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Top Ranked NLUs Colleges in India 2026: Ranking, Admissions, Fees, Courses, Placements
There are 13 top NLUs in India in the NIRF Law ranking category. NLISU Bangalore is the No. 1 NLU in India with the best faculty and research in NIRF's ranking parameters. After this law school, NLU Delhi, NALSAR University of Law, and NLU Kolkata (NUJS) remain in the top ranks of the 40 top law colleges in India.
This guide will show you the NLU ranking of 2025 (until NIRF publishes in 2026), the courses they offer, fee ranges, cutoffs, and ROI.
- Top NLU Colleges in India: Highlights 2026
- Top 10 NLU Colleges in India NIRF Ranking 2025
- Eligibility for Top NLUs in India 2026
- Top NLUs in India: Exam Schedule 2026
- Top 5 NLUs in India with Fees
- List of NLUs in India - UG and PG seats
- Top NLUs in India by ROI
- Top NLUs in India: Cut Offs
- Compare the Top NLUs in India in 2026
Top NLU Colleges in India: Highlights 2026
Five of India's top 10 national law universities in NIRF rankings are located in Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Gandhinagar. These have the toughest competition for seats through CLAT. For example, the expected CLAT cutoffs for 2027 for their five-year integrated courses are between 90 and 107 marks. If you are looking for NLUs without CLAT, you can check three-year LLB courses. Only three of the top-ranked NLUs in India offer LLBs with separate entrance exams, namely, NLSAT, NAIET, and CNLU-ET. One-year LLMs are also available in most. In the table, you can get an overview of the important details.
| Parameters |
Details |
|---|---|
| Number of Top NLUs (ranked by NIRF 2025) |
13 |
| Fee Ranges in Top NLUs in India |
~ INR 34,000 to ~ INR 10 Lakh |
| Top NLUs for 3-year LLBs |
NLSIU Bangalore NLU Odisha CNLU |
| Top LLM Specialisations in NLUs |
Cyber Law, Healthcare Law |
| Accepted Entrance Exams for BA LLB and LLM Courses from Top NLUs |
CLAT UG, CLAT PG, AILET, NLSAT, NAIET |
Note: This info. is from official sites and can change.
Read More: List of 25 NLUs in India
Top 10 NLU Colleges in India NIRF Ranking 2025
The table below shows the top 10 NLUs in India. NLSIU Bangalore and NLUD have consistently ranked in the NIRF Law category.
| Top NLUs in India |
NIRF 2025 |
|---|---|
| 1 | |
| 2 | |
| 3 | |
| 4 | |
| 5 | |
| 15 | |
| 17 | |
| 21 | |
| 27 | |
| 28 |
Note: NIRF is yet to publish rankings for NLUs in 2026.
Eligibility for Top NLUs in India 2026
The eligibility criteria for undergraduate and postgraduate law courses offered by the NLUs in India:
UG: Passing Class 12 with 45% marks(40% for reserved categories).
PG: LLM courses in NLUs require candidates with an LLB degree. Minimum 55% total. 5% waiver is for the reserved categories.
Top NLUs in India: Exam Schedule 2026
CLAT is the only entrance exam for all the NLUs, but at the institute level, there is AILET. for NLU Delhi. This applies both for UG (BA LLB, BCom LLB, and other five-year law courses) and PG (LLM) courses.
| Exam Name | Exam Schedule |
|---|---|
| CLAT UG | CLAT UG Schedule |
| CLAT PG | CLAT PG Schedule |
| AILET BA LLB | AILET BA LLB Schedule |
| AILET LLM | AILET LLM Schedule |
Top 5 NLUs in India with Fees
The top five NLUs here offer a range of law courses at UG and PG levels. NUJS Kolkata and GNLU Gandhinagar offer more diversity in the five-year integrated courses, by offering BSc LLB, BCom LLB, and BBA LLB programmes at different tuition fee ranges. All these top NLUs in India also have one-year LLM course, and the one in Kolkata is the most affordable. Have a look at the table below.
| Government Colleges |
Total Tuition Fee |
|---|---|
| INR 3.2 Lakh to INR 15.9 Lakh |
|
| INR 1.5 Lakh to INR 6.75 Lakh |
|
| INR 65,000 to INR 7.8 Lakh |
|
| INR 34,000 to INR 10 Lakh |
|
| INR 1.2 Lakh to INR 6 Lakh |
Note: All info. is from official sites and can change.
List of NLUs in India - UG and PG seats
The top NLUs in India have these seat intakes for their different courses.
| NLUs in India |
Estimated UG and PG Seats |
|---|---|
| NLSIU Bangalore |
UG: 310 PG: 100 |
| NLU Delhi |
UG (including Supernumerary seats): 123 PG course (including Supernumerary seats): 83 |
| NLU Kolkata |
UG: 132 PG: 70 |
| NLU Bhopal |
UG: 102 PG: 60 |
| NLU Jodhpur |
UG: 120 PG: 50 |
| GNLU Gandhinagar |
UG: 172 PG: 57 |
Note: This info. is from official sites and can change.
Top NLUs in India by ROI
The top NLUs with the best ROI are listed in the table. Compare the fee-to-salary ratio for the best ones.
| College Name |
Total Tuition Fee |
Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| INR 34,000 to INR 10 Lakh |
INR 20 LPA |
|
| INR 1.2 Lakh to INR 6 Lakh |
INR 16 LPA |
|
| INR 8.28 Lakh |
INR 15 LPA |
|
| INR 6.75 Lakh |
INR 14 LPA |
|
| INR 3.28 Lakh |
INR 14 LPA |
|
| INR 6 Lakh |
INR 13 LPA |
Note: This info. is from official sites and can change.
Top NLUs in India: Cut Offs
Here is a table highlighting the latest information on the CLAT cutoffs for the five-year integrated law courses at the top NLUs in India. These are indicative figures that can help you know why they are so competitive.
| Expected CLAT Cutoffs in 2027 |
General |
|---|---|
| 100+ |
|
| 100+ |
|
| 97+ |
|
| 95+ |
|
| 93+ |
Note: All info. is from official sites and can change.
Compare the Top NLUs in India in 2026
Use the comparison links below to learn which is the best fit among the top NLUs in India.
NLU Delhi (NLUD) - National Law University
Nalsar University of Law
NLU Kolkata (NUJS) - The West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences
GNLU Gandhinagar (NLU) - Gujarat National Law University
Commonly asked questions On Top Ranked NLUs Colleges in India 2026: Ranking, Admissions, Fees, Courses, Placements
Hi, there are about 20+ top NLUs in India and all of them are government-owned. The best NLUs in India are NLSUI Bangalore, NLU Kolkata, NLU Delhi, GNLU Gandhinagar, NLU Jodhpur, NLIU Bhopal, NLU Patiala, etc. CLAT is the top entrance test for admission to the top 10 NLUs in India. Cyber Law and Healthcare Law are the top 2 specialisations offered by these and other top Law colleges in India.
As per NIRF ranking 2025, NLSIU Bangalore is the No. 1 ranked NLU colleges in India. The table below has other NLUs in India rankwise.
Top NLUs in India | NIRF 2023 | NIRF 2024 | NIRF 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | 1 | |
2 | 2 | 2 | |
4 | 4 | 4 | |
7 | 8 | 5 | |
18 | 21 | 27 | |
24 | 22 | 30 | |
30 | 26 | 15 | |
28 | 27 | 35 |
Disclaimer: This information is sourced from official website of the ranking body listed and may vary.
Hi, you can click on the admission links below to learn about the top NLU in India's fee structures with their latest NIRF rankings.
Government Colleges | Total Tuition Fee | NIRF 2025 |
|---|---|---|
INR 48,800 | 1 | |
INR 6.75 lakh | 2 | |
INR 3.66 lakh | 4 | |
INR 6 lakh | 5 | |
INR 97,000 | 27 | |
INR 5.50 lakh | 30 |
Disclaimer: This information is sourced from official website and may vary.
NLU Odisha (NLUO) - National Law University
CNLU Patna- Chanakya National Law University
NLIU Bhopal - The National Law Institute University
Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur
NLU Ranchi (NUSRL) - National University of Study and Research In Law
NLU Assam (NLUJAA) - National Law University And Judicial Academy
Commonly asked questions On Top Ranked NLUs Colleges in India 2026: Ranking, Admissions, Fees, Courses, Placements
Hi, It is estimated that NLU Kolkata offered the highest placement package to students in India, i.e. INR 20 LPA. Listed below are the top NLU colleges in India along with their tuition fees and top NLUs in India placement package:
College Name | Total Tuition Fee | Average Placement Package |
|---|---|---|
NLU Kolkata Courses | INR 3.66 lakh | INR 20 LPA |
GNLU Gandhinagar Courses | INR 6 lakh | INR 16 LPA |
NLU Kochi Courses | INR 8.28 lakh | INR 15 LPA |
NLU Delhi Courses | INR 6.75 lakh | INR 14 LPA |
MNLU Mumbai Courses | INR 3.28 lakh | INR 14 LPA |
NLU Odisha Courses | INR 6 lakh | INR 13 LPA |
Disclaimer: This info. is taken from the official website/ media reports/ NIRF website and may vary.
CLAT is the entrance examination conducted by consortium of NLUs for UG and PG courses. All 21 NLU except NLU Delhi take admission by way of CLAT scores in both PG and UG courses. NLU Delhi conducts it's separate examination called All India Law Entrance Test or AILET for UG, PG and Ph.D. programs. Further many other private university consider CLAT score for admission in Law courses.
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