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University Directory · South Asia

Top 25 universities in India

The 25 leading universities and higher education institutions in India, ordered by the citations their research has received. Part of the WAC University Directory.

25 institutions listed · data October 2026

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  1. 1
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    Indian Institute of Science Bangalore (IISc)

    Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    • 91,701 research works
    • 4.5 million citations
    • h-index 464
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  2. 2

    Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR)

    Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

    • 35,451 research works
    • 4.3 million citations
    • h-index 639
  3. 3

    All India Institute of Medical Sciences

    New Delhi, Delhi, India

    • 78,017 research works
    • 3.9 million citations
    • h-index 437
  4. 4

    University of Delhi

    New Delhi, Delhi, India

    • 86,332 research works
    • 3.9 million citations
    • h-index 506
  5. 5

    Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT KGP)

    Kharagpur, West Bengal, India

    • 71,785 research works
    • 3.6 million citations
    • h-index 407
  6. 6

    Banaras Hindu University (BHU)

    Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

    • 66,252 research works
    • 3.5 million citations
    • h-index 399
  7. 7

    Panjab University

    Chandigarh, India

    • 34,998 research works
    • 3.2 million citations
    • h-index 490
  8. 8
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    Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB)

    Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

    • 67,065 research works
    • 3.2 million citations
    • h-index 408
    View full profile
  9. 9

    Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD)

    New Delhi, India

    • 71,653 research works
    • 3.2 million citations
    • h-index 396
    In WAC News: IIT Delhi to establish its first international campus in Abu Dhabi
  10. 10

    Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM)

    Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

    • 69,415 research works
    • 2.7 million citations
    • h-index 369
    In WAC News: IIT Madras to open first overseas IIT campus in Zanzibar after India-Tanzania accord
  11. 11

    Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK)

    Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India

    • 51,364 research works
    • 2.4 million citations
    • h-index 326
  12. 12

    Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER)

    Chandigarh, India

    • 50,202 research works
    • 2.4 million citations
    • h-index 350
  13. 13

    Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR)

    Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India

    • 50,558 research works
    • 2.3 million citations
    • h-index 382
  14. 14

    Vellore Institute of Technology University (VIT)

    Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India

    • 72,417 research works
    • 2.2 million citations
    • h-index 350
  15. 15

    Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR)

    Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

    • 37,492 research works
    • 2.1 million citations
    • h-index 323
  16. 16

    Aligarh Muslim University (AMU)

    Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

    • 40,906 research works
    • 2 million citations
    • h-index 373
  17. 17

    Jadavpur University

    Kolkata, West Bengal, India

    • 46,364 research works
    • 1.9 million citations
    • h-index 329
  18. 18

    Manipal Academy of Higher Education

    Manipal, Karnataka, India

    • 54,318 research works
    • 1.7 million citations
    • h-index 310
  19. 19

    Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG)

    Guwahati, India

    • 34,435 research works
    • 1.5 million citations
    • h-index 288
  20. 20

    Anna University, Chennai

    Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

    • 40,659 research works
    • 1.5 million citations
    • h-index 300
  21. 21

    Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham

    Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India

    • 41,292 research works
    • 1.2 million citations
    • h-index 274
  22. 22

    University of Calcutta

    Kolkata, West Bengal, India

    • 38,699 research works
    • 1.2 million citations
    • h-index 238
  23. 23

    SRM Institute of Science and Technology

    Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

    • 57,360 research works
    • 1.2 million citations
    • h-index 250
  24. 24

    Savitribai Phule Pune University

    Pune, Maharashtra, India

    • 35,805 research works
    • 1.1 million citations
    • h-index 289
  25. 25

    Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI)

    New Delhi, Delhi, India

    • 23,778 research works
    • 1.1 million citations
    • h-index 310

Ordered by total research citations recorded in OpenAlex (October 2026). Works, citations and h-index are OpenAlex figures for the institution. How the list is made.

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About the directory

How institutions are chosen and ordered

The directory lists 1436 universities, colleges and higher education institutions in 199 countries and territories. In countries with 200 or more higher education institutions recorded in OpenAlex it lists the top 25; everywhere else, the top 5.

Institutions are ordered by the total number of citations their research has received, as recorded in OpenAlex, the open catalogue of the world’s research, with data taken in October 2026. This is a transparent, research-based order: it favours large research institutions and does not measure teaching quality, student experience or graduate outcomes. University systems are left out in favour of their campuses, and faculties or institutes are left out when their parent university is already listed. Names, cities and websites come from OpenAlex and the Research Organization Registry (ROR).

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