The National Testing Agency (NTA) has not yet published the NIFT 2026 exam schedule. NTA administers NIFT exams for admissions into undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programs at the National Institute of Fashion Technology. Official dates are expected to be posted on the NTA/NIFT website around November 2025.
NIFT 2026 will open admissions for programs such as B.Des, B.F.Tech, combined B.F.Tech & B.Des, MFM, MFM & M.Des, M.F.Tech, and PhD. Before beginning preparation, applicants should review the NIFT 2026 eligibility criteria, syllabus, and exam pattern for their chosen program.
The National Institute of Fashion Technology is a leading design institute in India. NIFT holds its entrance tests annually for admission to undergraduate degrees (Bachelor of Design, Bachelor of Fashion Technology) and postgraduate degrees (Master of Fashion Technology, Master of Design).
Contents
Below are the key highlights and quick facts about the NIFT 2026 entrance process for aspirants to review:
Official NIFT 2026 exam dates are pending and will be published along with the NIFT 2026 notification by the National Institute of Fashion Technology.
NIFT eligibility rules cover both undergraduate and postgraduate admissions. For UG entry, applicants must be under 24 years of age; there is no age restriction for PG admissions.
Ques. How do I register for NIFT 2026?
Ans. Prospective candidates must register via the official NIFT website. Registration for NIFT 2026 is expected to open in November 2025 and continue through January 2026.
Ques. How many seats will NIFT offer in 2026?
Ans. NIFT 2026 is expected to offer approximately 5,125 seats in total.
Ques. What subjects are included in the NIFT 2026 syllabus?
Ans. The NIFT syllabus for 2026 covers Quantitative Ability, Communication Ability, English Comprehension, Analytical & Logical Ability, General Knowledge & Current Affairs, and case studies.
Ques. Is the NIFT exam difficult?
Ans. Overall difficulty is generally rated easy to moderate. Historically, the CAT section has been more challenging than the GAT, so candidates should plan their preparation accordingly.
The National Institute of Fashion Technology allocates seats across various reservation categories, which are listed further down.
Registration for the NIFT 2026 entrance test is fully online.
Candidates must carefully follow the application instructions. The step-by-step process to complete the NIFT application form is outlined below:
Step 1: Visit the official NIFT website at https://www.nift.ac.in.
Step 2: On the homepage, look for the Admission section and download the Prospectus.
Step 3: Access the application portal. New users should click the "new application portal" link and finish the registration for NIFT 2026.
Step 4: Save your login ID and password after registration for later access.
Step 5: Complete the rest of the form by entering academic details, category, and other required information.
Step 6: Upload scanned copies of your photograph, signature, and any other requested documents within the specified size and pixel limits.
Step 7: Make the application fee payment to finalize your registration. Fee amounts vary by category.
Step 8: Once payment is confirmed, download and save a copy of your submitted application for future reference.
NIFT 2026 will be held at examination centers in 32 cities. The list below reflects the cities used during the 2023 exam cycle.
Also read
The NIFT syllabus includes General Knowledge & Current Affairs, Quantitative Ability, Communication Ability, English Comprehension, and Analytical & Logical Ability. The General Ability Test (GAT) and Creativity Ability Test (CAT) have distinct syllabi.
Ques. Is drawing required for NIFT?
Ans. Sketching is an important part of the selection process for many NIFT courses. Solid drawing skills help, but strong performance in the General Ability Test is also essential.
Ques. How many mathematics questions appear in NIFT?
Ans. As NIFT is design-focused, the number of math questions is limited—typically around 8–10 items based on 10+2 level mathematics.
Ques. Which subjects are best to take in class 11 for NIFT aspirants?
Ans. NIFT does not mandate specific subject streams for classes 11 and 12, so students can choose Science, Commerce, or Arts according to their interests.
Ques. Are there written tests in NIFT?
Ans. Yes. NIFT consists of two written components: CAT (Creativity Ability Test) and GAT (General Ability Test). GAT is mandatory for all programs; CAT applies to B.Des and M.Des courses.
Recommended books for each section of the NIFT 2026 exam are listed below to help aspirants prepare effectively.
Candidates should also practice previous years’ papers and sample tests to understand question types, section weightage, and exam difficulty. Regular practice improves time management during the exam.
Memory-based question papers for NIFT are uploaded after each exam shift. These give insight into the format, number of questions, key topics, and difficulty. NIFT 2025 question papers are available for reference.
Courses
Question Papers Download Link
B.Des
Download Here
B.F.T
Download Here
M.Des
Download Here
M.F.M
Download Here
M.F.T
Download Here
The NIFT result displays subject-wise scores from CAT and GAT. Candidates who clear both GAT and CAT (for B.Des) move on to Situation Test and Group Discussion/Personal Interview stages. The final merit list is compiled using scores from all rounds. Candidates can check their results via the official portal.
The NIFT scorecard includes the candidate’s name, roll number, application number, date of birth, photo, section-wise scores from CAT and GAT, Situation Test score, total marks, and overall rank if qualified. The scorecard and the NIFT 2026 admit card are required at counseling.
Below are the registration and attendance figures for the NIFT 2025 Stage 1 exam:
Shift
Exam
Registered
Appeared
Shift 1
General Ability Test (GAT)
17,974
16,475
Shift 2
Creative Ability Test (CAT)
15,903
14,586
Total
33,877
31,061
Program-wise statistics for NIFT 2025 Stage 1 are shown below:
Programme
Registered
Appeared
BDES (Shift 1)
11,944
11,071
BDES Lateral (Shift 1)
44
37
BFTECH (Shift 1)
1,015
888
BFTECH and BDES (Shift 1)
2,492
2,264
BFTECH Lateral (Shift 1)
9
9
MDES (Shift 1)
1,078
977
MFM (Shift 1)
950
845
MFM and MDES (Shift 1)
389
338
MFTECH (Shift 1)
53
46
CAT BDES (Shift 2)
11,944
11,044
CAT BFTECH and BDES (Shift 2)
2,492
2,245
CAT MDES (Shift 2)
1,078
962
CAT MFM and MDES (Shift 2)
389
335
Total
33,877
31,061
Gender- and category-wise breakdown is as follows:
Group
Details
Registered
Appeared
Gender
Female
28,080
25,783
Male
5,797
5,278
Category
OBC-NCL (Central List)
8,679
8,172
OPEN
19,656
17,929
OPEN-EWS
1,400
1,328
SC
3,009
2,659
ST
1,133
973
PwD
227
210
Here are the Stage 2 PG statistics for NIFT 2025:
Programme
Registered
Appeared
Master of Design (M.DES.)
1,083
805
Master of Fashion Management (M.F.M.)
844
684
Master of Fashion Technology (M.F.Tech.)
46
30
Grand Total
1,973
1,519
Stage 2 UG statistics for NIFT 2025 are listed below:
Programme
Registered
Appeared
B.Des (Artisans)
19
15
B.Des Lateral Entry
30
22
B.F. Tech Lateral Entry
09
04
Bachelor of Design (B.Des Lateral Entry)
07
07
Bachelor of Design (B.Des)
10,804
8,811
Grand Total
10,869
8,859
Candidates who clear both tests proceed to the Situation Test. In that round, assessors judge interpersonal and communication skills, topic knowledge, problem-solving approach, creativity, and clarity of thought. The interview evaluates overall personality, subject awareness, and design aptitude.
Each year around 40,000 students sit for NIFT for roughly 4,517 seats. The institute releases cut-off marks after the exam. The cut-off for NIFT 2026 will be based on several factors listed below.
How NIFT cut-offs are determined
Ques: What is the minimum academic qualification to sit for NIFT 2026?
Ans: For postgraduate programs, applicants must hold a recognized bachelor’s degree. For undergraduate programs, candidates who have completed 10+2 are eligible to apply.
Ques: Is there an age limit for NIFT 2026?
Ans: Yes. For undergraduate admissions, applicants must be under 24 years of age. There is no age limit for postgraduate admissions.
Ques: What campus facilities does NIFT provide?
Ans: NIFT campuses typically offer a library, hostels, canteen, sports facilities, medical services, internet access, and transportation options for students.
Ques: What sections are included in the General Ability Test for NIFT 2026?
Ans: GAT includes five sections: General Knowledge & Current Affairs, Quantitative Ability, Communication Ability, English Comprehension, and Analytical & Logical Ability.
Ques: Does NIFT provide placement support?
Ans: Yes, NIFT campuses across India offer placement assistance to their students.
Ques: What is the application fee for NIFT 2026?
Ans: Fees vary by category. General and OBC applicants must pay INR 3,000; SC/ST and PwD candidates pay INR 1,500.
Ques: What are the reservation percentages at NIFT?
Ans: Reservation percentages differ across categories and are detailed below:
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Exam Name | National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Examination |
| Name of the Conducting Authority | National Institute of Fashion Technology |
| Exam Level | National |
| Mode of Application | Online |
| Medium of Exam | English and Hindi |
| Mode of Exam | Online Proctored Examination |
| Exam Frequency | Annually |
| Exam Duration |
|
| Number of Questions |
|
| Question Type | MCQ Question in the GAT |
| Application Fees | INR 3000/- for Unreserved/ Other Backward Class INR 1500 for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe |
| Total Seats Offered | 5215 (Expected) |
| Applications Per Year | Approximately 40,000 |
| Number of Exam Centre | 32 cities. |
| Official Website | https://www.nift.ac.in |
| Events | Exam Dates |
|---|---|
| Starting of Registration Process of Application Form of NIFT | November 2025 |
| Last Date for NIFT Registration without late fee | January 2026 |
| Last Date for NIFT Registration with late fee | January 2026 |
| Admit Card 2026 Release Date | February 2026 |
| NIFT 2026 Examination | February 2026 |
| Answer Key release date of NIFT 2026 | February 2026 |
| Last date for submission of objection for NIFT Answer Key | February 2026 |
| Declaration of Admit Card of Situation Test | June 2026 |
| Date for Situation Test of Bachelor in Design | June 2026 |
| NIFT 2026 Final Results Announcement | June 2026 |
| NIFT Counselling 2026 Registrations | 1st week of June 2026 onwards |
| Courses | Specialization | Duration | Eligibility Criteria |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor in Design | Fashion Design | Four Years |
|
| Leather Design | |||
| Fashion Communication | |||
| Accessory Design | |||
| Knitwear Design | |||
| Bachelor in Fashion Technology | ---------- | Four Years |
|
| Master of Fashion Technology | ---------- | Two Years |
|
| Master in Design | ---------- | Two Years |
|
| Master in Fashion Design | ---------- | Two Years |
|
| Category | Seat Reservation |
|---|---|
| General – Economically Weaker Section | 10% |
| Scheduled Caste (SC) | 15% |
| Scheduled Tribe (ST) | 7.5% |
| Other Backward Caste (OBC) Non-Creamy Layer | 27% |
| Differently Able Person/ Person with Disability (PHP) | 5% (Horizontal Reservation for Differently Able Person (having 40% or more disability) |
| Category | Application Fees |
|---|---|
| Unreserved/ Other Backward Class (OBC) | INR 3000 /- |
| Scheduled Caste(SC), Scheduled Tribe(ST) | INR 1500 /- |
| Person With Disability (PWD) | INR 1500 /- |
| Exam Center NIFT 202 4 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ahmedabad | Bengaluru | Bhopal |
| Bhubaneswar | Chandigarh | Chennai |
| Cochin | Coimbatore | Dehradun |
| Delhi | Guwahati | Hyderabad |
| Jaipur | Jammu | Jodhpur |
| Kangra | Kannur (Kerala) | Kolkata |
| Lucknow | Madurai | Mumbai |
| Nagpur | Patna | Pune |
| Raipur | Ranchi | Surat |
| Udaipur | Vadodara | Vishakhapatnam |
| Shillong | Srinagar (J&K) | |
| Exam Mode | Online Proctored Examination |
| Number of Papers | Two |
| Number of Sections | Five |
| Name of the section | General Knowledge and Current Affairs, Quantitative Ability, Communication Ability, English Comprehension, and Analytical and Logical Ability. |
| Question Paper Type | Multiple Choice Question |
| Exam Duration for GAT written test | 2 hours (for Bachelor in Designing & Master in Designing) & 3 hours (Bachelor in Fashion Technology, Master in Fashion Technology, and Master of Fashion Management) |
| Exam Language | English |
| NIFT Course-Wise | NIFT Syllabus |
|---|---|
| NIFT Syllabus for Bachelor of Design | |
| CAT | Design theory, colour terminology, Element and Principle of Design, Optical Illusion, Form and Function, Drawing Fundamentals |
| GAT | Quantitative Ability, Communication Ability, English Comprehension, Analytical Ability and Logical Ability, General Knowledge and Current Affairs |
| Situational Test | The model will be evaluated on space visualization, innovative and creative use of given material, the composition of elements, colour scheme, construction skill, the finesse of the model and overall presentation etc |
| Bachelor of Fashion Technology | |
| GAT | Communication Ability & English Comprehension, Case Study, Quantitative Ability, Analytical and logical Ability, General Knowledge And Current Affairs |
| NIFT Master of Design | |
| CAT | Design ability of the applicant, Discernment ability, Creativity in the development of thought, Power of observation |
| GAT | Communication Ability & English Comprehension, Case Study, Quantitative Ability, Analytical and logical Ability, General Knowledge And Current Affairs |
| GD/PI | 10 to 20 minutes discussions followed by a case study and interview |
| Master of Fashion Technology | |
| GAT | Communication Ability & English Comprehension, Case Study, Quantitative Ability, Analytical and logical Ability, General Knowledge And Current Affairs |
| GD/PI | 10 to 20 minutes discussions followed by a case study and interview |
| Master of Fashion Management | |
| GAT | Communication Ability & English Comprehension, Case Study, Quantitative Ability, Analytical and logical Ability, General Knowledge And Current Affairs |
| PI | 10 to 20 minutes discussion and interview. |
| Name of the Book | Author |
|---|---|
| Popular Master Guide NIFT and IIFT | R. Gupta |
| Exam Guide NIFT | Dr. R. P. Datason |
| Entrance Examination Guide of NIFT | D. Mittal |
| Entrance Examinations for NIFT | Arihant Publications |
| NIFT Previous Years Solved Paper | Ramesh publishing house |
| Courses | Question Papers Download Link |
|---|---|
| B.Des | |
| B.F.T | |
| M.Des | |
| M.F.M | |
| M.F.T |
| Shift | Exam | Registered | Appeared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shift 1 | General Ability Test (GAT) | 17,974 | 16,475 |
| Shift 2 | Creative Ability Test (CAT) | 15,903 | 14,586 |
| Total | 33,877 | 31,061 | |
| Programme | Registered | Appeared |
|---|---|---|
| BDES (Shift 1) | 11,944 | 11,071 |
| BDES Lateral (Shift 1) | 44 | 37 |
| BFTECH (Shift 1) | 1,015 | 888 |
| BFTECH and BDES (Shift 1) | 2,492 | 2,264 |
| BFTECH Lateral (Shift 1) | 9 | 9 |
| MDES (Shift 1) | 1,078 | 977 |
| MFM (Shift 1) | 950 | 845 |
| MFM and MDES (Shift 1) | 389 | 338 |
| MFTECH (Shift 1) | 53 | 46 |
| CAT BDES (Shift 2) | 11,944 | 11,044 |
| CAT BFTECH and BDES (Shift 2) | 2,492 | 2,245 |
| CAT MDES (Shift 2) | 1,078 | 962 |
| CAT MFM and MDES (Shift 2) | 389 | 335 |
| Total | 33,877 | 31,061 |
| Group | Details | Registered | Appeared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | Female | 28,080 | 25,783 |
| Male | 5,797 | 5,278 | |
| Category | OBC-NCL (Central List) | 8,679 | 8,172 |
| OPEN | 19,656 | 17,929 | |
| OPEN-EWS | 1,400 | 1,328 | |
| SC | 3,009 | 2,659 | |
| ST | 1,133 | 973 | |
| PwD | 227 | 210 |
| Programme | Registered | Appeared |
|---|---|---|
| Master of Design (M.DES.) | 1,083 | 805 |
| Master of Fashion Management (M.F.M.) | 844 | 684 |
| Master of Fashion Technology (M.F.Tech.) | 46 | 30 |
| Grand Total | 1,973 | 1,519 |
| Programme | Registered | Appeared |
|---|---|---|
| B.Des (Artisans) | 19 | 15 |
| B.Des Lateral Entry | 30 | 22 |
| B.F. Tech Lateral Entry | 09 | 04 |
| Bachelor of Design (B.Des Lateral Entry) | 07 | 07 |
| Bachelor of Design (B.Des) | 10,804 | 8,811 |
| Grand Total | 10,869 | 8,859 |
| Course | Rank Range | Shortlisted Candidates |
|---|---|---|
| B.Des | 51-317 | 80 |
| B.Des | 319-619 | 90 |
| B.Des | 620-825 | 90 |
| B.Des | 828-1098 | 90 |
| B.Des | 1104-1328 | 80 |
| B.Des | 1331-1605 | 90 |
| B.Des | 1612-1874 | 90 |
| B.Des | 1882-2127 | 90 |
| B.Des | 2128-2440 | 80 |
| B.Des | 2443-2741 | 90 |
| B.Des | 2747-3132 | 90 |
| B.Des | 3133-3628 | 90 |
| B.Des | 3629-4100 | 80 |
| B.Des | 4110-4714 | 90 |
| B.Des | 4715-5543 | 90 |
| B.Des | 5448-6739 | 90 |
| B.Des | 6744-8150 | 100 |
| B.Des | 8161-9875 | 100 |
| B.Des | 9883-11605 | 100 |
| B.Des | 11658-14378 | 86 |
| M.F.Tech | 88-100 | 3 |
| M.Des | 24-525 | 91 |
| B.F.Tech- Apparel Production | 11-275 | 40 |
| B.F.Tech- Apparel Production | 276-929 | 89 |
| MFM | 24-352 | 80 |
| MFM | 353-814 | 90 |
| MFM | 816-1310 | 81 |
| Category | Seat Reservation |
|---|---|
| General – Economically Weaker Section | 10% |
| Scheduled Caste (SC) | 15% |
| Scheduled Tribe (ST) | 7.5% |
| Other Backward Caste (OBC) Non-Creamy Layer | 27% |
| Differently Able Person/ Person with Disability (PHP) | 5% (Horizontal Reservation for Differently Able Person (having 40% or more disability) |
