GATE 2026 statistical report out: 10.11 lakh registrations, 7.97 lakh appeared

IIT Guwahati published the statistical report for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2026 on September 25, 2026. The report is available for download on the official portal, gate2026.iitg.ac.in, and aims to ensure complete transparency for future GATE candidates.

This detailed official document, released by the organising institute after the examination cycle, provides key exam details, including the number of candidates registered and qualified, the overall GATE qualification rate, and paper-wise cutoffs. The GATE 2026 examinations were held on February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026, with results announced on March 19, 2026.

GATE 2026 Candidate Participation and Key Trends

A total of 10,11,719 candidates registered for GATE 2026, and 797,434 candidates appeared for the examination. The IITG GATE 2026 statistical report details candidate participation, qualification percentages, paper-wise difficulty levels, category distribution, and normalisation metrics across all test papers.

Computer Science and Information Technology (CS) recorded the highest candidate density, with 259,922 registrations and 211,020 test-takers. Data Science & Artificial Intelligence (DA) emerged as a top-tier paper in registration with 91,764 applicants, surpassing traditional streams like Mechanical Engineering.

Qualification Rates and Score Benchmarks

Qualification rates across major engineering papers in GATE 2026 ranged between 15% and 20% of appeared candidates. Metallurgical Engineering (MT) achieved the highest theoretical score of 100/100. The report also provides insights into how raw scores translate to GATE scores.

For instance, a raw score of 50 in Computer Science (CS) translates to a GATE score between 560 and 620, while a raw score above 70 in CS yields a GATE score over 770. A General category score of 600 is indicated to provide strong admission options at top National Institutes of Technology (NITs). Required NIT cutoffs drop by 50 to 70 points for OBC candidates and by 100 to 130 points for SC and ST candidates.

Context and Future Implications

The GATE statistical and performance report serves as a master reference for candidates, academic institutions, and public sector undertakings (PSUs). Each year, the organising institute, rotated among the IISc and IITs, compiles this report. For GATE 2025, IIT Roorkee released its statistical performance report on September 17, 2025. IIT Madras is currently conducting GATE 2027.

Multi-sessional papers, such as Computer Science and Information Technology (CS) and Civil Engineering (CE), were conducted in two sessions in GATE 2024, with different question papers for each session. The scores of candidates in multi-session papers are normalised according to a specific formula to ensure fairness.

Further reading

• GATE 2026 statistical report out: 10.11 lakh registered, cutoffs detailed
• GATE topper salary: Maharatna PSUs offer up to 2.5 lakh per month, private sector up to 2 lakh
• M.Pharm 2026: Apply with B.Pharm scores, GPAT, or CUET PG for Delhi NCR admissions
• NID Registration 2027: Application Link Soon at admissions.nid.edu
• KAU BTech Agricultural Engineering ICAR spot admission: Apply by Sep 25, 2026 Applications open
• GATE: complete exam guide

Written by Nishit Kumar

Nishit Kumar is a senior EdTech industry leader with over a decade of experience in building and scaling education platforms, shaping their product, content, and growth strategy. At FindMyCollege, Nishit oversees content and editorial strategy, guiding topic selection and content frameworks to ensure accuracy, relevance, and student-first value across the website.

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