IIT Bhilai vs IIT Kanpur: Courses, Seats, Cutoffs, Fees, Placements and Research (2026)
IIT Kanpur attracts 8.7 times as much research funding (₹363.43 crore, FY 2024-25 vs ₹41.92 crore, FY 2023-24; different data years). IIT Kanpur does 17.1 times as much consultancy business (₹113.61 crore, FY 2024-25 vs ₹6.64 crore, FY 2023-24; different data years). IIT Kanpur employs 8.3 times as much faculty (636, NIRF 2026 vs 77, NIRF 2025; different data years).
Last updated: 14 Oct 2026.
Who should pick which (our analysis)
IIT Bhilai
Our analysis: IIT Bhilai suits you if you want a young IIT with focused branches. It offers seven B.Tech programmes, including Mechatronics Engineering and Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. CSE (61), Electrical (60) and Mechanical (60) are the largest.At a glance
Swipe sideways. The first column stays put.
| Point | IIT Bhilai | IIT Kanpur | Source (year) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Established (year) | 2016 | 1959 | JoSAA 2026 institute profile |
| Location (city, state) | Kutelabhata, Durg, Chhattisgarh | Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh | JoSAA 2026 institute profile josaa.admissions.nic.in |
| Campus area | Not published | 1,055 acres | JoSAA 2026 institute profile |
| Official website | iitbhilai.ac.in | iitk.ac.in | iitbhilai.ac.in |
| NIRF Overall rank | Not published | 5 | NIRF 2025 |
| NIRF Engineering rank | 72 | 4 | NIRF 2025 |
| B.Tech tuition per semester | Not published | ₹1,00,000 | 2026-27 |
| First-semester academic fees | Not published | ₹1,58,415 | 2026-27 |
| Fee waiver notes | Tuition fee waivers for students from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds; also institute scholarships and interest-free education loans. | SC, ST, PwD and family income below ₹1 lakh: no tuition. Family income ₹1–5 lakh: one-third tuition (₹33,333). | 2026-27 |
| Hostel / mess fee | Not published | Mess establishment charges ₹13,360 (first semester); seat rent and hall charges are inside the ₹13,855 semester fee | 2026-27 |
| Total JoSAA seats | 329 | 1,240 | JoSAA 2026 |
| UG 4-year median salary | ₹12 lakh | ₹21.7 lakh | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| UG 4-year placed / graduated | 116 placed of 162 graduates | 855 placed of 1,205 graduates | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| PG 2-year median salary | ₹10.2 lakh | ₹15.7 lakh | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| PG 2-year placed | 14 | 674 | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| UG 4-year went for higher studies | 14 | 257 | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| Total UG 4-year students | Not published | 4,932 | 2024-25 |
| Faculty count | 77 | 636 | NIRF 2025 NIRF 2026 |
| Full-time PhD students | 74 | 2,172 | 2023-24 2024-25 |
| Full-time PhDs graduated | Not published | 294 | 2024-25 |
| Sponsored research received | ₹41.92 crore | ₹363.43 crore | FY 2023-24 FY 2024-25 |
| Consultancy received | ₹6.64 crore | ₹113.61 crore | FY 2023-24 FY 2024-25 |
How IIT Bhilai and IIT Kanpur differ
- IIT Kanpur attracts 8.7 times as much research funding (₹363.43 crore, FY 2024-25 vs ₹41.92 crore, FY 2023-24; different data years).
- IIT Kanpur does 17.1 times as much consultancy business (₹113.61 crore, FY 2024-25 vs ₹6.64 crore, FY 2023-24; different data years).
- IIT Kanpur employs 8.3 times as much faculty (636, NIRF 2026 vs 77, NIRF 2025; different data years).
- IIT Kanpur has 29.4 times as much full-time PhD students (2,172, 2024-25 vs 74, 2023-24; different data years).
- IIT Kanpur has a 277% bigger JoSAA intake (1,240 vs 329, JoSAA 2026).
- The latest published 4-year UG median salary is ₹12 lakh at IIT Bhilai (2023-24) and ₹21.7 lakh at IIT Kanpur (2024-25). The years differ, so compare with care.
- IIT Kanpur ranks higher in NIRF 2025 Engineering (4 vs 72).
- IIT Kanpur has more 4-year B.Tech CSE seats (129 vs 61).
- Only IIT Bhilai offers Electronics and Communication Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, Data Science and Artificial Intelligence among these two.
- Only IIT Kanpur offers Aerospace Engineering, Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering among these two.
Worked out from the official numbers above.
Courses and seats
IIT Bhilai
- B.Tech (4 years)
IIT Kanpur
- B.Tech (4 years)
- B.S. (4 years)
- BT-MT and BS-MS dual degrees
- B.Cyber
Seats per branch
| Branch | IIT Bhilai | IIT Kanpur |
|---|---|---|
| Computer Science and Engineering | 61 | 129 |
| Electrical Engineering | 60 | 192 |
| Electronics and Communication Engineering | 44 | Not offered |
| Mechanical Engineering | 60 | 149 |
| Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering | 30 | 85 |
| Mechatronics Engineering | 30 | Not offered |
| Data Science and Artificial Intelligence | 44 | Not offered |
| Aerospace Engineering | Not offered | 69 |
| Biological Sciences and Bioengineering | Not offered | 53 |
| Chemical Engineering | Not offered | 104 |
| Civil Engineering | Not offered | 148 |
| Intelligent Systems | Not offered | 30 |
| B.S. Chemistry | Not offered | 49 |
| B.S. Economics | Not offered | 52 |
| B.S. Mathematics and Scientific Computing | Not offered | 64 |
| B.S. Physics | Not offered | 45 |
| B.S. Earth Sciences | Not offered | 43 |
| B.S. Statistics and Data Science | Not offered | 28 |
Source: JoSAA 2026 · JoSAA 2026
IIT Bhilai and IIT Kanpur share 4 branch names; the rest are offered by only one of them. Seat matrix, explained →
JoSAA cutoffs: opening and closing ranks
OPEN closing ranks, 2024–2026. Lower is harder.
| Branch | IIT Bhilai | IIT Kanpur | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | |
| Aerospace Engineering | – | – | – | 3638 | 3805 | 4015 |
| Biological Sciences and Bioengineering | – | – | – | 6952 | 7105 | 7837 |
| Chemical Engineering | – | – | – | 4015 | 4280 | 4436 |
| Chemistry | – | – | – | 10498 | 10482 | 11668 |
| Civil Engineering | – | – | – | 5948 | 6161 | 7177 |
| Computer Science and Engineering | 6516 | 7382 | 8886 | 252 | 271 | 283 |
| Data Science and Artificial Intelligence | 7570 | 7934 | 9400 | – | – | – |
| Earth Sciences | – | – | – | 10058 | 10108 | 10774 |
| Economics | – | – | – | 3106 | 3310 | 3650 |
| Electrical Engineering | 10709 | 11592 | 11934 | 1290 | 1146 | 1171 |
| Electronics and Communication Engineering | 9472 | 9668 | 9962 | – | – | – |
| Intelligent Systems | – | – | – | – | – | 1134 |
| Materials Science and Engineering | 15871 | 17478 | 17880 | 6008 | 6337 | 6533 |
| Mathematics and Scientific Computing | – | – | – | 990 | 1179 | 1270 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 13137 | 14788 | 15260 | 2776 | 2771 | 3178 |
| Mechatronics Engineering | 10843 | 12254 | 12519 | – | – | – |
| Physics | – | – | – | 5508 | 5691 | 5723 |
| Statistics and Data Science | – | – | – | 1030 | 1270 | 1409 |
All categories and seat pools
| Institute | Branch | Category | Seats | Year | Round | Opening | Closing |
|---|
Source: josaa.nic.in, final rounds.
M.Tech (GATE) cutoffs
No verified GATE cutoffs yet. How M.Tech admission works →
CSE OPEN closing ranks: IIT Bhilai 8,886 (2026), IIT Kanpur 283 (2026). Cutoff trends, explained →
Fees
Fee waiver notes: IIT Bhilai: Tuition fee waivers for students from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds; also institute scholarships and interest-free education loans.. IIT Kanpur: SC, ST, PwD and family income below ₹1 lakh: no tuition. Family income ₹1–5 lakh: one-third tuition (₹33,333)..
Hostel / mess fee: IIT Bhilai: Not published. IIT Kanpur: Mess establishment charges ₹13,360 (first semester); seat rent and hall charges are inside the ₹13,855 semester fee.
Research, labs and projects
Notable labs / facilities
IIT Kanpur
- Airstrip on campus (used by the Aerospace Engineering department and the Gliding Club)
josaa.admissions.nic.in (JoSAA 2026 institute profile)
For industry consultancy, IIT Kanpur earns the most of the two. What sponsored research means →
IIT Bhilai: what these numbers mean
We have not listed fees, because we could not open the 2026-27 fee PDF linked from the institute's fee page, and the JoSAA profile only links to that page. Please check the 2026-27 fee on iitbhilai.ac.in before you pay. The institute says it offers tuition waivers for socially and economically disadvantaged students, along with scholarships and interest-free education loans. The latest data we could verify is the NIRF 2025 file on nirfindia.org. It shows 116 of 162 four-year graduates of 2023-24 placed, at a median of ₹12 lakh. 14 went for higher studies. Sponsored research was ₹41.92 crore in FY 2023-24. The NIRF list names 77 faculty and 74 full-time PhD scholars, so this is still a growing research campus. A Central Instrumentation Facility supports labs across departments. Compare closing ranks for each branch in the cutoff table before you fill choices.How to choose
- Start with the cutoffs: can your rank reach the branch you want? CSE OPEN closing ranks: IIT Bhilai 8,886 (2026), IIT Kanpur 283 (2026).
- IIT Bhilai and IIT Kanpur share 4 branch names; the rest are offered by only one of them. Look for your branch in both lists.
- IIT Bhilai is in Kutelabhata, Durg, Chhattisgarh; IIT Kanpur is in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. City and cost of living count too.
FAQ
Which has better placements, IIT Bhilai or IIT Kanpur?
IIT Kanpur has the higher UG median: ₹21.7 lakh vs ₹12 lakh (NIRF).
How many CSE seats do IIT Bhilai and IIT Kanpur have?
IIT Bhilai: 61. IIT Kanpur: 129.
Which does more research, IIT Bhilai or IIT Kanpur?
Sponsored research: IIT Bhilai ₹41.92 crore, IIT Kanpur ₹363.43 crore.
Sources
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › InstProfile
- iitbhilai.ac.in
- nirfindia.org › EngineeringRanking
- nirfindia.org › IR-E-U-0946.pdf
- iitbhilai.ac.in › index
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › InstProfile
- iitk.ac.in
- nirfindia.org › OverallRanking
- iitk.ac.in › Fee-Structure-for-New-UG-for-2026-2027-1st…
- iitk.ac.in › Overall-2026.pdf
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › openingclosingrankarchieve
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › CurrentORCR
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