GATE 2026 Exam Pattern, Subject-wise Question Paper Pattern, Marking Scheme, Total Marks

The GATE 2026 Exam Pattern has been released by IIT Guwahati on the official GATE 2026 website (https://gate2026.iitg.ac.in). A total of 30 test papers including a new sectional test paper on Energy Science (XE-I) in Engineering Sciences (XE) paper] in Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode for 100 marks (65 questions) each will be conducted, and the duration will be 3 hours (180 minutes).

• GATE 2026 will have a new sectional test paper on Energy Science (XE-I) in Engineering Sciences (XE) paper.
• The test paper will be divided into two main sections- General Aptitude (GA) and Candidate’s Selected Subject(s).
• There will be three types of questions- MCQs, MSQs and NATs.
• There will be 1/3rd negative marking for MCQs of 1 mark and 2/3rd negative marking for MCQs of 2 marks. No negative marking for MSQs and NATs.

The Test Papers including Engineering Mathematics (AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, and TF) will have General Aptitude (GA) section of 15 marks, Engineering Mathematics section of 13 marks and the Subject Component of 72 marks.

XE has a common and compulsory section, namely, XE-A (Engineering Mathematics), which carries 15 marks, GA of 15 marks and remaining 70 marks from the Subject Component.

The Test Papers without Engineering Mathematics (AR, CY, DA, EY, GE, GG, MA, PH, ST, XH, and XL) will have a GA section of 15 marks and the remaining 85 marks are devoted to the Subject Component.

To watch the complete GATE 2026 Exam Pattern, click

Key Summary

In this Article, we have discussed about GATE 2026 Exam Pattern, Subject-wise Question Paper Pattern, Marking Scheme, Total Marks

• The GATE Exam 2026 will contain 65 questions, 10 from General Aptitude (GA) section and remaining 55 from the Subject Component.
• The Language of Examination will be English only.
• The duration of the GATE 2026 exam is 3 hours (180 minutes).
• The questions will carry either 1 mark or 2 marks, with a total of 100 marks for 65 questions.
• There will be Negative Marking only for the MCQs, with a negative of 1/3rd for 1 mark questions and 2/3rd for 2 marks questions.

GATE 2026 Distribution of Marks and Questions

The question and marks distribution for different Test papers are different, but all carry 65 questions with a total of 100 marks. Refer table below for GATE 2026 question distribution.

GATE 2026 Paper wise Question Distribution

Detailed GATE exam pattern 2026 and distribution of questions is discussed in the table below.

Source: https://gate2026.iitg.ac.in

Que. What is the total number of questions and marks in GATE 2026?

GATE Exam Pattern 2026

Ques. How will the exam be conducted?

Also Read:

• GATE Syllabus
• GATE Preparation

GATE 2026 Marking Scheme

The IIT Guwahati has also released the GATE 2026 Marking scheme along with the GATE Exam Pattern and other important information. The GATE Marking Scheme includes Paper Codes and Section-wise marks division as well.

GATE Subject-Wise Marking Scheme

Ques. What is the maximum mark for the GATE exam?

Ques. What is the passing mark for GATE exam?

Ques. Does GATE have 5-mark questions?

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GATE Score Calculation

GATE Exam Pattern 2026: Paper-wise detailed Paper Pattern

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 varies for each paper depending on the sections and the marks distribution.

• General Aptitude is a common section in all GATE papers. The section comprises 15% of the weightage of the total marks.
• The questions in GA are based on verbal, numerical and quantitative ability. There are a total of 10 questions with 5 questions carrying 1 mark each and 5 questions carrying 2 marks each.

• As for the papers with codes AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, PE, PI, TF and XE, 15% marks weightage will be given to General Aptitude, 13% to Engineering Mathematics and remaining 72% to subject paper.
• Papers with codes AR, CY, EY, GG, MA, PH, ST, XH and XL, the General Aptitude section will carry 15% of the total marks and the remaining 85% of the total marks are for the subject paper

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, TF, and ST

For paper codes AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MN, MT, NM, PE, PI, TF, and ST there are three sections in the question paper. These are:

Apart from 10 questions in the General Aptitude section, there will be 55 questions from core discipline and engineering mathematics. 25 questions will carry 1 mark each while 30 questions will carry 2 marks each.

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for CY, DA, EY, MA, PH and ST

Each of GATE papers with code CY, DA, EY, MA PH and ST have two sections- General Aptitude and Core Discipline.

Detailed marking scheme for GATE AR, CY, EY, MA and PH papers has been tabulated below:

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Architecture and Planning (AR)

The GATE Exam Pattern for Architecture and Planning paper has been revised this year. According to the revised exam pattern, there will be three sections of the paper- GA (General Aptitude), Part A and Part B. Part A of the paper is a mandatory section for all candidates while Part B is further divided into Section B1 (Architecture) and B2 (Planning). Students need to choose one of the sections during the exam.

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Geomatics Engineering (GE)

Geomatics Engineering is a new paper introduced in GATE 2022. According to the exam pattern for Geomatics Engineering, the question paper consists of three sections- GA, Part A and Part B.

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Geology and Geophysics (GG)

GATE GG paper consists of three sections namely General Aptitude, Part A and Part B. Part B is further divided into Section 1 (Geology) and Section 2 (Geophysics). General Aptitude section and Part A are compulsory to attempt while candidates are required to choose either Section1 or Section 2 from Part B.

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (NM)

Naval Architecture and Maine Engineering is another paper that was added to GATE exam last year. The paper will consist of two sections- GA and Main Subject.

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Engineering Sciences (XE)

GATE XE paper is divided into three sections. General Aptitude and Section A (Engineering Mathematics) are compulsory sections while candidates must choose any TWO from Section B-I of GATE XE paper.

• General Aptitude- 10 questions carrying 15 marks in total
• Section A for Engineering Mathematics- 11 questions carrying 15 marks in total
• Section B-I- 22 questions carrying 35 marks each in total. The various subjects under these sections include:
• XE-B – Fluid mechanics
• XE-C – Material Science
• XE-D – Solid mechanics
• XE-E – Thermodynamics
• XE-F – Polymer Science and Engineering
• XE-G – Food technology
• XE-H – Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
• XE-I – Energy Science (New Section)

The detailed marking scheme for XE paper is tabulated below:

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Humanities and Social Sciences (XH)

GATE XH paper was introduced in 2021 allowing students with a humanities background to apply for GATE. The paper consists of three sections. General Aptitude and B1 (Reasoning and Comprehension) are compulsory sections to attend, while candidates need to choose any ONE from C1-C6. The subjects under C1-C6 include:

• XH–C1: Economics
• XH–C2: English
• XH–C3: Linguistics
• XH–C4: Philosophy
• XH–C5: Psychology
• XH–C6: Sociology

Detailed marks distribution for GATE XH has been tabulated below:

GATE Exam Pattern 2026 for Life Sciences (XL)

GATE XL paper consists of three sections. General Aptitude and Section P (Chemistry) are compulsory for a candidate to attempt while candidates must choose any TWO from Section Q- U.

• XL-Q – Biochemistry
• XL-R – Botany
• XL-S – Microbiology
• XL-T – Zoology
• XL-U – Food Technology

Detailed marking scheme for GATE XL paper has been tabulated below:

GATE Exam Pattern 2026: Types of Questions

Questions in GATE 2026 are broadly divided into three categories:

• Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
  • In MCQs, candidates are provided with 4 choices out of which one answer is correct.
  • A candidate has to mark the correct choice by clicking the button against the option.
  • 1/3rd negative marking for 1 mark question and 2/3rd for 2 marks question.
• Multiple Select Questions (MSQs)
  • These questions are objective in nature and each question has a choice of four answers, out of which, one or more than one choice(s) are correct.
  • There is no negative marking for a wrong answer in MSQs.
  • However, there is no partial credit for choosing partially correct combinations of choices or any single wrong choice.
• Numerical Answer Type (NAT)
  • NAT includes questions with a value of signed real number which needs to be entered by the candidate using the virtual numeric keypad on the monitor.
  • There won’t be any choices for these questions.
  • The answer can be an integer in decimals
  • The questions will be mentioned with up to which decimal places the candidates need to present the answer.
  • As correct answers for NATs, an appropriate range will be considered to avoid penalty due to round-offs.

Also Read:

GATE Book

Ques. Is GATE 2026 MCQ or written?

Ques. What is the syllabus of GATE 2026?

How to Attempt Online GATE Exam 2026?

Candidates about to appear for GATE 2026 can follow the steps below to know how to attempt the GATE exam 2026 online. Students are also advised to attempt the GATE mock tests to know how to attempt the GATE examination.

• Once the GATE exam starts, candidates can find the list of questions on their right side of the screen.
• Students can directly navigate to any question number by clicking on the serial number of that question.
• After clicking on any question number, the question will be displayed on the screen.
• To answer that question, students must select one option from 4 options in case of MCQs.
• In case of MSQs, students can select more than one option, and for NAT questions, students must type in the answer for the question using the virtual keyboard on the screen.
• To deselect options in GATE questions, students can click on the already selected options or tap on the “Clear Response” option to deselect the options.
• To save the question and move to the next GATE question, students can tap on the “Save and Next” option on the screen.
• Students can mark GATE questions for review if they feel unsure. This can be done by selecting the “Mark for Review and Next” option on the screen.
• Students must keep an eye on the timer on the screen. Once the time for the GATE exam is over, all the GATE answers will be auto-submitted.

GATE 2026 Paper Codes and Combinations

Source: https://gate2026.iitg.ac.in