Checked 26 September 2026. From the official CAP Round I cut-off lists 2025 and 2026 (Maharashtra State seats print the closing State General Merit No. with its percentile) and the 2026 final merit list of Maharashtra State PCM candidates (counted only; no names). Pairs are our extraction.
If you compare a 2026 MHT CET cut-off percentile with a 2025 one, you are comparing two different scales. In 2026 every candidate who sat both attempts kept the better of two total percentiles, so the whole distribution of reported percentiles moved up. The number that did not move is the one CAP actually ranks on: the Maharashtra State General Merit Number, which the CET Cell prints beside every percentile in its cut-off lists. This guide shows the shift from those lists, with a converter.
CAP Round I cut-off lists 2025–2026; 2026 final merit list (our counts).
Where other pages get this wrong
MHT CET has no All India Rank; CAP ranks Maharashtra State candidates by a State General Merit Number, and All-India seats are filled on JEE (Main) in preference to MHT CET.
Commonly published instead: Percentile-to-“All India Rank” predictors for MHT CET, and 2025 percentile cut-offs quoted as targets for 2026.
CAP cut-off lists: “Cut Off Indicates Maharashtra State General Merit No.; Figures in bracket Indicates Merit Percentile”; MHT-CET 2026 brochure p. 7 (JEE Main preferred for All-India candidates).
The same merit position, two different percentiles
| Target merit no. | 2025: nearest merit no. (percentile) | 2026: nearest merit no. (percentile) | Gap (2026 − 2025) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 102 (99.9544) | 100 (99.9877) | 0.03 |
| 250 | 243 (99.8985) | 243 (99.9572) | 0.06 |
| 500 | 504 (99.8015) | 510 (99.8884) | 0.09 |
| 1,000 | 982 (99.6533) | 1,010 (99.7669) | 0.11 |
| 2,000 | 2,004 (99.3620) | 2,007 (99.5343) | 0.17 |
| 3,000 | 3,005 (99.0908) | 3,007 (99.3045) | 0.21 |
| 5,000 | 4,997 (98.5461) | 5,007 (98.9463) | 0.40 |
| 7,500 | 7,541 (97.8455) | 7,499 (98.2626) | 0.42 |
| 10,000 | 10,008 (97.1270) | 9,999 (97.6812) | 0.55 |
| 15,000 | 14,999 (95.6725) | 14,985 (96.8052) | 1.13 |
| 20,000 | 20,004 (94.2051) | 19,994 (95.3082) | 1.10 |
| 30,000 | 29,983 (91.2776) | 29,987 (92.9026) | 1.63 |
| 40,000 | 40,005 (88.1720) | 39,999 (90.5194) | 2.35 |
| 50,000 | 50,000 (85.0572) | 50,005 (88.1121) | 3.05 |
| 75,000 | 74,979 (76.8973) | 75,001 (81.9315) | 5.03 |
| 1,00,000 | 99,996 (67.8210) | 1,00,016 (75.2423) | 7.42 |
| 1,25,000 | 1,25,001 (56.5040) | 1,25,008 (68.1448) | 11.64 |
| 1,50,000 | 1,49,964 (43.4652) | 1,50,009 (59.5500) | 16.08 |
| 1,75,000 | 1,75,000 (26.6274) | 1,75,003 (49.1668) | 22.54 |
| 2,00,000 | 2,00,003 (4.7274) | 2,00,008 (35.5083) | 30.78 |
Our extraction from every Round I Maharashtra-State cut-off row (all institutes, courses and seat types) in the official 2025 and 2026 lists, taking the row nearest each target merit number. Merit order also applies tie-breakers, so a few hundred nearby pairs are not perfectly in order — read these as approximate.
Values from the table above, rounded to two decimals (1L = 1,00,000).
The gap is small at the very top — a tenth of a percentile around merit number 1,000 — and grows fast down the list: 3 points at 50,000, 7.4 at 1,00,000, 30.8 at 2,00,000. That is exactly what best-of-two should do: a candidate near the top scores near the top in both attempts, while a candidate in the middle can gain a lot by keeping the better sitting. Anyone reading a 2025 cut-off of, say, 85 percentile (about merit number 50,000) and aiming for 85 in 2026 would have aimed at roughly merit number 62,500 — about 12,500 places lower than they meant to (straight-line interpolation between the 50,000 and 75,000 rows; our arithmetic).
Merit number ↔ percentile, 2025 vs 2026
Built from the official CAP Round I cut-off lists (Maharashtra State seats), which print each closing Maharashtra State General Merit Number with its percentile. Interpolation runs between the actual anchor merit numbers in the table below (each year’s own); values are straight-line interpolation — our arithmetic, and approximate. Merit order also applies tie-breakers, so nearby pairs are not perfectly smooth.
How many candidates sit above each percentile (2026)
| Percentile at or above | MS PCM candidates in the 2026 CAP merit list |
|---|---|
| 100 | 35 |
| 99.99 | 79 |
| 99.9 | 465 |
| 99.5 | 2,138 |
| 99 | 4,344 |
| 98 | 8,604 |
| 95 | 21,211 |
| 90 | 42,300 |
| 80 | 82,863 |
| 70 | 1,18,555 |
| 50 | 1,72,663 |
Our count from the CET Cell’s final merit list of Maharashtra State (PCM) candidates for CAP 2026-27 (2,31,914 rows; 2,29,460 ranked on MHT-CET PCM, 2,347 on Diploma, 4 on D.Voc, and 103 rows our parser could not read). It counts only Maharashtra-State candidates who applied for CAP, not everyone who sat the exam. No names or numbers were recorded.
Our count from the 2026 final merit list (MS, PCM).
A worked example
Say a senior closed 2025 at 85.06 percentile and a college course of interest closed near there. Step one: the 2025 table puts 85.06 at about merit number 50,000. Step two: in 2026 the same merit position was worth about 88.11 percentile. So to hold the same place in the queue in 2026, a candidate needed roughly three percentile points more than the 2025 figure suggested. Lower down the gap is larger: a 2025 percentile of 67.82 (about merit number 1,00,000) corresponded to about 75.24 in 2026. Near the top it almost vanishes: merit number 1,000 was about 99.65 in 2025 and 99.77 in 2026 in our nearest pairs.
The same logic runs the other way for anyone reading their own 2026 result. A 2026 percentile of 88 is not the same achievement as a 2025 percentile of 88: in the table, 88.11 in 2026 sat at about merit number 50,000, while 88.17 in 2025 sat at about 40,000 — roughly 10,000 places apart. That does not make it worse for admission, because everyone in 2026 was measured on the same inflated scale; it only matters when you compare across years.
The limits of this comparison
| Limit | What it means |
|---|---|
| Different candidate pools | PCM first-attempt candidates who appeared rose from 4,22,663 (2025) to 4,54,069 (2026); a merit number sits in a bigger crowd |
| Merit list covers CAP applicants only | Maharashtra-State candidates who did not apply for CAP are not in it, so it is not a count of everyone who sat |
| Tie-breakers | A few hundred pairs are out of order (248 of ~34–36k in 2025, 311 in 2026 in our extraction) — use ranges |
| 2027 is unknown | No 2027 notice had been published on 26 September 2026; if 2027 again has two attempts, the 2026 scale is the better guide |
PCM appeared counts from the CET Cell’s 2025 result notification and 2026 first-attempt press note; the rest is our reading of the cut-off lists and the CET Cell site.
Where the merit number comes from
The Maharashtra State General Merit Number is your position in the CAP merit list of Maharashtra-State candidates, ordered by MHT CET total percentile, with ties broken by higher marks or score in MHT CET Mathematics, then Physics, then Chemistry, then HSC marks (CAP Information Brochure 2026-27, printed pp. 60–61). It appears on the final merit list the CET Cell publishes before Round I (27 July in 2026, per Admission Notice No. 5). Every cut-off list quotes the closing merit number first and the percentile in brackets — which is a hint about which of the two the CET Cell treats as the real measure.
| Number | Scale | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Total percentile | Per session, per attempt; best of two in 2026 | Your standing in your session |
| State General Merit Number | One list of all MS candidates who applied for CAP | Comparing with cut-offs across years |
| JEE (Main) percentile | National | All-India seats in Maharashtra colleges |
CAP Information Brochure 2026-27; CAP cut-off list legends; final merit list 2026 (column headings). Reserved-category cut-offs are also quoted as State General Merit Numbers.
How to use this when you plan
| Around merit no. | Add to a 2025 percentile to read it on the 2026 scale (our arithmetic) | Example: 2025 → 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | +0.11 | 99.65 → 99.77 |
| 10,000 | +0.55 | 97.13 → 97.68 |
| 50,000 | +3.05 | 85.06 → 88.11 |
| 1,00,000 | +7.42 | 67.82 → 75.24 |
| 1,50,000 | +16.08 | 43.47 → 59.55 |
Rule of thumb from the Round I pairs above — the adjustment grows from a tenth of a point near the top to sixteen points around merit number 1,50,000. Our arithmetic; approximate.
Work in merit numbers. Take the college and branch you want, read its closing merit number in the latest cut-off list (the cut-off guide in this series has the top 120 courses), and compare that with where your mock scores place you. If you only have a percentile — from a mock test or from 2025 — convert it with the tool above to a merit number first, and then to 2026’s percentile scale. And treat any single number as a range: closing merit numbers moved by hundreds between rounds and between years for the same course.
Practise it, don't just read it
A merit number moves only when your raw score moves relative to your session. The MHT CET quizzes target the Class 12 chapters that carry 80% of the questions.
The ProSyllabus MHT CET library has topic quizzes on laws of motion, rotational dynamics, current electricity, electrochemistry, chemical kinetics, equilibrium, organic basics, quadratic equations and complex numbers, and calculus — the first quiz is free.
Why is the MHT CET 2026 cut-off percentile higher than 2025?
Because 2026 kept each candidate’s better total percentile from two attempts, lifting the reported percentiles; merit numbers moved much less.
What percentile was merit number 10,000 in MHT CET 2026?
About 97.68, against about 97.13 in 2025 (Round I cut-off lists, nearest pairs).
What is the Maharashtra State General Merit Number?
Your position in the CAP merit list of Maharashtra State candidates; cut-off lists quote it first.
Does MHT CET have an All India Rank?
No.
How many students scored above 99 percentile in MHT CET 2026?
4,344 Maharashtra State PCM candidates in the CAP merit list (our count).
How many scored 100 percentile in MHT CET 2026 PCM?
26 in the first attempt and 12 in the second (press notes). Counting the Maharashtra-State PCM CAP merit list, which keeps each candidate’s better attempt, we found 35 rows at 100 — fewer than 38 because some candidates may have hit 100 in both attempts and Other-than-Maharashtra candidates are not on that list.
Can I compare my percentile with last year’s cut-off?
Only after converting both to merit numbers — the scales differ between 2025 and 2026.
Where do I find my state merit number?
In the final merit list the CET Cell publishes before CAP Round I.
Are MHT CET percentile-to-rank tables official?
No — the CET Cell publishes none.
More in this series
- MHT CET two attempts: 2026 explained, 2027 outlook
- How MHT CET percentile is calculated
- MHT CET cut-off: COEP, VJTI, SPIT, PICT, WCE and 120 courses
- MHT CET CAP rounds: freeze, betterment, seat codes and fee
- MHT CET eligibility: Types A–E, the 45% rule, PCB branches
- MHT CET pattern and syllabus: 90 + 90 minutes, Class 11 chapters
- MHT CET notice board — official updates
Sources
- official — CET Cell — 2026 CAP Round I cut-off list, Maharashtra seats
- official — CET Cell — 2025 CAP Round I cut-off list
- official — CET Cell — Information Brochure for UG & PG Technical Courses 2026-27 (02.07.2026)
- official — CET Cell — B.E./B.Tech CAP 2026-27 Admission Notice No. 5 (10.09.2026)
- official — State CET Cell — MHT-CET 2026 Information Brochure (updated 11.04.2026)
- official — State CET Cell — Press note, PCM 1st attempt result 2026 (16.06.2026)
- official — State CET Cell — Press note, PCM 2nd attempt result 2026 (19.06.2026)
- official — State CET Cell — “Document on Normalization”: MHT-CET 2026 Result Processing Methodology
- official — State CET Cell — homepage and notices (checked 26.09.2026: no 2027 notice)
- reported — Collegedunia — MHT CET marks vs rank (reported; see corrections)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
