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Every year some JEE Main candidates lose marks they actually earned, because an answer they selected was never saved. The screen is simple once you know its rules, and NTA writes those rules down. This post goes through them using the official bulletin, with a worked example of how much an unsaved answer can cost.
Where are the official rules?
Appendix VIII of the JEE (Main) 2026 Information Bulletin describes the computer-based test (CBT). It also says a sample or mock test is available on the NTA website for hands-on practice. Read the appendix in the current year's bulletin, since NTA can change the platform.
How do you save an answer?
This is the rule that matters most. The bulletin says:
Clicking a question number in the Question Palette takes you straight to that question, but "using this option does NOT save your answer to the current question".
Save & Next saves your answer and moves on.
Mark for Review & Next saves your answer, marks it for review, and moves on.
Clear Response removes a selected option. To change a saved answer, select the question, clear it, and answer again.
When you click Save & Next on the last question of a section, the screen moves to the first question of the next section. You can move between sections and questions at any time.
What do the review flags mean for marking?
The palette on the right shows the status of each question with symbols; the bulletin shows them as images, and the NTA mock test is the best place to learn them. The rule to remember is in the text:
Answered and Marked for Review answers "will be considered for evaluation".
A question you Marked for Review without answering "will not be considered for evaluation".
So marking a question is safe as long as an answer is saved with it.
How do numerical answers work?
Each subject has 20 multiple-choice questions in Section A and 5 numerical questions in Section B. For Section B you enter the answer with the mouse on an on-screen virtual numeric keypad; the computer keyboard is disabled. The bulletin says the answer "should be rounded off to the nearest integer". Both sections carry +4 for correct and −1 for incorrect, and 0 for a question left unanswered.
No calculator is allowed. An NTA public notice of 2 November 2025 corrected the bulletin's mention of an on-screen calculator, saying that feature belongs to the generic platform and "does NOT apply to JEE (Main)".
What else is on the screen?
From the bulletin:
A countdown timer at the top right; the exam ends by itself at zero.
A profile image at the top right to change the question language.
An arrow to collapse the palette and widen the question area.
A Question Paper icon to view the whole paper.
Accessibility options: dark or light mode, font size, cursor size and trail, and a screen magnifier.
Rough sheets are given at the centre, with your name and roll number on them, and must be handed back.
If your computer fails, you get another and the lost time is adjusted.
NTA's own 2026 question papers carry the settings "Question Shuffling Allowed: Yes" and "Option Shuffling: Yes" (see the 2 April 2026 Shift 1 paper), so the order you see may differ from the person next to you.
Worked example: the cost of unsaved answers
Suppose a student works through a hard stretch of 8 questions by selecting an option and then clicking the next number on the palette, instead of Save & Next. Say 5 of those 8 choices were correct and 3 wrong (sample numbers).
If saved: 5 × 4 − 3 × 1 = 20 − 3 = 17 marks.
Not saved: all 8 count as unanswered, so 0.
The habit cost 17 marks. For a Section B answer: if your working gives 47 ÷ 4 = 11.75, you enter 12, because 11.75 rounds to the nearest integer 12.
Which mistakes happen on the day?
Navigating with the palette and forgetting to save.
Marking a question for review with no option selected, then never returning.
Typing a decimal into Section B when the integer is asked for.
Hunting for a calculator that is not there.
Forgetting that rough sheets are collected.
A practice routine
Take one NTA mock early and click every button once on purpose.
In every timed paper at home, write a small tick in your rough work each time you save; review any question with no tick.
Practise Section B with a final rounding step written out.
For numerical practice, the Fermi Problem Library has worked problems with a step-by-step solver that explains the reasoning, so you can check each step before the final integer.
Our post on NTA's official mock tests explains where to find the practice screen, and numerical answer questions in JEE covers Section B in depth.
Before your next mock, read Appendix VIII of the current bulletin once, then use only Save & Next to move between questions.
