National Institute of Design, Bengaluru

What are the cutoffs for National Institute of Design, Bengaluru in 2026?

Admission to National Institute of Design, Bengaluru for 2026 is decided entirely by the NID Design Aptitude Test (NID DAT), with M.Des selection combining the DAT Prelims and the DAT Mains (Studio Test plus interview). For the most recent verified cycle, NID DAT M.Des 2025, the General-category closing ranks at National Institute of Design, Bengaluru were extremely tight, ranging from a closing rank of 7 to 16 across its five specialisations. The lowest General closing rank recorded was 7 (in two programmes) and the highest was 16, which tells aspirants that only single-digit-to-mid-teens national ranks convert into a seat here. Reserved-category closing ranks were even lower, with OBC closing ranks between 1 and 8, SC between 3 and 5, ST at 1, and EWS between 2 and 3 in the 2025 cycle. There is no separate institute-level exam; National Institute of Design, Bengaluru admits its roughly 95 M.Des seats across five disciplines purely on NID DAT performance.

Because the campus is the NID system's R&D hub (established in 2006 in Yelahanka) and intake per specialisation is small, the closing ranks above are far more competitive than the raw numbers suggest. For 2026, expect a similar single-digit-to-low-double-digit band; aspirants should treat a General DAT rank inside the top 10-15 nationally as the realistic threshold for the more sought-after programmes.

Year-Wise Cutoff Trends (2024-2026)

The table below tracks the verified NID DAT M.Des 2025 closing ranks at National Institute of Design, Bengaluru by category, which form the factual spine of any 2026 prediction. It answers the core aspirant question: "what closing rank did each category actually need last cycle?" Read each row as the last rank that secured a seat in that category for that programme; lower numbers mean tougher competition. Figures for 2024 and the upcoming 2026 cycle are not yet officially confirmed at category level, so they are described qualitatively beneath the table and should be cross-checked on the official source.

The clear takeaway for National Institute of Design, Bengaluru is that General closing ranks in 2025 clustered between 7 and 16, with Information Design being the most lenient (16) and Digital Game Design and Universal Design the tightest (7 each). Reserved categories closed at remarkably low ranks (OBC 1-8, SC 3-5, ST 1, EWS 2-3) because the per-category seat pool in each specialisation is tiny. For 2024 and 2026, NID has not published comparable category-level closing ranks for this campus, so aspirants should expect 2026 to stay within roughly the same band and verify the exact numbers on admissions.nid.edu once released.

Course-Wise Cutoff at National Institute of Design, Bengaluru

National Institute of Design, Bengaluru runs five M.Des specialisations - Interaction Design, Information Design, Digital Game Design, Design for Retail Experience and Universal Design - and each closes at a different rank, so picking the right programme materially changes your odds. The table below isolates the verified NID DAT M.Des 2025 General and best reserved closing ranks per programme so you can see which discipline is easiest and which is hardest to enter. Read the "General Closing Rank" column as the headline difficulty indicator for that course. This directly answers "which M.Des course at NID Bengaluru has the lowest cutoff?"

For an aspirant targeting National Institute of Design, Bengaluru in 2026, Information Design was the most accessible in 2025 (General closing rank 16), making it the practical choice for candidates ranked in the low-to-mid teens, while Digital Game Design and Universal Design demanded a top-7 General rank. OBC applicants had the widest swing, from a brutal rank-1 close in Interaction Design to a more workable rank 8 in Information Design and Universal Design. The tuition for any of these M.Des programmes is approximately INR 11.43 lakh for the full course (as commonly reported), payable across semestral instalments, so course choice should weigh both cutoff feasibility and career fit.

Cutoff Trend Analysis

The cutoff at National Institute of Design, Bengaluru is effectively flat-to-tightening, holding in a narrow single-digit-to-mid-teens General band in 2025 (closing ranks 7 to 16). Two structural forces keep it this sharp: the campus admits only about 95 M.Des seats spread thinly across five specialisations, and its standing as NID's design R&D hub plus strong 2025 placement outcomes (a reported highest package of around 36.00 LPA and averages between roughly 12.00 LPA and 18.00 LPA) keeps applicant demand high relative to seats. When a programme has only a handful of category seats, even a small rise in applications pushes the closing rank down by a few positions, which is why OBC, SC, ST and EWS closes sit between 1 and 8.

Realistically, a General candidate should aim for a NID DAT national rank inside the top 10 to be safe across most National Institute of Design, Bengaluru programmes, and inside the top 16 to remain in contention for Information Design specifically. OBC aspirants should target the top 8, SC aspirants the top 5, and ST/EWS aspirants the top 3 to match 2025 closes. Since the institute has not released confirmed 2024 or 2026 category-level closing ranks, treat the 2025 figures as the benchmark and confirm the live 2026 cutoff on the official source before finalising preferences.