Understanding the difference between your JEE Main 2025 Percentile Score and your JEE Main 2025 Rank is fundamental to interpreting your results accurately and gauging your admission prospects. Both are provided by the National Testing Agency (NTA) but serve different, albeit related, purposes.

JEE Main Percentile Score:

• Definition: Your percentile score indicates the percentage of candidates who scored equal to or less than you in a particular session of the JEE Main exam. For example, if your percentile score is 95, it means you performed better than 95% of the candidates who appeared in that specific session.
• Calculation: It's calculated using the formula:

  $$((text{Number of candidates in the session with raw score EQUAL TO OR LESS than the candidate}) / (text{Total number of candidates appeared in that session})) times 100$$

• Purpose - Normalization: JEE Main is conducted in multiple shifts and on different days. The difficulty level of the question papers can vary from one shift to another. The percentile score is part of a normalization process designed to ensure that candidates are neither advantaged nor disadvantaged due to variations in difficulty levels. It provides a fair comparison of performance across different sessions.
• Range: Percentile scores range from 0 to 100 and are usually calculated up to seven decimal places to minimize ties.
• Best of Two: If you appear for both sessions of JEE Main, the NTA considers the best of your two percentile scores for preparing the merit list and ranks.

JEE Main Rank (All India Rank - AIR):

• Definition: Your JEE Main Rank is your absolute position among all the unique candidates who appeared in all sessions of the JEE Main exam for that academic year. For instance, a rank of 5000 means you are the 5000th candidate in the merit list.
• Calculation: The All India Rank (AIR) is determined based on the final NTA percentile scores after the normalization process. The formula generally used to estimate rank from percentile is:

  $$text{Probable Rank} = ((100 - text{NTA Percentile Score}) / 100) times text{N} + 1$$

  Where 'N' is the total number of unique candidates who appeared in all sessions. NTA uses its precise methodology for final rank calculation.

• Purpose - Admission: The JEE Main Rank (AIR) is the primary criterion used for seat allocation in NITs, IIITs, and GFTIs during the JoSAA (Joint Seat Allocation Authority) counselling and other state-level counsellings that use JEE Main scores. Colleges release their opening and closing ranks for different courses and categories, and admissions are based on these ranks.
• Tie-Breaking: In case of a tie in NTA scores between candidates, a specific tie-breaking policy is applied by NTA (e.g., higher marks/percentile in Mathematics, then Physics, then Chemistry, then by age, and finally by application number in ascending order).

Key Differences Summarized:

After your JEE Main 2025 results are declared, your scorecard will display your NTA percentile scores. The All India Rank is typically announced after considering the best scores from all attempts (if applicable) and compiling a common merit list. Understanding both these aspects of your result is crucial. For further clarity and to understand how your specific rank can influence your college choices, seeking guidance from educational platforms like Infinity Learn can be beneficial. They can help you analyze your results and navigate the counselling process.