MBBS 2026-27: NMC notifies 1,36,939 seats across 823 colleges, but government seats barely grow

15 July 2026

The National Medical Commission has notified the MBBS seat matrix for the 2026-27 session: 1,36,939 seats across 823 medical colleges, up 9,911 from the renewed base of 1,27,028. The count excludes the Institutes of National Importance (AIIMS, JIPMER and the like), so the true all-India total runs higher.

For a NEET aspirant the headline number reads well. One layer down, the picture is more specific: almost four of every five new seats this year sit in private colleges. Working out your own chances? Start with the free NEET rank predictor.

Where the seats are

Private colleges now hold the majority of MBBS capacity: 73,643 seats against the government’s 63,296. Government still runs more colleges (441 to 382), so the average government college is the smaller of the two, roughly 144 seats each versus about 193 for a private college. You can compare the state-wise MBBS cutoffs for each of these on neet2seat.

MBBS 2026-27 total seat breakdown by state, government vs private — Total approved MBBS seats by state for 2026-27. Source: NMC / MARB seat matrix, as on 13 July 2026.

The expansion is almost entirely private

The gap widened almost entirely on the private side. Of the 9,911 seats added:

Private colleges took 7,800, about a 12% jump on their base
Government colleges added 2,111, about 3.4% on theirs

So the affordable government seat, the one most aspirants actually compete for, grew by roughly one in thirty. The overall count rose faster only because private capacity expanded.

Statewise MBBS seat increases 2026-27, government vs private — Where the 9,911 new seats are going, by state and by management. Source: NMC / MARB seat matrix, as on 13 July 2026.

New colleges

Twenty-five colleges open for the first time in 2026-27, adding 2,400 seats: 2,000 across 18 private colleges and 400 across 7 government ones.

State ladder

Karnataka leads on seats with 15,395, its private capacity (10,995) more than double its government total. It also added the most seats of any state (1,300).
Uttar Pradesh has the most colleges (88) and 14,000 seats.
Tamil Nadu: 13,999. Maharashtra: 13,099. Telangana: 10,250.

The fine print that matters

The matrix is provisional. It can still change on decisions of the Appeal Committee or another competent authority, and the revised version is what the counselling committees must use.
Private colleges granted new seats or fresh approval must post an electronic bank guarantee within seven days; their Letter of Permission is issued only after that clears.
No counselling committee may admit beyond the approved number. A college crossing its cap faces regulatory and penal action under the NMC Act, 2019.

Not sure how the bigger seat pool changes your options? The AI counsellor and our counselling guides walk you through choice-filling and cutoffs step by step.

Source: National Medical Commission / Medical Assessment & Rating Board public notice dated 14 July 2026 (seat matrix as on 13 July 2026), File No. U-15029/09/2025-UGMEB.

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