CLAT Application Date:01 Aug' 25 - 31 Oct' 25
The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) are two of the most popular entrance exams in India serving different domains. While CLAT is the premier law entrance exam, JEE is the premier entrance exam for engineering courses. Read on to find out if CLAT is tougher than JEE. Also, get to know the differences between CLAT and JEE through the CLAT vs JEE comparison.
CLAT 2025 was conducted on December 1, 2024. JEE Mains is scheduled to be held on January 22 to 31, 2025 for session 1, and on April 1-8 for session 2. JEE Advanced is scheduled to be held on May 18, 2025.
Particulars | CLAT | JEE |
Conducting body | Consortium of National Law Universities | National Testing Agency |
Frequency | Once a year | Twice a year (JEE Mains) Once a year (JEE Advanced) |
Number of attempts | No limit | 6 times over three consecutive years. (JEE Mains) 2 times in two consecutive years (JEE Advanced) |
Mode | Offline | Online |
Domain | Law | Engineering, Architecture, Planning |
Courses Offered | BA LLB, BBA LLB, BCom LLB, BSc LLB, BSW LLB | B.E., B.Tech, B.Arch, B. Plan |
CLAT and JEE relate to different domains. While CLAT is open to candidates from all streams, JEE is open to candidates from the Science stream. In the past, It has been observed through interviews with CLAT toppers that candidates who are preparing for JEE, sometimes, shift to the law domain and start preparing for CLAT and get good results as well. The paragraphs below explain the differences between CLAT and JEE on various parameters that will help understand whether CLAT is tougher than JEE.
CLAT is conducted as a single exam. However, in the case of JEE, there are two exams - JEE Mains and JEE Advanced. The JEE exams consist of Paper 1 and Paper 2. While Paper 1 is for admissions into engineering programs, Paper 2 is for admission into architecture and planning. In this section, we will compare CLAT eligibility criteria, JEE mains eligibility criteria, and JEE Advanced eligibility criteria through the tables below.
Particulars | Details |
Educational qualification | 10+2 or equivalent |
Minimum passing marks | 45% for General/OBC/PWD/NRI/PIO/OCI 40% for SC/ST |
Age limit | No age limit |
Particulars | Admission into Engineering Programmes (Paper 1) |
Educational qualification | 10+2 |
Subject combinations | Physics and Maths as mandatory subjects along with one among Chemistry/Biology/Biotechnology/Technical Vocational subjects |
Minimum passing marks | 75% (General, OBC) 65% ( SC/ST) |
Age limit | No age limit (Should have passed 10+2 in 2023, 2024, 2025) |
Particulars | Admission into Engineering at IITS/NIT/GFTI (Paper 1) |
Educational qualification | 10+2 |
Minimum qualification required in JEE Mains | Among the top 250000 rank |
Subject combinations | Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry as compulsory subjects |
Minimum passing marks | 75% (General/OBC) 65% (SC/ST) |
Age limit | Must have been born after October 1, 2000 Relaxation of 5 years for SC/ST candidates. |
In this section, let’s look at the syllabus of CLAT and JEE to understand if CLAT is tougher than JEE. The CLAT syllabus tests the candidates on different sections that test the critical and logical reasoning skills of the candidates. The JEE syllabus, on the other hand, tests the candidates on their proficiency in subjects such as Maths, Physics, and Chemistry.
Sections | No. of questions | Marks |
22-26 | 22-26 | |
28-32 | 28-32 | |
28-32 | 28-32 | |
22-26 | 22-26 | |
10-14 | 22-26 | |
Total | 120 | 120 |
Subjects | Section A (No. of questions) | Section B (No. of questions) | Marks |
Maths | 20 | 5 | 100 |
Physics | 20 | 5 | 100 |
Chemistry | 20 | 5 | 100 |
Total | 75 | 300 |
Subjects | Paper 1 | Paper 2 |
Maths | 18 | 18 |
Physics | 18 | 18 |
Chemistry | 18 | 18 |
Total marks | 60 | 60 |
Sections | Type of questions | Marking scheme of JEE Advanced | Maximum marks |
1 | 08 questions of Numerical Based Decimal Type with answers correct to 2 decimal digits. | 3 marks for the correct answer 0 in all other cases | 24 |
2 | 6 questions with four options in which one or more than one option(s) were correct. | Full marks: +4 If only (all) the correct options are chosen Partial Marks: +3 If all four options are correct but ONLY three correct options are chosen Partial Marks: +2 If three or more options are correct but only two correct options are chosen Partial Marks: +1 If two or more options are correct but only one correct option is chosen Zero Marks: 0 If none of the options are chosen Negative Marks: -2 In all other cases | 24 |
3 | 04 questions of Match List type i.e. Match List-I to List-II. List-I had 4 questions to be matched to List-II which had 5 options. One or more than one options were correct. | Full marks: +3 in case all options are correct, Zero Marks: 0 if none of the options are chosen Negative Marks: -1 In all other cases | 12 |
The tables given below provide the exam statistics for CLAT and jEE.The exam statistics provide data about the number of candidates registered and appearing for the exam. This data reveals the level of competition in the exam and determines whether CLAT is tougher than JEE or not.
Particulars | Details (UG) |
No of the candidates registered | 60925 |
No. of candidates appeared | 58,504 |
Attendance% | 97.03% |
Number of common candidates Registered in both sessions (January/April) of the JEE Main 2024 | 9,24,636 |
Number of common candidates Appeared in both sessions (January/April) of the JEE Main 2024 exam | 8,22,899 |
Number of candidates registered in January 2024 Session 1 exam | 12,21,624 |
Number of candidates who appeared in the January 2024 Session 1 exam | 11,70,048 |
Number of candidates registered in April 2024 exam | 11,79,569 |
Number of candidates who appeared in the April Session exam | 10,67,959 |
Total number of Unique Candidates Registered in both Sessions (January/April) of the JEE (Main) - 2024 Examination | 14,76,557 |
Total Number of Unique Candidates Appeared in both Sessions (January/April) of the JEE (Main) - 2024 Examination | 14,15,110 |
Category | Total number of students |
Total number of students that applied | 186584 |
Total number of students that appeared | 180200 |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Candidates can gain admission to B.Tech, B.E, B.Arch, and B.Planning programmes through JEE.
Candidates can gain admission into 5-year LLB and LLM programmes through CLAT
JEE is conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA)/
CLAT is conducted by the Consortium of National Law Universities.
The full form of JEE is Joint Entrance Exam.
The full form of CLAT is Common Law Admission Test.
On Question asked by student community
Hello,
While NLUs are costly, you can still pursue government-funded law education through state-funded universities and their affiliated colleges that accept CLAT scores, such as institutes like Banaras Hindu University and Aligarh Muslim University.
I hope it will clear your query!!
It is always better to take the CLAT exam right after Class 12 if your goal is to build a career in law, because CLAT UG is specifically designed for admission into integrated five-year law programs like BA LLB, BCom LLB, or BBA LLB. Appearing after Class 12 saves you time, as you complete both graduation and law together in a single course. On the other hand, if you first complete graduation and then plan for law, you will not be eligible for CLAT UG but instead for CLAT PG, which is meant for admission into LLM programs. This path takes longer, because you first spend three or four years on graduation and then add another three years in an LLB program if you choose not to go for an integrated course. So, if you are already sure about pursuing law as your career, writing CLAT right after Class 12 is the smarter and time-saving option, while writing it after graduation makes sense only if you are considering higher studies in law or a shift in career later.
For CLAT, the most important topics are from Legal Reasoning, Current Affairs & GK, the Indian Constitution, English Language, Quantitative Techniques and Logical Reasoning. For a brief detail you can go through the following link: https://law.careers360.com/articles/clat-important-topics
Thank You.
Hi dear candidate,
Both the colleges Maharaja Agrasen (MAIMS) or Gitarattan (GIBS) are affiliated to IP University and allows admission either by CLAT or IPU CET Law. Without either of these exams, your admission is NOT accepted there. You can try looking for management quota seats in these colleges if you have got good marks in 12th class.
BEST REGARDS
Hi dear candidate,
You can easily register yourself for CLAT exam by visiting the Consortium of NLUs official website and follow these steps:
Know the complete process at:
CLAT Registration 2026 (Started): Documents Required, Application Fee, Link, Steps to Apply
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