Private medical colleges continue to account for a majority of the MBBS seats offered in India, with 73,643 private college seats (54%) compared with 63,296 government-run college seats (46%), according to the National Medical Commission’s 2026-27 seat matrix released recently for the academic year 2026-27.
Of the 9,911 MBBS seats added for the 2026-27 academic year, 7,800 seats (79%) have come up in private medical colleges, while 2,111 seats (21%) have been added in government colleges.
“This marks the first time that such a large majority of India’s undergraduate medical seats are in the private sector. This shifting to having more private MBBS seats is a trend that has been showing up over the past few years,’’ former national president of the Indian Medical Association Ravi S. Wankhedkar said. While the number of MBBS seats has expanded, the affordability of medical education has now emerged as a pressing concern, he added.
72,627 applications received for MBBS, BDS courses
Government medical colleges in India typically charge ₹5,000 to ₹1 lakh per year, with the total MBBS tuition cost ranging from about ₹25,000 to ₹5 lakh for the entire five-and-a-half-year course. In some States, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Delhi, tuition cost is well below ₹1 lakh for the full course, while in a few other States, it is higher. Hostel and other charges are levied additionally.
MBBS fees in private medical colleges in India vary widely, ranging from ₹3 lakh-₹12 lakh per year for government quota seats to ₹12-₹30 lakh per year for management quota and deemed university seats. The total cost of completing the five-and-a-half-year MBBS course, including hostel and other expenses, can range from ₹25 lakh to over ₹1.5 crore in private colleges, depending on the college and the quota.
India now has 1,36,939 MBBS seats across 823 medical colleges, the highest ever, and according to the Union Health Ministry, this is a significant step towards addressing the country’s shortage of doctors.
India witnessed an expansion in undergraduate medical education over the past decade, with MBBS seats increasing from 51,348 in 2014-15 to 1,36,939 in 2026-27.
The number of seats rose from 54,348 in 2015-16; 58,756 in 2016-17; 67,352 in 2017-18; 73,435 in 2018-19; 80,312 in 2019-20; 91,927 in 2020-21; 96,077 in 2021-22; 1,01,043 in 2022-23; 1,08,848 in 2023-24; 1,18,190 in 2024-25; and 1,23,700 in 2025-26, before reaching 1,36,939 seats this year across 823 medical colleges.
Over the past five years, the overall number of MBBS seats has grown steadily, but until recently, government medical colleges retained a slight majority. The balance, however, narrowed every year as private colleges expanded rapidly.
India’s MBBS seat distribution has steadily shifted towards the private sector. Government colleges accounted for about 52% of seats in 2022-23, but the gap narrowed to near parity by 2024-25. Private colleges overtook government institutions in 2025-26 and now account for 53.8% of all 1,36,939 MBBS seats, according to the National Medical Commission.
Published – August 04, 2026 03:47 pm IST
