What Is a Good Score in AILET? Marks vs Rank & Expected Cut Off (2026)

The Post

If you have just walked out of the AILET exam hall — or you are still deep in preparation — one question keeps circling back: what is a good score in AILET? The honest answer is that a good AILET score is 80 marks or more out of 150. That range has historically placed a General-category candidate inside roughly the top 260 ranks and firmly in contention for a BA LLB seat at National Law University (NLU) Delhi, the only institution that admits students through AILET. Push into the 90–100 band and you enter what most mentors call the “safe zone” — a score that has cleared the General cut off in every recent admission cycle.

But “good” is not one fixed number. It shifts with your category, the difficulty of the paper, and the number of seats on offer. This guide breaks down exactly what a good score looks like for every category, how your marks convert into a rank, and what the AILET cut off for 2025 and the expected cut off for 2026 reveal about your real chances.

What Is a Good Score in AILET? (Quick Answer)

A good score in AILET is 80+ out of 150 for General-category aspirants targeting NLU Delhi. A score of 90–100+ is a comfortable safe zone, and anything above 100 is an excellent, top-rank score. For reserved categories the bar is lower — roughly 65–75 marks for OBC and EWS, and 45–55 for SC and ST candidates. These benchmarks are drawn from AILET marks-vs-rank trends of recent years; the official cut off is declared by NLU Delhi after each exam.

Good score at a glance (General category)

Note: ranks are indicative projections based on past AILET marks-vs-rank data, not official NLU Delhi figures.

Understanding AILET Exam Marks: How the 150-Mark Paper Works

To judge what a good score is, you first need to know how AILET exam marks are calculated. The AILET UG (five-year BA LLB Hons.) paper carries a total of 150 marks — 150 multiple-choice questions, each worth one mark. There is negative marking: every wrong answer costs you 0.25 marks, while unattempted questions carry no penalty. In practice, this scoring system rewards accuracy over blind guessing, and it is the single biggest reason two students who “attempted the same number” can end up 40 ranks apart.

The paper is spread across three sections — English Language, Current Affairs & General Knowledge, and Logical Reasoning. Because there is no sectional cut off, your total out of 150 is what maps to a rank. You can confirm the latest pattern and eligibility on the official NLU Delhi AILET admission page. That is why chasing raw attempts is a trap: four careless wrong answers wipe out a full correct one. A student scoring 85 clean marks will usually out-rank one who “attempted 120” but guessed loosely.

What about AILET exam marks 2027?

For candidates already planning ahead, the AILET exam marks 2027 structure is expected to stay the same. NLU Delhi has kept the 150-mark, single-paper format stable for several cycles, so 2027 aspirants can safely prepare against the same pattern, the same negative-marking rule, and the same marks-vs-rank logic — unless and until the university announces a change on the official AILET website. In other words, the definition of a “good score” you are reading now is a reliable target for the next cycle too.

AILET Marks vs Rank 2026: Convert Your Score into a Rank

The most useful way to answer “is my score good?” is to convert it into an expected rank. The table below maps AILET marks to an expected rank range and your realistic admission chance at NLU Delhi for the BA LLB programme, based on recent trends.

Notice how tightly the ranks are packed. Between 80 and 95 marks — a swing of just 15 marks — the rank moves from about 260 all the way to the top 10. That is the brutal maths of a high-stakes exam with few seats: a difference of 1–2 marks can change your rank by 30–60 positions. It is why coaching mentors obsess over eliminating silly errors in the last month rather than learning new topics.

AILET Cut Off 2025: What Actually Closed at NLU Delhi

The AILET cut off 2025 refers to the closing rank at which NLU Delhi stopped admitting candidates in each category and round. Looking at what actually closed is far more reliable than any “safe marks” rumour, because the cut off reflects real seat allocation. In 2025, the BA LLB General category closed around rank 53 in the first round — tighter than in 2024, when it closed near rank 62.

AILET cutoff 2025 vs previous years (BA LLB, General, Round 1 closing rank)

The takeaway from the AILET cut off 2025 is simple: the bar has been creeping up. A rank that was comfortable in 2022 (72) would have missed the General list in 2025 (53). This is why, when people ask what a good score is, the safest answer is to aim a clear margin above the previous year’s closing mark rather than exactly at it.

AILET Cut Off 2026 & Expected NLU Delhi Cut Off

The official AILET cut off 2026 — also searched as the NLU Delhi cut off — is released round-wise once counselling begins and is published on the AILET 2026 official portal. Until then, an AILET 2026 expected cut off can be projected from the last four years of data. Based on that trend, the expected AILET 2026 General closing rank sits in roughly the 55–70 band, which maps to about 85–90 marks. The category-wise projection below is the practical version of “what is a good score” for each group.

AILET 2026 expected cut off (category-wise projection)

These are expected figures based on historical trends and coaching analysis — the NLU Delhi cut off 2026 will be confirmed only on the official merit list.

Category-Wise Good Score in AILET

Because reservation changes the closing rank dramatically, “a good score” means something different for each candidate:

• General: 80+ is good, 90+ is safe. This group faces the highest cut off and the fewest reserved cushions.

• OBC-NCL: 65–75 is a competitive score, landing you in the ~480–700 rank band.

• EWS: 60–70 is a solid target; EWS closing ranks track slightly ahead of OBC in most years.

• SC: 48–55 marks typically clears the SC list (rank ~1,200–1,750).

• ST: 42–52 marks is generally enough (rank ~2,400–3,050), the most accessible closing band.

If your score sits just below your category’s expected cut off, do not write off NLU Delhi yet — later counselling rounds and withdrawals routinely pull the closing rank down, so borderline candidates are often admitted from the waitlist.

Why Do “Good Score” Numbers Vary So Much Online?

If you have searched this question before, you have probably seen wildly different answers — one page says 70+ is safe, another insists you need 120+. Both can look authoritative, and the contradiction is genuinely confusing. Here is what is actually going on:

• Different paper difficulty. An “80 is safe” figure may come from a tougher year where 80 genuinely topped the charts; a “120+” figure usually assumes an easier paper where scores inflated.

• Raw marks vs projected safe marks. Some sites report the mark a past topper scored; others report a cushioned target they recommend you aim for.

• Mixing up rank and marks. A closing rank of ~53 is a fact; the marks behind it are an estimate that moves every year.

The reliable anchor is the closing rank, not a marks rumour. Ranks are published; “safe marks” are always a back-calculation. That is why this guide leads with rank bands and treats every mark figure as an expected projection. Use the marks-vs-rank table to translate your own score, and judge safety against the previous year’s closing rank with a margin on top.

How Many Marks Do You Need for NLU Delhi Specifically?

The reason AILET is so unforgiving is scarcity. NLU Delhi offers only about 110 seats in the five-year BA LLB programme, of which roughly 50 are General-category seats; the LLM programme adds around 70 seats. Compare that to the tens of thousands who sit the exam, and you can see why the General list closes inside the top ~70 ranks. To be genuinely safe for NLU Delhi as a General candidate, target 90+ marks; to be in the conversation, 80–85 is the floor. For OBC, EWS, SC and ST candidates, use the category table above — the same 110-seat scarcity applies, but reservation redistributes the closing ranks.

How to Score 80+ in AILET (Quick Strategy)

Turning a “good score” from a target into a result comes down to three habits:

• Guard against negative marking. With −0.25 per wrong answer, blind guesses bleed marks. Attempt only where you can eliminate at least two options.

• Bank the scoring sections. Logical Reasoning and English are the most predictable; lock down accuracy there before chasing GK breadth.

• Follow Current Affairs relentlessly. The GK & Current Affairs section is where ranks are won or lost, because it is the hardest to fake in the last week.

Because 1–2 marks equal 30–60 ranks, your last month should be about converting the marks you almost score into marks you actually score — timed mocks, error logs, and elimination discipline — rather than starting fresh topics.

Final Word: So, What Is a Good Score in AILET?

A good score in AILET is 80+ out of 150 if you are General, with 90–100+ being the true safe zone, and proportionally lower thresholds for reserved categories. But treat any single “magic number” with caution: the exam is decided by rank against a shrinking closing bar and just 110 NLU Delhi seats. Always confirm dates, seats and the final merit list on the official NLU Delhi admissions page. Score with accuracy, aim a clear margin above last year’s cut off, and use the marks-vs-rank table to keep your expectations grounded in data rather than rumour. Do that, and you will not just have a good score — you will have a seat-winning one.