IIT Madras vs IIT Ropar: Courses, Seats, Cutoffs, Fees, Placements and Research (2026)
IIT Madras attracts 31.2 times as much research funding (₹1,128.82 crore vs ₹36.16 crore, FY 2024-25). IIT Madras does 40.3 times as much consultancy business (₹460.28 crore vs ₹11.41 crore, FY 2024-25). IIT Madras employs 3.7 times as much faculty (720 vs 196, NIRF 2026).
Last updated: 14 Oct 2026.
Who should pick which (our analysis)
IIT Ropar
Our analysis: IIT Ropar suits you if computing is your goal and you want more seats to aim for. It has 120 seats each in CSE and Electrical, 100 in Artificial Intelligence and Data Engineering, and 80 in Mathematics and Computing. Smaller new branches include Digital Agriculture and Electrical Engineering (Integrated Circuit Design and Technology).At a glance
Swipe sideways. The first column stays put.
| Point | IIT Madras | IIT Ropar | Source (year) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Established (year) | 1959 | 2008 | JoSAA 2026 institute profile |
| Location (city, state) | Chennai, Tamil Nadu | Rupnagar, Punjab | josaa.admissions.nic.in JoSAA 2026 institute profile |
| Campus area | 650 acres | 525 acres | JoSAA 2026 institute profile |
| Official website | iitm.ac.in | iitrpr.ac.in | iitm.ac.in |
| NIRF Overall rank | 1 | 56 | NIRF 2025 |
| NIRF Engineering rank | 1 | 32 | NIRF 2025 |
| B.Tech tuition per semester | ₹1,00,000 | ₹1,00,000 | 2026-27 |
| First-semester academic fees | ₹1,41,402 | Not published | 2026-27 |
| Fee waiver notes | SC, ST and PwD: no tuition. Family income below ₹1 lakh: full tuition remission; ₹1–5 lakh: two-thirds remission (first-semester total ₹74,735). | All SC and ST students: 100% tuition waiver. | 2026-27 |
| Hostel / mess fee | Seat rent ₹7,500 per semester; hostel fee circular at fees.iitm.ac.in; advance mess charges depend on the mess tender | Hostel establishment fee ₹3,000 per semester; mess about ₹23,520 per semester (paid in advance) | 2026-27 |
| Total JoSAA seats | 1,118 | 696 | JoSAA 2026 |
| UG 4-year median salary | ₹17.78 lakh | ₹18 lakh | 2024-25 |
| UG 4-year placed / graduated | 631 placed of 781 graduates | 258 placed of 321 graduates | 2024-25 |
| UG 5-year (dual) median salary | ₹22 lakh | Not published | 2024-25 |
| PG 2-year median salary | ₹15 lakh | ₹9 lakh | 2024-25 |
| PG 2-year placed | 644 | 69 | 2024-25 |
| UG 4-year went for higher studies | 147 | 47 | 2024-25 |
| Total UG 4-year students | 3,733 | Not published | 2024-25 |
| Faculty count | 720 | 196 | NIRF 2026 |
| Full-time PhD students | 2,399 | 810 | 2024-25 |
| Full-time PhDs graduated | 485 | Not published | 2024-25 |
| Sponsored research received | ₹1,128.82 crore | ₹36.16 crore | FY 2024-25 |
| Consultancy received | ₹460.28 crore | ₹11.41 crore | FY 2024-25 |
How IIT Madras and IIT Ropar differ
- IIT Madras attracts 31.2 times as much research funding (₹1,128.82 crore vs ₹36.16 crore, FY 2024-25).
- IIT Madras does 40.3 times as much consultancy business (₹460.28 crore vs ₹11.41 crore, FY 2024-25).
- IIT Madras employs 3.7 times as much faculty (720 vs 196, NIRF 2026).
- IIT Madras has 3.0 times as much full-time PhD students (2,399 vs 810, 2024-25).
- IIT Madras has a 61% bigger JoSAA intake (1,118 vs 696, JoSAA 2026).
- The 4-year UG median salary is almost the same: ₹17.78 lakh at IIT Madras and ₹18 lakh at IIT Ropar (2024-25).
- Same tuition at both: ₹1,00,000 per semester.
- IIT Madras ranks higher in NIRF 2025 Overall (1 vs 56).
- IIT Madras ranks higher in NIRF 2025 Engineering (1 vs 32).
- IIT Ropar has more 4-year B.Tech CSE seats (120 vs 87).
- Only IIT Madras offers Aerospace Engineering, Biological Engineering, Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics, Computational Engineering and Mechanics among these two.
- Only IIT Ropar offers Engineering Science, Artificial Intelligence and Data Engineering, Mathematics and Computing, Digital Agriculture among these two.
Worked out from the official numbers above.
Courses and seats
IIT Madras
- B.Tech, B.S. and 5-year dual degree
- B.S. Medical Sciences and Engineering, B.S. Chemistry
- M.Sc, M.Tech, MBA, EMBA, M.A.
- MS (Research) and PhD
- Online B.S. in Data Science and Applications, B.S. in Electronic Systems
IIT Ropar
- B.Tech (4 years)
Seats per branch
| Branch | IIT Madras | IIT Ropar |
|---|---|---|
| Aerospace Engineering | 54 | Not offered |
| Chemical Engineering | 104 | 35 |
| Civil Engineering | 111 | 35 |
| Computer Science and Engineering | 87 | 120 |
| Electrical Engineering | 154 | 120 |
| Engineering Physics | 42 | 25 |
| Biological Engineering | 30 | Not offered |
| Mechanical Engineering | 144 | 83 |
| Metallurgical and Materials Engineering | 54 | 28 |
| Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics | 50 | Not offered |
| Computational Engineering and Mechanics | 40 | Not offered |
| Instrumentation and Biomedical Engineering | 40 | Not offered |
| Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering | 73 | Not offered |
| B.S. Physics | 12 | Not offered |
| B.S. Mathematics | 20 | Not offered |
| B.S. Biological Science | 30 | Not offered |
| Aerospace Engineering, 5-year dual degree | 9 | Not offered |
| Engineering Design, 5-year dual degree | 64 | Not offered |
| Engineering Science | Not offered | 30 |
| Artificial Intelligence and Data Engineering | Not offered | 100 |
| Mathematics and Computing | Not offered | 80 |
| Digital Agriculture | Not offered | 20 |
| Electrical Engineering (Integrated Circuit Design and Technology) | Not offered | 20 |
Source: JoSAA 2026 · JoSAA 2026
IIT Madras and IIT Ropar share 7 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 Madras | IIT Ropar | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | |
| Aerospace Engineering | 2815 | 3211 | 3278 | – | – | – |
| Aerospace Engineering (5-yr) | 2984 | 2808 | 3389 | – | – | – |
| Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics | 419 | 306 | 226 | – | – | – |
| Artificial Intelligence and Data Engineering | – | – | – | 2656 | 3500 | 4719 |
| Biological Engineering | 5755 | 5261 | 6440 | – | – | – |
| Biological Science | 10682 | 10290 | 12204 | – | – | – |
| BS in Mathematics | – | – | 1804 | – | – | – |
| Chemical Engineering | 3972 | 4116 | 4162 | 10097 | 10655 | 11670 |
| Civil Engineering | 5688 | 6112 | 6225 | 11365 | 12488 | 14538 |
| Computational Engineering and Mechanics | – | 1309 | 1314 | – | – | – |
| Computer Science and Engineering | 159 | 171 | 151 | 2379 | 2512 | 3214 |
| Digital Agriculture | – | – | – | – | 14480 | 15356 |
| Electrical Engineering | 838 | 849 | 749 | 5528 | 6311 | 6599 |
| Electrical Engineering (Integrated Circuit Design and Technology) | – | – | – | – | 5527 | 5083 |
| Engineering Design (5-yr) | 3656 | 3380 | 3093 | – | – | – |
| Engineering Physics | 1858 | 1441 | 1316 | 9142 | 9576 | 10879 |
| Engineering Science | – | – | – | – | – | 8459 |
| Instrumentation and Biomedical Engineering | – | 4366 | 4011 | – | – | – |
| Metallurgical and Materials Engineering | 4748 | 5499 | 5398 | 13009 | 13777 | 14773 |
| Mathematics and Computing | – | – | – | 3518 | 3954 | 4749 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 2310 | 2468 | 2619 | 8636 | 9115 | 10069 |
| Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering | 7404 | 7433 | 8354 | – | – | – |
| Physics | – | 3804 | 3918 | – | – | – |
| Physics (5-yr) | 2742 | – | – | – | – | – |
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 Madras 151 (2026), IIT Ropar 3,214 (2026). Cutoff trends, explained →
Fees
Fee waiver notes: IIT Madras: SC, ST and PwD: no tuition. Family income below ₹1 lakh: full tuition remission; ₹1–5 lakh: two-thirds remission (first-semester total ₹74,735).. IIT Ropar: All SC and ST students: 100% tuition waiver..
Hostel / mess fee: IIT Madras: Seat rent ₹7,500 per semester; hostel fee circular at fees.iitm.ac.in; advance mess charges depend on the mess tender. IIT Ropar: Hostel establishment fee ₹3,000 per semester; mess about ₹23,520 per semester (paid in advance).
Research, labs and projects
Notable labs / facilities
IIT Madras
- Sophisticated Analytical Instruments Facility (SAIF)
- Material Science Research Centre (MSRC)
- Central Electronics Centre (CEC)
- AQUA high-performance computing cluster (11,680 cores, 30 GPUs)
josaa.admissions.nic.in (JoSAA 2026 institute profile)
IIT Ropar
- Centre for Innovation and Business Incubation (CIBI) with iHub-AWaDH
josaa.admissions.nic.in (JoSAA 2026 institute profile)
For industry consultancy, IIT Madras earns the most of the two. What sponsored research means →
IIT Ropar: what these numbers mean
Tuition is ₹1,00,000 per semester. The total at admission is ₹1,34,705. Hostel establishment is ₹3,000 a semester, and mess is about ₹23,520 a semester, paid in advance. All SC and ST students get a 100% tuition waiver. NIRF 2026 data (the Engineering file on iitrpr.ac.in) shows 258 of 321 four-year graduates placed in 2024-25, at a median of ₹18 lakh. 47 more went for higher studies. Sponsored research was ₹36.16 crore and consultancy ₹11.41 crore in FY 2024-25. The Centre for Innovation and Business Incubation, with the iHub-AWaDH hub, says it supports more than 200 start-ups. That is useful if you want to build a product while you study. For a fair comparison, check the cutoffs for CSE and AI here against similar IITs.How to choose
- Start with the cutoffs: can your rank reach the branch you want? CSE OPEN closing ranks: IIT Madras 151 (2026), IIT Ropar 3,214 (2026).
- IIT Madras and IIT Ropar share 7 branch names; the rest are offered by only one of them. Look for your branch in both lists.
- IIT Madras is in Chennai, Tamil Nadu; IIT Ropar is in Rupnagar, Punjab. City and cost of living count too.
FAQ
Which is better, IIT Madras or IIT Ropar?
IIT Madras is ahead in NIRF 2025 Overall (1 vs 56). At this level the gap is small, so pick on branch and fit.
Is the B.Tech fee the same at IIT Madras and IIT Ropar?
Tuition matches at ₹1,00,000 a semester.
Which has better placements, IIT Madras or IIT Ropar?
UG medians: IIT Madras ₹17.78 lakh, IIT Ropar ₹18 lakh.
How many CSE seats do IIT Madras and IIT Ropar have?
IIT Madras: 87. IIT Ropar: 120.
Which does more research, IIT Madras or IIT Ropar?
IIT Madras brings in more sponsored research (₹1,128.82 crore).
Sources
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › InstProfile
- iitm.ac.in
- nirfindia.org › OverallRanking
- nirfindia.org › EngineeringRanking
- iitm.ac.in › NIRF_Overall_2026.pdf
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › InstProfile
- iitrpr.ac.in
- iitrpr.ac.in › eng 2026.pdf
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › openingclosingrankarchieve
- josaa.admissions.nic.in › CurrentORCR
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