How to Beat CUET Negative Marking
The −1 penalty trips up thousands of students. Here is the exact decision rule for when to attempt and when to skip.
CUET Path Team · 12 May 2026 · 2 min read
Negative marking is the most misunderstood part of CUET. Get your attempt strategy right and you can gain 15–20 marks over an equally-prepared student who guesses badly.
The expected-value rule
On a four-option question, a pure random guess has a 25% chance of +5 and a 75% chance of −1. The expected value is negative, so blind guessing loses marks over a full paper. But the moment you can eliminate even one option, the maths shifts.
- Can eliminate 0 options → skip it
- Can eliminate 1 option → borderline, attempt if confident on topic
- Can eliminate 2 options → attempt, the odds favour you
- Know the answer → always attempt
Practise the instinct, do not just read about it
Knowing the rule and applying it under a ticking clock are different skills. Every mock test on CUET Path uses real +5/−1 marking, so you build the attempt-or-skip instinct where it counts — in exam conditions.
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