QS Asia Rankings 2027: India adds 34 universities, leads in research output; IIT Delhi slips to 66th

India has retained its position as Asia’s second-largest higher education system in the QS Asia Rankings 2027, with 325 universities featuring in the latest edition. The country added 34 institutions this year, taking its share to 19% of all universities ranked across the region.

All six of India’s highest-ranked universities have slipped in the rankings, with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi continuing to lead at 66th place, compared with 59th last year.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore secured the 79th position, down from 64th, while IIT Bombay ranked 83rd against 71st in the previous edition. IIT Madras dropped to 85th from 70th, IIT Kharagpur to 90th from 77th, and IIT Kanpur to 97th from 77th. The University of Delhi also moved out of Asia’s top 100, falling from 95th to 106th place.

Ben Sowter, QS Senior Vice President, said: "India’s remarkable rise in the QS Asia University Rankings reflects the growing strength of its research ecosystem and doctoral education. With the number of ranked institutions increasing more than thirteenfold since 2016, India has achieved a rate of growth unmatched by any other major higher education system in Asia."

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Indian universities in QS Asia Rankings 2027: Top 200 list

Twenty-one Indian universities feature in Asia’s top 200 in the QS 2027 rankings, compared with 20 in the previous edition. The list includes IITs, central universities and private institutions. Check the rank-wise list below.

Despite the gains, 71% of Indian universities in the rankings recorded a decline, while 18% improved and 11% retained their positions.

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India leads Asia in research output per faculty

As many as 27 Indian universities feature among Asia’s top 50 for Papers per Faculty, which measures research publications relative to academic staff. Five are in the regional top 10, including IISc Bangalore at first place, IIT Madras at third, IIT Delhi at seventh, IIT Roorkee at eighth and IIT Ropar at ninth.

India also has 15 universities sharing the top position in Asia for the Staff with PhD indicator. A total of 47 Indian institutions feature in the regional top 100 for this measure, compared with 16 in 2018. Only three Indian universities are among Asia’s top 50 for Citations per Paper, indicating a gap between publication output and the influence of research.

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Top Universities in Asia

The University of Hong Kong has retained the top position in the QS Asia University Rankings 2027 for the second consecutive year, while Peking University remained second. Tsinghua University climbed six places to third, giving mainland China two universities in the top three for the first time since 2023.

Hong Kong universities also performed strongly, with City University of Hong Kong and The Chinese University of Hong Kong securing fourth and fifth positions, respectively. Meanwhile, Singapore’s National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) slipped to sixth and eighth places from joint third last year.