NMAT Cut-Off 2026: College-Wise Scores and How to Set Your Target

The NMAT cut-off 2026 is not a single national figure. GMAC, which conducts the NMAT, reports scores on a scale of 36 to 360 and does not set a pass mark or qualifying score. Each accepting college decides its own minimum NMAT score or percentile for shortlisting, and many add sectional minimums, a group or case discussion, a written ability test and a personal interview.

This page explains how those college cut-offs work, lists indicative figures, and shows you how to set a realistic target. The figures here are indicative and not official admission cut-offs, so confirm them with the college before you rely on them.

How NMAT cut-offs work

A college cut-off is a minimum score below which your application is usually not taken forward. It is only the first filter. Clearing it does not guarantee a call or admission, because colleges then combine your score with later rounds, academics and sometimes work experience.

• Set by the college: the same score can clear one college and miss another.

• Score or percentile: some colleges quote a score out of 360, and a few quote a percentile.

• Programme-wise: campuses and specialisations of the same institute can have different figures.

• Not always published: some colleges list no minimum, and a few give only a recommended score.

Indicative college-wise NMAT scores

The table below lists minimum scores as presented on GMAC's resource page for NMAT-accepting colleges in India, which describes them as current or estimated figures. Scores are out of 360 unless a percentile is stated.

These figures carry no year label on the source page, so treat them as indicative for the current cycle and check the college website for the exact value for your programme. Some other websites publish campus-wise or sectional expected NMIMS cut-offs, but those numbers are not official and often disagree with each other, so we have not listed them here.

What affects the cut-off

• Applicant volume: more strong applicants for the same seats usually push the effective shortlisting score up.

• Seats and programmes: new programmes or seat changes can move the figure.

• College policy: a published minimum may differ from the score at which most calls actually go out.

• Sectional minimums: a few colleges expect a minimum in each section, not just in the total.

• Attempt policy: some colleges consider your best attempt, others the latest or all, so a retake may or may not help.

Cut-offs change every year with seats, applicants and college policy. Treat last year's figures as a benchmark only, and aim for a clear margin above them rather than a bare pass.

How to set your target score

1. List your colleges in three groups: a reach college, a realistic one and a safe one, and note each one's published minimum.

2. Set the target above the highest minimum you want to clear: keep a comfortable cushion so that a slightly harder test does not remove you from contention.

3. Track section scores too: since each section is scaled from 12 to 120, a balanced profile is safer than one very high and one very low section.

4. Benchmark with mocks: use several full-length mocks, compare your average rather than your best, and keep GMAC's official practice exams as the closest reference.

5. Plan a retake only if the gap is real: you have up to three attempts in a testing year, but check each college's attempt policy first.