In a proud moment for the Indian education sector, a plethora of Indian colleges and universities have improved their ranking in the QS World University Rankings 2026. Nearly 50% of its participating institutions are improving their global standings. Among the top performers, IIT Delhi registered the biggest jump, climbing to the 123rd position globally. IIT Delhi was ranked 197 in 2024 and 150 in 2025, making this leap a noteworthy achievement.
IIT Bombay, which previously held the top spot among Indian universities, has moved to 129th place, slightly down from 118 last year. Despite the drop, it remains among the top two in the country. Another major success story is IIT Madras, which has broken into the top 200 for the first time, securing the 180th rank, up from 227 last year. This achievement further reinforces Chennai’s status as a growing educational hub.
Following these three premier institutes are IIT Kharagpur and IISc Bangalore, which have secured the fourth and fifth spots among Indian institutions, respectively. Not only this, but Delhi University (DU) has also shown impressive improvement, now ranked 328th, compared to 407th last year.
Additionally, 8 new Indian institutions have made their debut in this year’s rankings. With this, India now has 54 institutions listed in the QS World University Rankings, placing the country fourth globally in terms of representation, only behind the United States (192), the United Kingdom (90), and China (72). Below is a list of top Indian universities and colleges in QS World University Rankings 2026-
Top Indian colleges/universities in QS World University Rankings 2026
- IIT Delhi- overall 123
- IIT Bombay- overall 129
- IIT Madras- overall 180
- IIT Kharagpur- overall 215
- IISc- Bengaluru- overall 219
- IIT Kanpur- overall 222
- Delhi University- overall 328
- IIT Guwahati- overall 334
- IIT Roorkee- overall 339
- IIT Indore- overall 556
- II BHU Varanasi- overall 566
- IIT Hyderabad- overall 664
- VIT Vellore- overall 691