, registration, and participation patterns provide a different perspective of India’s bigger STEM aspirations and competitive environment.
Overview of JEE Main 2026
Before diving into numbers, it’s important to understand how the JEE Main 2026 cycle works. Conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), the exam is held twice a year — in January and April — with combined results often considered for admissions and rankings.
The registration process involves aspirants across categories filling out online forms that capture personal, academic, and category details. The numbers are often a reflection not only of participation but also the competitiveness of engineering entrance culture in India.
Statistics: JEE Main 2026 Registrations and Attendance
How Many Students Appeared for JEE Main 2026 in India?
JEE Main 2026 registrations have hit new highs. Based on the recent trends and estimates, more than 14.5 lakh students are said to have registered for JEE Mains 2026 session 1, thereby making it one of the highest first-phase registration counts in recent years. A number of experts are of the opinion that the total unique registrations over both sessions could be in the range of 15–17 lakh by the end of the cycle.
Students Appeared for JEE Mains 2026 on January 21 to 24, 2026
| Aspects | All Shifts |
| Scheduled Candidates (those who must have appeared) | 10,76,486 |
| Candidates Appeared | 10,36,211 |
| Attendance (%) | 96.26 % |
| Aadhaar Verified Candidates | 9,96,774 |
| Aadhaar Verification (%) | 96.19% |
| PwD Candidates | 3,453 |
This growth reflects an increased interest in engineering careers across India, with students eyeing top institutions and career pathways in technology.
Total appeared in JEE Mains 2025
Just to give you a comparison, the number of students who took the JEE Mains exam in 2025 was pretty substantial as well. In 2025, the candidates who appeared in the January session were more than 12.58 lakh, with the overall attendance across sessions consistently trending above 90%.
This very high attendance rate is a clear indication that the vast majority of the students who registered for the exam actually come to take it — a pattern that is expected to be maintained in 2026 as well.
Note on Different Registration Years
When it comes to analysing trends, it is quite normal to look back at the figures from the past:
- How many students registered for JEE Mains 2025 Session 1? — approximately 13,11,544 students in January 2025.
- How many students registered for JEE Mains 2025 session 2? — the number was around 10,61,840 for the April attempt in 2025.
- Combined unique registered candidates in 2025 were roughly 15,39,848.
Such data points clarify the incremental growth on a yearly basis and also how the number of participants varies between sessions.
Insights: Trends and Category Registrations
How many students registered for JEE Mains 2026 for OBC?
At the national level, candidates register under different reservation categories. Although the exact final category-wise data for 2026 hasn’t been officially released yet, there are reports of strong participation by the OBC as well as the other groups. In previous years, the OBC-NCL students were the main contributors to the total registrations. For instance, the same category composition was noticed in the previous cycles where the bulk of the registrants were from the OBC category.
This is a clear sign that there continues to be a great deal of interest and participation from the different socio-economic segments.
Community Perspectives and Reddit Insights
Online platforms like Reddit provide a unique window into student discussions and expectations during the JEE season.
How many students registered for JEE Mains 2026 Reddit
On Reddit threads, aspirants shared excitement and stress around the registration milestone. Users noted the impressive figures — some commenting that the numbers may reach 16 lakh unique candidates by the end of the cycle. These discussions often mix humor, encouragement, and exam pressure anecdotes.
Another community post reflected on ongoing registration numbers and relieved students to see healthy growth in participation despite challenges like tight application deadlines or server loads during form submissions.
These community perspectives reveal how aspirants internally track trends and motivate each other during intense preparation periods.
Comparative Look: JEE Mains Registration Over the Years
JEE Main Comparative table (2025 to 2022)
Candidates can check the table below for the total registered candidates in Session 1 and Session 2 for JEE Main (2022–2025):
| Year | Session 1 – Registered Candidates | Session 2 – Registered Candidates | Total Unique Registered Candidates |
| 2025 | 13,11,544 | 10,61,840 | 15,39,848 |
| 2024 | 12,21,624 | 11,79,569 | 14,76,557 |
| 2023 | 8,60,064 | 9,31,334 | 11,62,398 |
| 2022 | 8,72,970 | 6,22,034 | 10,26,799 |
Number of candidates registered and appeared for JEE Main 2025 Paper 1
| Date of Exam | Paper | Registered Candidates | Appeared Candidates | %age |
| 22, 23, 24, 28, and 29 January 2025 | Paper 1 (B.E./B. Tech.) | 13,11,544 | 12,58,136 | 95.93% |
This consistent upward trend shows that engineering entrance exams are attracting ever-increasing numbers of aspirants every year.
JEE Advanced 2025: A Quick Reference
For students aiming to qualify further:
How many students registered for JEE Advanced 2025?
According to some accounts, about 1,87,223 students signed up for JEE Advanced 2025, but only 180,422 candidates appeared in papers 1 and 2. These figures signify that not only did the candidates qualify JEE Main, but they were also determined enough to compete at the highest level.
The numbers help gauge the level of overall competition and also how many of the JEE Main aspirants take a step forward into the Advanced stage.
Conclusion: What These Numbers Mean
Numbers indicating the student registrations for JEE Mains 2026 in India are not mere statistics- they are the manifestations of ambition escalation, increasing enrollments in STEM education, and intensifying competition annually. The JEE ecosystem remains fiercely competitive with registration surges and a robust attendance trend.
Examining registration data of JEE Mains 2025 and 2026 early trends unveils more students’ interest, wider category representation, as well as more intensive participation in online platforms such as Reddit where registration issues and exam preparations are discussed.
One can interpret these trends as future implications for examiners, policymakers, coaching strategies, and students — all of which entail a continually more ambitious and well-prepared pool of aspirants.
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