NIFT vs NID Cutoff 2026: Which is hard to Crack?

The NID DAT Studio Test and Interview for the M.Des program will be conducted from in the first week of March 2027. Candidates will be shortlisted for DAT Mains on the basis of their performance in DAT Prelims.

 

NID DAT, along with NIFT and UCEED are among the most competitive national-level entrance exams in the country. The fact that there are only 425 seats for the B. Des and 347 seats for the M.Des programme makes it very competitive. But that being said, if the candidate prepares well and with the correct strategy, then the NID DAT exam can be cracked. Among the first things the candidate needs to do is prepare a efficient study timetable get familiar with the syllabus and pattern, and use good books as reference material. 

No, there is no negative marking in the NID Studio Test. Candidates will be evaluated based on their thinking and creative skills. Studio Test will carry 40% of the total Marks for the NID Mains Exam.

NID DAT Mains exam for the B. Des and M.Des programme will be conducted in 17 cities. 

Details of NID DAT 2027 Exam centre, name, address, and reporting time are given in the NID DAT 2027 Admit card. DAT Prelims admit card will be available for download from December.

The expected cutoff for NIFT 2027 for B.Des is:

Category	Expected Cutoff for B.Des
Open	30-80
EWS	26-29
OBC	26-29
SC	22
ST	19

The NIFT Daman Cutoff 2026 for the fourth round for students falling under the General AI category were from 764 to 3489.

For other categories, please see the table given below:

Category	2026 Cutoff range
OBC	831-6176
SC	8307-10045
EWS	7757-9670

 

The cut-off for NIFT Panchkula is released category and programme-wise. So, candidates seeking admission to a particular programme need to consult the cut-off in their reserved or open category. For the year 2022, the opening CMR of Dom. OBC category for the Fashion communication was 6023; the closing CMR was 6414. The opening CMR for admission to the Fashion Design course was 5182, while the closing CMR was 5298. Meanwhile, for the M.Des programme, both the opening and closing CMR for the Dom. OBC category was 528. Note that CMR stands for common merit rank.

NIFT master's programme is offered in Master of Design (M. Des. ), Master of Fashion Management (M. F. M) and Master of Fashion Technology (M. F. Tech. ). 

The cut-off would be released separately for all these courses. This means, if the candidate meets the cut-off criteria for M. Des but fails to meet the cut-off for M. F. Tech, in that case the candidate will only be eligible for admission to the M. Des programme. So, the candidate needs to check out the cut-off or closing ranks for the programme they are seeking admission to. The cut-off would be determined by considering factors like total applicants, seat intake, merit ranks of the applicants, and also admission category.

The Masters programs at NIFT (M. Des, M. F. Tech, and MFM) has a combined intake capacity of 1034 seats. The General Ability Test (GAT) is common for all courses, while candidates seeking admission to the M. Des programme also need to appear in the Creative Ability Test (CAT). The final merit list for admission to the M. Des programme will be prepared by giving weightage to the CAT, GAT and Interview. Meanwhile, the merit list for the M. F. Tech and M. F. M programs will be prepared by considering the performance of the candidate in the GAT and Interview. The candidate can select their programme of study at the time of filling out the NIFT application form. Note that the allotment of seats will be as per the merit rank of the candidate.

NIFT Bengaluru has 190 BDes and 38 BFTech seats. NIFT Bengaluru is one of the leading fashion design colleges in India. The admission cut-off for the institute tends to be higher, so the candidate must have a high merit rank to have a good chance of admission. Admission to both the BDes and BFTech courses at the institute will be conducted on the basis of the merit rank of the candidate in the NIFT 2023 exam. Candidates seeking admission to the BDes programme need to appear in the CAT GAT and Situation Test. However, BFTech applicants only need to take the GAT exam.

The candidate will be able to select their choice of NIFT participating institutes (in the order of priority) at the time of filling out the NIFT counseling registration form.

• Online registration for NIFT counseling will start soon after the final results are declared.
• The counseling registrations for NIFT will be open to candidates who have qualified in the NIFT entrance exam.

 

We at Shiksha.com will bring you student reactions for the NIFT exam. Our representatives will be present at the NIFT exam centre to do live coverage and provide insights into various aspects of the exam. We will get in touch with students appearing in the NIFT exam after they have appeared in the entrance exam. 

Candidates will be able to check the cutoff for NIFT Delhi on the website of NIFT: nift.admissions.nic.in. The opening and closing rank of all the programmes is given on this page. 

The Cut off for NIFT Mumbai 2025 for B.Des in Textile Design will be out soon. In the meanwhile, we can have a look at the Cutoff 2024 to get a rough idea.

The following table presents the Cutoff for Round 1 under All India Quota for NIFT Mumbai 2024:

Category	Opening Rank	Closing Rank
OBC	722	2044
Gen-EWS	581	2653
Open	301	570
Open (PwD)	5654	5654
SC	3522	4385
ST	5076	5499

A. The M.Des specialisations in which candidates can secure admission basis their performance in NID that are listed below: Animation Film Design Ceramic and Glass Design Furniture & Interior Design Film & Video Communication Graphic Design Product Design Textile Design Apparel Design Lifestyle Accessory Design Strategic Design Management New Media Design Photography Design Toy & Game Design Transportation & Automobile Design for Retail Experience Digital Game Design Information Design Interaction Design Universal Design There are a total of 347 seats available for the M.Des programme. The programme is offered at NID Ahmedabad, NID Bengaluru, and NID Gandhinagar campuses. Admission to the programme will be based on NID that 2023 merit rank.