Medical Colleges in Kerala: Government and Self-Financing MBBS Seats, Fees and Last Ranks
Kerala has 14 government medical colleges and 21 self-financing ones in the 2026 state counselling, plus Amrita in Kochi through the central deemed-university counselling. This page lists each college with its district, 2026-27 seats, the fee set by government orders, and the last state-merit rank allotted in the first two rounds of 2026. It also explains how CEE Kerala allotment works and where Russia fits for a student who misses a seat.
In short: for 2026-27 the state counselling covers 14 government colleges with 1,855 MBBS seats and 21 self-financing colleges with 3,750 seats, about 5,600 in all. A government seat costs ₹23,150 a year in tuition. A self-financing general seat cost ₹8.10 to ₹9.31 lakh a year in 2025-26 in the colleges whose fees are published, which is about ₹36 to ₹42 lakh over the 54 months of study. In the first two 2026 rounds the last state-merit rank allotted ranged from 144 (Kozhikode, round 1) to about 10,800 (Palakkad Institute of Medical Sciences, round 2). Students whose rank falls outside the colleges they can afford are the ones who look at Russia.
How many medical colleges are there in Kerala?
The Commissioner for Entrance Examinations (CEE), Thiruvananthapuram, runs one common counselling for government and self-financing MBBS seats. Its KEAM 2026 prospectus lists 14 government medical colleges and 21 private self-financing medical colleges. The seat numbers below are the 2026-27 numbers: government colleges from the prospectus (including EWS seats sanctioned by the NMC), self-financing colleges from the seat-matrix orders of the Government of Kerala (G.O.(Ms) No. 224/2026 of 10 August 2026 and the later orders for individual colleges).
| Type | Colleges | MBBS seats 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| Government medical colleges | 14 | 1,855 |
| Private self-financing medical colleges | 21 | 3,750 |
| Total in state counselling | 35 | 5,605 |
The third group is outside CEE. Amrita School of Medicine in Kochi is a deemed university and fills its MBBS seats through the central MCC counselling on NEET all-India rank. Its own MBBS page lists 149 seats and a general-category tuition of ₹25,00,000 a year (₹1,12,50,000 for 4.5 years) in its 2026-27 fee table. We do not cover other institutions that admit only through MCC.
Government medical colleges in Kerala
These are the colleges people mean when they search "government medical colleges in Kerala". Seats include the 15% All India Quota that goes to MCC; the rest are allotted by CEE to Kerala candidates.
| College | District | Seats 2026-27 | Last state-merit rank, round 1 | Round 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T D Medical College, Alappuzha | Alappuzha | 175 | 625 | 731 |
| Government Medical College, Ernakulam (Kalamassery) | Ernakulam | 110 | 720 | 796 |
| Government Medical College, Idukki | Idukki | 100 | – | – |
| Government Medical College, Pariyaram | Kannur | 100 | 717 | 804 |
| Government Medical College, Kasaragod | Kasaragod | 50 | – | – |
| Government Medical College, Parippally | Kollam | 110 | 716 | 803 |
| Government Medical College, Kottayam | Kottayam | 175 | 485 | 542 |
| Government Medical College, Kozhikode | Kozhikode | 250 | 144 | 205 |
| Government Medical College, Manjeri | Malappuram | 110 | 721 | 782 |
| Government Medical College, Palakkad | Palakkad | 100 | – | – |
| Government Medical College, Konni | Pathanamthitta | 100 | – | 733 |
| Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram | Thiruvananthapuram | 250 | 290 | 365 |
| Government Medical College, Thrissur | Thrissur | 175 | 457 | 527 |
| Government Medical College, Wayanad | Wayanad | 50 | – | – |
Two rules explain why some government rows are empty or look easier than they are. At Government Medical College, Palakkad, the reservation pattern under a 2015 government order is 70% Scheduled Caste, 2% Scheduled Tribe, 13% general merit and 15% All India Quota, so very few state-merit seats exist. At Government Medical College, Kollam, 35% of seats are for wards of insured persons under the Employees' State Insurance Corporation and are not allotted by CEE, so only 50% is state quota. For Idukki, Kasaragod and Wayanad (and Konni in round 1) the state-merit column is empty, and the tables do not say why; check the community columns for those colleges. Read the table as the cut-off for open-category state-merit students, and use the community columns on the CEE last-rank page if you apply under a reservation.
In government seats the quota split is fixed: 50% state merit, 10% economically weaker sections, 30% socially and educationally backward classes (Ezhava 9%, Muslim 8%, Other Backward Hindu 3%, Latin Catholic and Anglo-Indian 3%, Dheevara 2%, Viswakarma 2%, Kusavan 1%, Other Backward Christian 1%, Kudumbi 1%), 8% Scheduled Caste and 2% Scheduled Tribe. A student in one of these communities can get a seat at a much higher rank number than the SM column shows. The CEE last-rank table gives the community-wise figure for every college.
Self-financing medical colleges in Kerala
Self-financing colleges fill their state-quota seats through the same CEE counselling, on the same NEET-based rank list. Fees are fixed by the Fee Regulatory Committee for Medical Education, headed by a retired High Court judge, and notified by the government. The general (85%) seats and the NRI (15%) seats carry different fees. The table shows the general-seat tuition per year for 2025-26, the latest year for which fees were notified college by college.
| College | District | Seats 2026-27 | General tuition per year, 2025-26 | Last SM rank, round 1 | Round 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Moopen's Medical College, Meppadi | Wayanad | 250 | ₹9,31,118 | 7,738 | 9,813 |
| Sree Narayana Institute of Medical Sciences, Chalakka | Ernakulam | 150 | ₹8,92,459 | 6,873 | 7,375 |
| MES Medical College, Perinthalmanna | Malappuram | 200 | ₹8,56,840 | 2,966 | 3,648 |
| Malabar Medical College, Modakkallur | Kozhikode | 250 | ₹8,56,840 | 5,147 | 5,546 |
| Travancore Medical College, Umayanalloor | Kollam | 200 | ₹8,56,840 | 4,582 | 4,751 |
| Azeezia Medical College, Meyyannoor | Kollam | 150 | ₹8,56,840 | 6,955 | 8,375 |
| Dr. Somervell Memorial CSI Medical College, Karakonam | Thiruvananthapuram | 200 | ₹8,56,840 | 5,329 | 6,414 |
| Al-Azhar Medical College, Thodupuzha | Idukki | 250 | ₹8,56,840 | 8,876 | 10,013 |
| Mount Zion Medical College, Adoor | Pathanamthitta | 200 | ₹8,50,436 | 8,105 | 9,275 |
| KMCT Medical College, Manassery | Kozhikode | 250 | ₹8,47,690 | 5,067 | 5,930 |
| Karuna Medical College, Vilayodi | Palakkad | 150 | ₹8,27,169 | 7,795 | 8,884 |
| SUT Academy of Medical Sciences, Vattappara | Thiruvananthapuram | 250 | ₹8,15,329 | 6,233 | 7,084 |
| Sree Gokulam Medical College, Venjaramoodu | Thiruvananthapuram | 150 | ₹8,10,175 | 3,481 | 3,694 |
| Kerala Medical College, Mangode | Palakkad | 150 | ₹8,10,175 (provisional) | 8,087 | 9,742 |
| Amala Institute of Medical Sciences | Thrissur | 100 | not in the order | 2,147 | 2,310 |
| Jubilee Mission Medical College | Thrissur | 150 | not in the order | 1,753 | 2,050 |
| Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla | Pathanamthitta | 100 | not in the order | 2,998 | 3,127 |
| Pushpagiri Institute of Medical Sciences, Thiruvalla | Pathanamthitta | 100 | not in the order | 2,608 | 2,908 |
| Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church Medical College, Kolenchery | Ernakulam | 100 | not in the order | 2,661 | 2,777 |
| P K Das Institute of Medical Sciences, Ottapalam | Palakkad | 250 | not in the order | 8,457 | 9,262 |
| Palakkad Institute of Medical Sciences, Walayar | Palakkad | 150 | not in the order | 9,716 | 10,842 |
The pattern is clear in the last ranks. Jubilee, Amala, Malankara, Pushpagiri, Believers, MES and Sree Gokulam closed round 2 at state-merit ranks between about 2,050 and 3,700. Al-Azhar, Karuna, Mount Zion, P K Das, PIMS and Kerala Medical College reached ranks between about 8,900 and 10,800. A rank of 6,000 therefore gets a general-category seat in several colleges, but not in the ones closest to a big city.
Where does your NEET rank fit?
Send your NEET score and category; we tell you which Kerala colleges are realistic and what the Russian alternative costs.
MBBS fees in Kerala: government, self-financing and NRI
Government colleges. The government order G.O.(Ms) No. 92/2023/H&FWD of 19 April 2023 fixed MBBS tuition at ₹23,150 a year for students admitted from 2023-24, with a caution deposit of ₹2,320, miscellaneous fee of ₹1,740 and a van fee of ₹1,740, a total of ₹28,950. Hostel and mess are extra. Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and certain other eligible communities admitted on merit are exempted from fees under the rules in the prospectus.
Self-financing colleges. The Fee Regulatory Committee fixed 2025-26 tuition at ₹8,10,175 to ₹9,31,118 for the 12 colleges in the 2025 order, and ₹22,74,006 for NRI-quota seats in every one of them. SUT Academy's own order of 4 June 2026 gives ₹8,15,329 for general seats and ₹22,74,006 for NRI seats, with a special fee of ₹81,841 in the first year and ₹59,200 in later years. These are annual figures.
The 54-month change. On 17 July 2026 the Government of Kerala ordered every government and self-financing medical college to charge MBBS fees only for the 54 months of academic study, not for the compulsory internship year, in line with an NMC public notice of 7 April 2026 (G.O.(Rt) No. 2326/2026/H&FWD). The Fee Regulatory Committee is to refix the self-financing fees. Refunds of excess fees already collected depend on a Kerala High Court case, and the High Court stayed the NMC's refund letter for three months on 19 June 2026. So for a 2026 admission, ask the college in writing what total it will charge and when.
| Seat type | Tuition per year | Tuition for 4.5 years (annual × 4.5) |
|---|---|---|
| Government college | ₹23,150 | about ₹1.04 lakh |
| Self-financing, general seat (lowest and highest in the table above) | ₹8,10,175 to ₹9,31,118 | about ₹36.5 to ₹41.9 lakh |
| Self-financing, NRI seat | ₹22,74,006 | about ₹1.02 crore |
How admission to Kerala medical colleges works
You do not apply to the colleges. You apply once to CEE Kerala, and CEE allots every government seat and every state-quota seat in the self-financing colleges. The steps in 2026, from the CEE notifications, were these.
- NEET-UG. Appear for NEET-UG. The Kerala medical rank list is prepared from the NEET-UG rank, subject to the Kerala nativity conditions in the prospectus.
- KEAM application. Applications were invited on 5 January 2026 and closed after extensions in early February. Medical candidates add the medical course in the same application and later submit the NEET score through the candidate portal (in August 2026, after the NEET result).
- Rank list. CEE published the provisional state rank list on 13 August and the rank lists on 14 August 2026. NRI candidates upload sponsor documents separately.
- Option registration and allotment. You register options (colleges in order of preference) and pay an option registration fee. Allotments came in late August (round 1), around 11 to 14 September (round 2) and 8 to 11 October (round 3), with a stray-vacancy round to follow. If you are allotted a seat and do not pay and join, you lose that allotment and your remaining options.
- Fee and joining. Government-college fees are paid to CEE; self-financing fees are paid to the allotted college.
Separately, 15% of the seats in government colleges are the All India Quota and go to the central counselling run by MCC; a Kerala student can compete for those on NEET all-India rank, in addition to the state list. In the self-financing colleges, the approved matrices set aside up to 15% of seats for NRI candidates, 15% for candidates irrespective of domicile (also allotted by CEE, open to students from other states) and, in some colleges, up to 50% for community candidates. The numbers vary college by college and the 2026-27 orders list them.
How to read the last rank before you choose
- The figures are state ranks, not NEET marks. Ask how your NEET marks translate, using the previous year's rank list, or send us your score and category.
- They are for the open state-merit category. Reserved categories close at higher rank numbers.
- Each round after the first moves them, because students who got a better seat leave a vacancy behind. Round 3 and the stray-vacancy round of 2026 were not in the tables we could read.
- A last rank from this year is a guide, not a promise for next year. Seat numbers rose at several colleges for 2026-27 (Dr. Moopen's, MES, Azeezia, Somervell, Mount Zion), which can move cut-offs.
Where Russia fits for a Kerala student
For a student who gets a government seat in Kerala, nothing abroad competes: ₹23,150 a year against lakhs. Russia is relevant in three cases. First, the rank is too high a number for any government seat and the family does not want to pay ₹36 to ₹42 lakh in tuition for a self-financing seat or ₹1 crore for an NRI seat. Second, the rank would get a self-financing seat but only in a college far from home. Third, the student wants to repeat NEET but wants a fallback.
Russian state universities outside Moscow charge roughly ₹2.4 lakh to ₹14.1 lakh a year in tuition, with a median of ₹4.4 lakh, over six years. The extra costs are real: living abroad, flights, the FMGE exam (about one in four Russian graduates passed over 2022 to 2025) and a 12-month internship in India. The full comparison of MBBS fees in Kerala and Russia puts the totals side by side, and the guide on KEAM allotment versus MBBS abroad explains when to wait for the stray-vacancy round and when to commit to the Russian application. The NMC rules that make a Russian degree usable in India are on the NMC rules page, and the universities we cover are listed on the Russian universities page.
Get a Kerala-or-Russia cost sheet
Send your NEET score and category; we put your realistic Kerala colleges and three Russian universities on one page.
Edumapple Global Education LLP counsels Kerala families from its office in Kakkanad, Kochi, in English and Malayalam; see about us and how to reach us. If you live in Thiruvananthapuram, we also have a page on the medical colleges in Thiruvananthapuram.
Medical Colleges in Kerala: Frequently Asked Questions
How many medical colleges are there in Kerala?
The 2026 state counselling by CEE Kerala covers 14 government and 21 private self-financing MBBS colleges, 35 in all. Amrita School of Medicine in Kochi, a deemed university, admits through the central MCC counselling instead.
How many MBBS seats are there in Kerala?
For 2026-27 the CEE counselling matrix adds up to 5,605 seats, 1,855 in government colleges and 3,750 in self-financing colleges. The NMC's figure for 2025-26 is 5,404. Seats were added at several colleges in August and September 2026, so check the CEE site before you decide.
What is the MBBS fee in Kerala government medical colleges?
Tuition is ₹23,150 a year under the government order of 19 April 2023, with caution deposit, miscellaneous and van fee taking the yearly total to ₹28,950. Hostel and mess are extra. Since July 2026 tuition is charged only for the 54 months of study.
What is the MBBS fee in Kerala self-financing colleges?
For 2025-26 the government order lists ₹8,10,175 to ₹9,31,118 a year for general seats in 12 colleges, and ₹22,74,006 for NRI seats. Over 4.5 years that is roughly ₹36 to ₹42 lakh for a general seat. The 2026-27 fees are still to be refixed by the Fee Regulatory Committee.
What rank do I need for a government medical college in Kerala?
In the first two 2026 rounds the last open state-merit rank allotted was between 144 (Kozhikode, round 1) and 804 (Kannur, round 2) at the larger government colleges. These are KEAM state ranks, not NEET all-India ranks. Reserved categories close at higher numbers.
Which is the best government medical college in Kerala?
We do not rank colleges. The last-rank table shows which ones are hardest to get into: Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Kottayam closed at the lowest rank numbers. Choose by rank you can realistically get, distance from home and the college's own hospital and records.
What if I do not get a seat in Kerala?
Options are a repeat year for NEET, a seat in another state through MCC, or MBBS abroad. Abroad, the student needs only the NEET qualifying score, but the FMGE exam at the end is hard. Choose the university by FMGE results, English-medium teaching and fees.
Sources: CEE Kerala, KEAM 2026 prospectus (Annexure III(1) and III(2), clauses 2.2, 4.1.5, 9.7.4, 12); CEE Kerala KEAM 2026 notifications (5 January to 11 October 2026) and last-rank tables of the first (27 August 2026) and second (14 September 2026) allotments; Government of Kerala G.O.(Ms) No. 224/2026, 241/2026, 251/2026, 265/2026 and 304/2026 (seat matrices 2026-27); G.O.(Ms) No. 354/2025/H&FWD of 18 October 2025 (self-financing MBBS fees 2025-26); Fee Regulatory Committee order FRC 50/25/MD/MS/MBBS/SUT of 4 June 2026; G.O.(Ms) No. 92/2023/H&FWD of 19 April 2023 (government-college fees); G.O.(Rt) No. 2326/2026/H&FWD of 17 July 2026 (54-month fee rule); CEE Kerala notification of 6 October 2025 (provisional fee, Kerala Medical College); NMC circular of 10 March 2026 (MBBS seats by state); Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham MBBS page (2026-27 fee table); NBEMS FMGE reports 2022 to 2025. Checked 15 October 2026.