The KCET 2026 cutoffs will be released by Karnataka Examinations Authority after the counselling of students for admissions to various professional courses such as Engineering/Technology courses, Farm Science courses, Veterinary and Animal husbandry courses etc.

  • The KCET ranks are determined by combining both KCET marks and 2nd PUC marks with 50:50 weightage.
  • For RVSC college of Engineering, CSE closing rank for General Merit have increased by ~30% from 2023 to 2025.
  • For PES University, Bangalore, CSE cutoff dropped ~ 52% in the year 2025, as compared to 2024.
  • Veterinary has only around 200-300 total statewide seats compared to 65,000+ in Engineering, making it more competitive per seat.

As the KCET 2026 exam is scheduled for 23rd and 24th April and the results are anticipated in May 2026, understanding cutoffs are essential for strategic preparation to get a desired branch in desired college.

In top CSE seats such as in RVCE or BMSCE, SC/ST closing ranks reach around 5,000 to 10,000 while General Merit stays under ~1000 showing a 5-10 times difference, one of the largest category gaps in any state entrance exam.

In 2025, cutoffs were released round-wise by KEA after the counselling began in July. The final round cutoffs showed maximum relaxation due to withdrawals, upgrades and vacant seats.

In 2025, around 3 lakh+ candidates appeared for KCET and the difficulty of the exam was moderate.

Round KCET 2025 Cutoff KCET 2025 Cutoff Hyderabad-Karnataka Region
KCET Cutoff 2025 Round 1 Download PDF Download PDF
KCET Cutoff 2025 Round 2 Download PDF Download PDF
KCET Cutoff 2025 Round 3 Download PDF Download PDF

Related Articles:

KCET Cutoff 2026: Check Course-wise Cutoffs, Marks Vs Rank, College-wise Closing Ranks

Key Summary

  • Overall the cutoffs have remained stable to slightly higher due to increased competition and high demand for branches like CSE/AI/ML.
  • Last Year, RVCE Bangalore CSE general merit closed at ~234-500 which was one of the lowest in KCET history.
  • Pharmacy and allied streams have seen final overall closing ranks around ~70k for Government College of Pharmacy Bangalore.
  • Private mid-tier colleges such as Vydehi and Acharya & B.M. Reddy college saw massive late round jumps of around 150-250%, indicating vacant seats even after extended counselling to multiple rounds.

What is KCET Cutoff 2026?

KEA will determine the cutoffs for various courses depending on certain factors such as number of students, difficulty level of exam etc. Cutoffs are the closing ranks for a particular branch or course. For example BMS College of Engineering will get students for CSE upto rank 500, so the cutoff rank for CSE in BMSCE will be 500.

KCET cutoffs can be divided in two parts, qualifying and admission cutoffs. Qualifying cutoffs are minimum percentage required to become eligible for appearing in KCET exam. However the real game changer is the admission cutoffs which is based on the ranks derived from 50:50 weightage of both KCET marks and 2nd PUC marks.

KCET 2026: Qualifying Cutoff

Qualifying cutoff refers to the minimum aggregate percentage required by students in their 2nd PUC or Class 12th to be eligible for the KCET exam and counselling.

Category Percentage
General Category Minimum 45% aggregate in PCM/PCB
Reserved Categories Minimum 40% aggregate in PCM/PCB

Kannada Language Test: It is a mandatory qualifying test only for certain candidates (Horanadu & Gadinadu Kannadigas), which requires 12 marks out of 50 to qualify.

Around 456 candidates out of 1520 failed, and 12 candidates scored 0/50 in the Language test.

KCET 2026: Expected Cutoff Course and College-Wise

As per 2025 exam trend, the CSE / AI will remain highly competitive with high cutoffs especially at high demanded colleges such as RVCE. Emerging branches such as AI/ML, Data Science often have ~500-1000 ranks higher than CSE in the same college.

For Engineering Courses

College Name CSE (Computer Science) AI/ML or AI & Data Science ISE / CS (AI&ML) / Related ECE (Electronics & Comm.) Mechanical / EEE Civil / Other Core Branches
RV College of Engineering (RVCE), Bangalore 150–500 400–900 300–700 700–1,400 5,000–9,000 12,000–20,000+
BMS College of Engineering (BMSCE), Bangalore 300–900 600–1,300 700–1,500 1,200–2,800 8,000–18,000 15,000–30,000+
PES University (Ring Road Campus), Bangalore 800–2,000 1,500–3,500 1,200–2,800 2,000–4,500 12,000–25,000 20,000–35,000+
MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology (MSRIT) 800–2,200 2,000–4,500 1,800–3,500 2,500–5,000 12,000–25,000 20,000–40,000+
Bangalore Institute of Technology (BIT) 4,000–9,000 6,000–11,000 5,000–10,000 5,000–9,000 18,000–35,000 30,000–50,000+
New Horizon College of Engineering (NHCE) 12,000–20,000 15,000–25,000 14,000–22,000 12,000–20,000 30,000+ 40,000+
Sir M. Visvesvaraya Institute of Technology 7,000–15,000 9,000–18,000 8,000–16,000 7,000–13,000 20,000–40,000 35,000+

For Farm Sciences Courses

Course / Branch UAS Bangalore (Top Preference) UAS Dharwad / UAHS Bagalkot UAS Raichur / UAHS Shivamogga
B.Sc (Hons) Agriculture 2,000–8,000 5,000–15,000 8,000–20,000
B.Sc (Hons) Horticulture 4,000–12,000 8,000–18,000 10,000–22,000
B.Sc (Hons) Forestry 6,000–15,000 10,000–20,000 12,000–25,000
B.Sc (Hons) Sericulture 8,000–18,000 12,000–22,000 15,000–30,000
B.Tech (Food Technology / Agri Engineering) 10,000–22,000 15,000–28,000 20,000–35,000
B.Sc (Hons) Agri Business Management 5,000–15,000 10,000–20,000 15,000–28,000

For Pharmacy courses

College / Institute B.Pharm (Bachelor of Pharmacy) Pharm.D (Doctor of Pharmacy)
Government College of Pharmacy, Bangalore (Top Govt) 10,000–25,000 8,000–20,000
Government College of Pharmacy, Gulbarga / Other Govt 20,000–50,000 15,000–40,000
Al-Ameen College of Pharmacy, Bangalore 25,000–60,000 20,000–50,000
Acharya & BM Reddy College of Pharmacy, Bangalore 30,000–80,000 25,000–70,000
MS Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, Bangalore 40,000–90,000 30,000–80,000
Dayananda Sagar College of Pharmacy, Bangalore 50,000–1,00,000 40,000–90,000
PES College of Pharmacy / Other Bangalore Privates 60,000–1,20,000 50,000–1,00,000
Vydehi Institute of Pharmacy / Other Mid-Tier 80,000–1,80,000+ 70,000–1,50,000+

For Veterinary and Animal Husbandry courses

Veterinary College / Institute Expected Closing Rank (GM)
Veterinary College, Bangalore (Top Preference) 800–2,000
Veterinary College, Bidar 1,900–3,600
Veterinary College, Shimoga 3,000–6,000
Veterinary College, Hassan 4,000–8,000
Other Affiliated / Constituent Colleges 6,000–12,000+

KCET 2026: Expected Cutoff Category-Wise

The category-wise cutoff highlight the relaxation given to reserved categories to ensure social justice and equality. The categories such as SC/ST/OBC/EWS etc come under reserved categories and they get significant relaxation which means 2-5 times higher ranks (closing ranks) than unreserved category students.

For Engineering Courses

College / Institute Branch (CSE) Closing Ranks Branch (AI/ML or Related) Closing Ranks Branch (ECE) Closing Ranks Branch (Mechanical / Core) Closing Ranks
RV College of Engineering (RVCE), Bangalore (Top)
  • OBC: 500–1,500
  • SC: 5,000–15,000
  • ST: 5,000–15,000+
  • OBC: 1,000–2,500
  • SC: 8,000–20,000
  • ST: 10,000–25,000+
  • OBC: 2,000–4,000
  • SC: 10,000–25,000
  • ST: 15,000–30,000+
  • OBC: 10,000–20,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000+
  • ST: 25,000–50,000+
BMS College of Engineering (BMSCE), Bangalore
  • OBC: 1,000–3,000
  • SC: 8,000–25,000
  • ST: 10,000–30,000+
  • OBC: 1,500–4,000
  • SC: 10,000–30,000
  • ST: 15,000–40,000+
  • OBC: 3,000–6,000
  • SC: 15,000–40,000
  • ST: 20,000–50,000+
  • OBC: 15,000–30,000
  • SC: 40,000–80,000+
  • ST: 40,000–70,000+
PES University (Ring Road Campus), Bangalore
  • OBC: 2,000–5,000
  • SC: 10,000–30,000
  • ST: 10,000–25,000+
  • OBC: 3,000–7,000
  • SC: 15,000–40,000
  • ST: 15,000–40,000+
  • OBC: 4,000–8,000
  • SC: 20,000–50,000
  • ST: 25,000–50,000+
  • OBC: 20,000–40,000
  • SC: 50,000+
  • ST: 40,000+
MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology (MSRIT), Bangalore
  • OBC: 2,000–5,500
  • SC: 10,000–25,000
  • ST: 10,000–25,000+
  • OBC: 4,000–8,000
  • SC: 15,000–35,000
  • ST: 15,000–40,000+
  • OBC: 5,000–10,000
  • SC: 20,000–50,000
  • ST: 25,000–50,000+
  • OBC: 20,000–40,000
  • SC: 50,000+
  • ST: 40,000+
Bangalore Institute of Technology (BIT), Bangalore
  • OBC: 8,000–15,000
  • SC: 20,000–50,000
  • ST: 30,000–80,000+
  • OBC: 10,000–20,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000
  • ST: 40,000+
  • OBC: 10,000–18,000
  • SC: 25,000–55,000
  • ST: 35,000+
  • OBC: 30,000–50,000
  • SC: 60,000+
  • ST: 80,000+

For Farm Sciences Courses

Course / Branch UAS Bangalore (Top Preference) UAS Dharwad / UAHS Bagalkot UAS Raichur / UAHS Shivamogga
B.Sc (Hons) Agriculture
  • OBC: 6,000–16,000
  • SC: 12,000–35,000
  • ST: 15,000–45,000+
  • OBC: 8,000–20,000
  • SC: 20,000–50,000
  • ST: 25,000–60,000+
  • OBC: 15,000–35,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000
  • ST: 40,000+
B.Sc (Hons) Horticulture
  • OBC: 10,000–25,000
  • SC: 20,000–45,000
  • ST: 25,000–55,000+
  • OBC: 15,000–30,000
  • SC: 25,000–50,000
  • ST: 30,000–70,000+
  • OBC: 18,000–40,000
  • SC: 35,000–70,000
  • ST: 40,000+
B.Sc (Hons) Forestry
  • OBC: 12,000–25,000
  • SC: 20,000–45,000
  • ST: 25,000–60,000+
  • OBC: 18,000–35,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000
  • ST: 35,000+
  • OBC: 20,000–40,000
  • SC: 40,000–80,000
  • ST: 50,000+
B.Sc (Hons) Sericulture
  • OBC: 15,000–30,000
  • SC: 25,000–50,000
  • ST: 30,000–70,000+
  • OBC: 20,000–40,000
  • SC: 35,000–70,000
  • ST: 40,000+
  • OBC: 25,000–50,000
  • SC: 45,000+
  • ST: 50,000+
B.Tech (Food Technology / Agri Engineering)
  • OBC: 18,000–35,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000
  • ST: 40,000+
  • OBC: 25,000–45,000
  • SC: 40,000–80,000
  • ST: 50,000+
  • OBC: 30,000–55,000
  • SC: 50,000+
  • ST: 60,000+
B.Sc (Hons) Agri Business Management
  • OBC: 10,000–25,000
  • SC: 18,000–40,000
  • ST: 25,000–50,000+
  • OBC: 15,000–35,000
  • SC: 30,000–60,000
  • ST: 35,000+
  • OBC: 20,000–45,000
  • SC: 40,000+
  • ST: 50,000+

For Pharmacy courses

College / Institute B.Pharm (Bachelor of Pharmacy) Closing Ranks Pharm.D (Doctor of Pharmacy) Closing Ranks
Government College of Pharmacy, Bangalore (Top Govt)
  • OBC: 20,000–60,000
  • SC: 40,000–90,000+
  • ST: 50,000–1,10,000+
  • OBC: 15,000–50,000
  • SC: 35,000–80,000+
  • ST: 45,000–1,00,000+
Government College of Pharmacy, Gulbarga / Other Govt
  • OBC: 30,000–90,000
  • SC: 50,000–1,30,000+
  • ST: 60,000–1,60,000+
  • OBC: 25,000–80,000
  • SC: 45,000–1,10,000+
  • ST: 55,000–1,30,000+
Al-Ameen College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
  • OBC: 40,000–1,10,000
  • SC: 70,000–1,60,000+
  • ST: 80,000–2,00,000+
  • OBC: 35,000–1,00,000
  • SC: 60,000–1,40,000+
  • ST: 70,000–1,90,000+
Acharya & BM Reddy College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
  • OBC: 50,000–1,30,000
  • SC: 80,000–2,00,000+
  • ST: 1,00,000–2,50,000+
  • OBC: 40,000–1,20,000
  • SC: 70,000–1,80,000+
  • ST: 90,000–2,30,000+
MS Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, Bangalore
  • OBC: 60,000–1,50,000
  • SC: 1,00,000–2,20,000+
  • ST: 1,20,000–2,80,000+
  • OBC: 50,000–1,40,000
  • SC: 90,000–2,00,000+
  • ST: 1,10,000–2,50,000+
Dayananda Sagar College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
  • OBC: 70,000–1,70,000
  • SC: 1,20,000–2,50,000+
  • ST: 1,50,000+
  • OBC: 60,000–1,60,000
  • SC: 1,00,000–2,30,000+
  • ST: 1,30,000+
PES College of Pharmacy / Other Bangalore Privates
  • OBC: 80,000–2,10,000+
  • SC: 1,50,000+
  • ST: 1,80,000+
  • OBC: 70,000–1,90,000+
  • SC: 1,30,000+
  • ST: 1,60,000+
Vydehi Institute of Pharmacy / Other Mid-Tier
  • OBC: 1,00,000–2,50,000+
  • SC: 1,80,000+
  • ST: 2,00,000+
  • OBC: 90,000–2,30,000+
  • SC: 1,60,000+
  • ST: 1,90,000+

For Veterinary and Animal Husbandry courses

Veterinary College / Institute OBC Closing Ranks SC Closing Ranks ST Closing Ranks
Veterinary College, Bangalore (Top Preference) 2,000–6,000 6,000–16,000 8,000–22,000+
Veterinary College, Bidar 3,000–8,000 8,000–20,000 10,000–28,000+
Veterinary College, Shimoga 5,000–12,000 12,000–30,000 15,000–35,000+
Veterinary College, Hassan 6,000–15,000 15,000–35,000 18,000–45,000+
Other Affiliated / Constituent Colleges 10,000–20,000+ 20,000–50,000+ 22,000–55,000+

KCET 2026: Cutoff Shifts

Cutoffs in KCET will be relaxed in later rounds due to withdrawal, upgrades and vacant seats. However, top branches such as CSE in RVCE will see minimal shifts due to high competition and demand. In 2025, for pharmacy courses closing ranks were around ~70k.

Course / Branch / College Example Mock Allotment (Tightest) Round 1 (Initial) Round 2 (Moderate Relaxation) Round 3 / Final (Maximum Relaxation) Typical % Shift from Round 1 to Final
Engineering – CSE (Top Colleges), e.g., RVCE Bangalore 150–400 200–500 300–800 400–1,000 50–100%
Engineering – CSE (Mid-Tier), e.g., BIT Bangalore 3,000–5,000 4,000–6,000 5,000–9,000 6,000–12,000 80–150%
Engineering – ECE / AI/ML, e.g., BMSCE Bangalore 800–2,000 1,200–2,800 2,000–4,500 2,500–6,500 80–140%
Engineering – Mechanical / Civil e.g., MSRIT Bangalore 5,000–12,000 8,000–15,000 12,000–22,000 18,000–35,000+ 120–200%
B.Pharm / Pharm.D (Govt Bangalore) 8,000–20,000 15,000–40,000 30,000–70,000 50,000–90,000+ 150–200%
B.Pharm / Pharm.D (Private Mid-Tier) e.g., Vydehi 40,000–80,000 60,000–1,20,000 1,00,000–1,80,000 1,50,000–2,20,000+ 150–250%
B.Sc (Hons) Agriculture (UAS Bangalore) 2,000–5,000 4,000–8,000 6,000–12,000 8,000–18,000 100–150%
B.Sc Horticulture / Forestry 4,000–10,000 6,000–15,000 10,000–20,000 15,000–30,000 130–180%
B.V.Sc & A.H (Veterinary – Bangalore) 800–1,500 1,000–2,500 2,000–4,000 3,000–6,500 100–150%
B.V.Sc & A.H (Other Colleges), e.g., Bidar / Shimoga 2,000–4,000 3,000–6,000 5,000–10,000 8,000–15,000 150–200%

KCET 2026: Marks Vs Ranks

Students will get marks in KCET out of 180 with 3 papers of 60 marks each. However, only the KCET marks will not determine the ranks acquired by students as the ranks will be determined on the basis of 50:50 weightage to both KCET marks and 2nd PUC normalized marks.

For Engineering / PCM Streams

Marks Range (out of 180) Expected Rank Range
175 – 180 1 – 50
170 – 174 51 – 200
165 – 169 201 – 500
160 – 164 501 – 1,000
155 – 159 1,001 – 2,000
150 – 154 2,001 – 3,000
140 – 149 3,001 – 5,000
130 – 139 5,001 – 10,000
120 – 129 10,001 – 20,000
110 – 119 20,001 – 30,000
100 – 109 30,001 – 40,000
90 – 99 40,001 – 50,000
80 – 89 50,001 – 60,000
70 – 79 60,001 – 80,000
Below 70 80,001+

For Pharmacy / PCB and Agri/Vet Streams

Marks Range (out of 180) Expected Rank Range
170 – 180 1 – 200
160 – 169 201 – 1,000
150 – 159 1,001 – 3,000
140 – 149 3,001 – 6,000
130 – 139 6,001 – 10,000
120 – 129 10,001 – 20,000
Below 120 20,001+

KCET 2026: Safe Score

Safe score which are above the closing marks for that rank, increase the probability for students to get their desired college / branch despite the yearly fluctuations in cutoffs.

Based on 2025 data under 500 ranks will require a score of around 170+ as seen in previous years toppers.

Target Rank Range (GM) Safe KCET Score (out of 180)
Under 100–500 165–175+
Under 500–1,000 160–168
Under 1,000–2,000 150–160
Under 2,000–5,000 140–150
Under 5,000–10,000 130–140
Under 10,000–20,000 115–130
Under 20,000–50,000 95–115
Above 50,000 Below 95

KCET 2026: Factors Influencing Cutoffs

Cutoffs are determined by the KEA on the basis of several factors such as number of candidates, difficulty of the exam, seats or vacancies etc. Given below are various factors taht influence the KCET cutoffs:

  • Number of Registered / Appearing / Qualified Candidates
  • Difficulty level of the exam
  • Total number of available seats or seat matrix
  • Performance of candidates in 2nd PUC as well as in KCET 2026
  • Reservation Policies and Quota’s
  • Popularity of Branch / College / Course
  • Counselling Rounds

KCET 2026: Frequently Asked Questions

Ques. What is the difference between qualifying and admission cutoff in KCET 2026?

Ans. Qualifying cutoff is the minimum eligibility to appear for the exam and counselling process whereas admission cutoff is based on rank acquired by students on the basis of merit and marks obtained.

Ques. Do cutoffs differ for different categories such as SC, ST and OBC in KCET 2026?

Ans. Yes, the categories get relaxation due to fixed quota of seats reserved for them. For example a general category student should require around a rank of 500 for CSE but SC/ST candidate can get CSE at around 10,000 rank.

Ques. Can I predict my college/branch before the release of official cutoffs?

Ans. Yes, you can easily predict your college/branch using your expected marks or rank through college predictors available online. Given below is a college predictor of Collegedunia which you can use.

Ques. Is there any change in cutoff policy for KCET 2026?

Ans. As of now there are no changes in the cutoff policy. However, students are advised to check the official website for any changes in the near future.

Ques. If my rank is on borderline, should I wait for later rounds in KCET 2026?

Ans. Yes, as many seats will open in 2nd or 3rd rounds due to vacant seats. You should fill multiple options in choice filing or option entry to get a seat.