The 23 IITs now offer 18,826 seats. The pool reserved for women has grown far faster than the overall number.

If you sat the JEE Advanced in 2022, the IIT system you were competing for was a lot smaller than the one on offer this year. The total number of seats across the IITs has grown 13.4% since then, to 18,826 in the 2026 JoSAA seat matrix. In 2022, the figure was roughly 16,600.

The bigger story is the seats set aside for women, which have grown much faster than the overall total.

The overall picture

Most of the growth is steady rather than dramatic. The IITs offered 18,160 seats in 2025, so this year’s total is 666 higher, an increase of about 3.7%. Twenty-three IITs took part in 2026 counselling. At least one institute stands out: IIT Jodhpur reportedly went from 610 to 750 seats.

Seats are not always the same as admissions. In 2025, JoSAA allotted 18,188 seats against an official capacity of 18,160, because the system sometimes allots slightly above capacity to reduce vacancies. In the final round of 2026, 18,861 seats were allotted.

Why there are seats just for women

The roots go back to 2018. The Joint Admission Board decided that year to raise the share of girls through a separate “supernumerary” list, meaning extra seats created for women without taking anything away from the existing general pool. Women’s enrolment had hovered around 8 to 9 percent for years, and the government’s stated aim was to lift it to 20 percent by 2026.

That target has effectively been reached. In 2025, 3,664 women were allotted seats out of 18,188, or 20.15%. In 2026, 3,814 women were allotted seats out of 18,861, or 20.22%.

The numbers on female-only supernumerary seats

Here is how the count of female-only supernumerary seats has moved:

• 2022: 1,567
• 2023: 1,453, a small dip
• 2024: 3,566, a jump of more than double
• 2025: 3,632

So after a slight fall in 2023, the number more than doubled in a single year and has stayed up since. For 2026, JoSAA lists 3,776 female-only seats, including supernumerary ones.

What it does and doesn’t tell us.

The seat numbers are a real, measurable gain. A girl with a good rank now has far more seats she can aim for than a few years ago.

But 20% is still a minority. Roughly four in five IIT students are men, and the target of 20% was set as a first step, not as parity. Seats are also only the first hurdle: the more difficult questions are how many girls take the JEE Advanced to begin with, and how many stay through four years of the course.

What to watch

Next year’s JoSAA seat matrix will show whether the IITs push beyond 20%, and whether the Joint Admission Board sets a new target now that the 2026 goal has been met.
 

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