The National Testing Agency (NTA) has successfully conducted Day 5 of JEE Main 2026 session 1 exam on January 28, 2026. The exam was conducted in two shifts: Morning (9 AM to 12 PM) and Evening (3 to 6 PM) across various cities of India and 15 cities outside the country. Students who will be appearing for the last day of JEE Main, which is scheduled tomorrow, on January 29, 2026, can check the shift-wise difficulty level and JEE Mains 2026 toughest shift analysis to get an idea of the exam pattern followed in this session. Hardest shift of JEE Main 2026 January session is January 23 Shift 2. The overall exam was lengthy with a moderate to tough difficulty level.
While the exam on Jan 28 was Moderate to Tough, the JEE Mains Toughest Shift 2026 remains the 2nd shift of January 23, 2026, according to students. The exam not only targeted conceptual clarity but also tested students with its length. Students who appeared in the shift found the questions extremely lengthy and time-consuming, especially for subjects like Mathematics and Physics. As per students, the easiest shift for JEE Mains 2026 Session 1 can be Jan 28 Shift 2.
JEE Main Toughest Shift 2026: Day-wise & shift-wise analysis
While preparing for an exam like JEE Main 2026, students should definitely refer to the subject and shift-wise difficulty level of previous exam days. Students can also read the detailed JEE Mains 2026 paper analysis to get an estimation of JEE Mains normalization 2026 for session 1.
Go through the table given below to know the JEE Main 2026 shift-wise analysis. The table also contains information about the difficulty level of the three subjects, namely Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics.
| Exam Date & Shift | Maths | Chemistry | Physics |
| January 21 Shift 1 | Moderate | Tough | Moderate |
| January 21 Shift 2 | Moderate to Hard | Easy | Easy to Moderate |
| January 22 Shift 1 | Moderate | Easy to Moderate | Moderate to Hard |
| January 22 Shift 2 | Hard | Moderate | Easy to Moderate |
| January 23 Shift 1 | Moderate to Hard | Moderate | Easy |
| January 23 Shift 2 | Hard | Moderate | Moderate |
| January 24 Shift 1 | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| January 24 Shift 2 | Moderate to Hard | Moderate to Hard | Easy to Moderate |
| January 28 Shift 1 | Hard | Moderate | Moderate |
| January 28 Shift 2 | Moderate | Easy to Moderate | Moderate to Tough |
Some shifts were termed as more difficult and lengthy than other shifts by students. The final JEE Main percentile 2026 will be released after the normalization of scores. Students who are wondering about their marks vs percentile JEE Main 2026 can try the accurate JEE Main Rank Predictor 2026 to know their approximate All India Rank.
JEE Mains 2026 Toughest Shift: Read detailed analysis here
As discussed above, January 23 shift 2 is declared as the JEE Mains 2026 toughest shift of session 1 by many students and experts. The following points describe the JEE Main 2026 student reactions on the toughest shift of session 1.
- As per the reviews received from students, the most difficult section to attempt was Physics as it included many lengthy as well as JEE Advanced-level questions.
- The questions from the Mathematics section were timetaking but comparatively easier than Physics and Chemistry for students having conceptual clarity and speed.
- The Chemistry section was titled as moderate by many students. The questions were statement-based which required NCERT clarity.
- As the question paper is claimed as the JEE Mains 2026 toughest shift, the expected cutoff is expected to be lower.
Students can check the NTA JEE Main 2026 live updates here. For more official updates regarding the JEE Main 2026, visit the official website of NTA.
