IIT Seats: How Many Are Available and Who Gets Them?

When people talk about IIT seats, the limited number of undergraduate engineering positions across India’s 23 Indian Institutes of Technology. Also known as IIT admissions, these seats are among the most sought-after in the country, with over 20 lakh students competing for roughly 16,000 spots each year. That’s less than 1 in 13 applicants getting in—harder than getting into Harvard or Oxford. These aren’t just any college seats. They’re the gateway to top-tier engineering careers, high salaries, and national recognition.

Behind every IIT seat is the IIT JEE, the Joint Entrance Examination that filters students for admission into IITs. Also known as JEE Advanced, this exam is the main gatekeeper. It’s not just about memorizing formulas—it’s about solving complex problems under pressure, often after years of coaching. The top 2.5 lakh students from JEE Main qualify to take JEE Advanced, and only the top 10-12% of them land a seat. This isn’t luck. It’s strategy, persistence, and sometimes, the right coaching. You’ll find that the best IIT coaching institutes don’t just teach syllabus—they train students to think like engineers. They focus on patterns, time management, and mental resilience, not just physics formulas or calculus tricks.

But here’s the thing: IIT seats aren’t evenly distributed. About 50% go to the general category, while reserved categories get the rest based on government quotas. And within that, some IITs like Bombay, Delhi, and Madras get the highest number of applicants—and the most competitive cutoffs. Even if you crack JEE Advanced, your rank decides whether you get computer science at IIT Delhi or metallurgy at IIT BHU. The difference in career paths can be huge.

What most people don’t tell you is that many students who don’t get an IIT seat still end up in great engineering colleges—NITs, IIITs, or state universities. And some of the most successful engineers in India today didn’t go to an IIT. But if your goal is one of those 16,000 seats, you need to know the numbers, the timeline, and the real competition. Below, you’ll find real data, success stories, and breakdowns of coaching institutes that consistently produce top rankers. Whether you’re starting from scratch or trying to improve your rank, these posts give you the facts you need—not hype.