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    State-Wise NLU Cut-Off Trends: Is 90 a Safe Score in CLAT 2026?

    State-Wise NLU Cut-Off Trends: Is 90 a Safe Score in CLAT 2026?

    Isha GargUpdated on 07 Dec 2025, 06:14 PM IST

    Whether scoring 90 marks is a safe score or not depends on the difficulty level of the exam, specific NLU, CLAT seats matrix and CLAT reservation criteria. For top NLUs like NLSIU Bengaluru and NALSAR Hyderabad, scoring 90 can be a borderline mark. These top universities typically close admissions near 94-95 marks with closing ranks around 110-160. However, scoring 90 marks or slightly above is generally safe for mid-tier NLUs such as NLIU Bhopal, GNLU Gandhinagar, and MNLU Mumbai, which have closing marks between 90 and 91 and closing ranks from 440 to 560.

    State-Wise NLU Cut-Off Trends: Is 90 a Safe Score in CLAT 2026?
    State-Wise NLU Cut-Off Trends: Is 90 a Safe Score in CLAT 2026?

    Additionally, spot rounds also further increase the chances of getting into several reputed NLUs at 90. Reserved categories (SC, ST, OBC, EWS) have lower CLAT cut-offs, where 85-90 often secures seats easily. Aspirants targeting tier 1 NLUs should aim to exceed 92-93 marks for a safer admission route.

    Top NLUs Closing Ranks and Closing Marks 2025 for General

    NLU

    Main counselling closing rank

    Main closing marks

    NLSIU Bengaluru

    112

    94.4

    NALSAR Hyderabad

    159

    93.9

    WBNUJS Kolkata

    327

    92.2

    NLU Jodhpur

    367

    91.8

    GNLU Gandhinagar

    444

    91

    NLIU Bhopal

    480

    90.6

    MNLU Mumbai

    558

    90.1

    Spot Round Closing Ranks and Marks 2025

    NLU

    Spot round closing rank

    Spot round closing marks

    NLSIU Bengaluru

    -

    ~99.5+ (AIR 1)

    NALSAR Hyderabad

    168

    93.8

    WBNUJS Kolkata

    485

    90.6

    GNLU Gandhinagar

    451

    90.9

    NLIU Bhopal

    527

    90.4

    MNLU Mumbai

    550

    90.3

    NLUs Accessible at 85-90 Marks Tier-Wise

    Here are the tier-wise categories of NLUs accessible with a score of 85-90 marks in CLAT 2026:

    • Tier 1 NLUs: Top NLUs such as NLSIU Bengaluru, NALSAR Hyderabad, WBNUJS Kolkata, NLIU Bhopal, GNLU Gandhinagar, and NLU Jodhpur face high competition. 90 marks are seen as borderline in these institutions and can not ensure admission for general candidates. However, reserved category students (SC, ST, OBC, EWS) can secure seats at these NLUs with this score due to lower cut-offs.

    • Tier 2 NLUs: A score of 90 marks is usually sufficient for admission here. These universities include NLIU Bhopal, WBNUJS Kolkata, HNLU Raipur, RMLNLU Lucknow, NLU Odisha, NUSRL Ranchi, DSNLU Visakhapatnam, MNLU Mumbai, MNLU Nagpur, CNLU Patna, and NUALS Kochi.

    • Tier 3 NLUs: A score of 90 marks comfortably ensures admission in these institutions. These NLUs are: GNLU Silvassa, RGNUL Patiala, NLUJA Assam, TNNLU Tiruchirappalli, MNLU Aurangabad, HPNLU Shimla, MPDNLU Jabalpur, DBRANLU Sonepat, NLUT Agartala, RPNLU Prayagraj, and IIULER Goa.
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    Questions related to CLAT

    On Question asked by student community

    Have a question related to CLAT ?

    Several top law colleges are accepting the CLAT score, other than the NLUs. These include:

    • Siksha ‘O’ Anusadhan University, Bhubaneswar
    • Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Science, Chennai
    • Lovely Professional University
    • Institute of Law, Nirma University

    Candidates can check out the detailed list of non-NLUs accepting CLAT for admission in

    Hi,

    You can refer to books like AP Bhardwaj for legal aptitude, RS Aggarwal for reasoning, and dedicated guides like CULET Guide by Dipanjan Mitra for best preparation for CULET. Additionally, you can refer to the CULET previous year question papers .

    SASTRA Deemed University accepts CLAT scores for admission. They admit students based on CLAT scores as well as class 12 marks, with an aggregate score of 50% in English. Based on these scores, a merit list is published by the university.