Best Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026 for NID, UCEED & CEED

Summary: Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026 are an invaluable resource for aspiring designers preparing for competitive exams. Let's check out some of the best books for design entrance exams in 2026!

The world of design beckons with its creativity and innovation, and design entrance exams are the gateway to prestigious design schools and fulfilling careers.

But with so much to learn and prepare for, choosing the right study materials can feel overwhelming. In this post, we’ll explore the best books for design entrance exams 2026 that cover everything from drawing techniques to general awareness, and guide you on how to use them effectively for maximum results.

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Best Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026

The following are some of the best books experts recommend for designing entrance exams. These books cover all topics per the latest Syllabus for NID, NIFT, and UCEED.

Best Books for Design Entrance Exams	Author name
NID DAT Books (Aptitude Section)	R.S. Aggarwal
Design drawing	Francis D.K.Ching
Basic Rendering	Robert W.Gill
UCEED Entrance Books and Test Series	AFA India
Analytical Reasoning, Mental Aptitude, Verbal Aptitude (UCEED Guide)	Institute Of Creative Sciences
Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning	RS Aggarwal
Quantitative Aptitude	RS Aggarwal
Comprehensive English for NID, NIFT, UCEED, CEED, NATA, B.Arch & Other Design Entrance Exams	Designologue
Perspective Drawing Handbook	Joseph D'Amelio
Cracking CEED & UCEED (with Previous Years' Papers and Mock Tests)	Ashok Goel and Arjun Kamal
UCEED (B.Des) Entrance Books and Test Series	AFAINDIA
Cracking CEED & UCEED (with Previous Years' Papers and Mock Tests)	Ashok Goel and Arjun Kamal
Art perception	David Cycleback
CEED + NID	AFAINDIA
NIFT, NID, and IIFT Entrance Exam Guidelines 01	Dharmendra Mittal
NIFT, NID and IIFT Entrance Exam	Mittal D
Design Drawing	Francis Ching
Rendering in Pen and Ink	Robert Gill

Best Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026 for UCEED

UCEED 2026 is a national-level entrance exam conducted by IIT Bombay for providing admission to the Bachelor of Design (B.Design) program at IIT Bombay, IIT Guwahati, IIT Hyderabad, and IITDM Jabalpur.

You must select the best books and study material to crack this exam.

After much research, we found the books mentioned below, which contain all the varieties of questions asked in the UCEED Exam.

1. Brain Teasers by I am Livingstone and Jamie Thomson

• Brain Teasers, written by I am Livingstone and Jamie Thomson, is fascinating.
• While solving this book, you will fall in love with this book.
• This book has 211 logic puzzles based on lateral thinking, Memory-based questions, etc. Many exercises will help prepare for and crack the exam on the first attempt.
• We highly recommend that you practice using this book, as it will help you understand what questions may appear in the upcoming exam.

2. 536 Puzzles & Curious Problems by Henry Ernest Dudeney

• This book is also an exciting and handy book for you.
• This book has many unique puzzles to help you exponentially enhance your brain.
• This book has various questions that UCEED has asked or can ask.
• Authorities might consider these books while taking their entrance exams. When you solve the previous year's papers on UCEED and solving exercises from this book, you will find a similarity between them.
• The origin of the questions asked in UCCED has only been taken from the core of these books.

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Check: Can I do Fashion Design after 10th

3. The World’s 200 Hardest Brain Teasers by Dr Gary Gruber

A book that you must study for the UCEED/ CEED entrance examinations. Many questions are uniquely given in this book to enhance your logical brain.

Solving different questions in this book will help you understand the difficulty level and the essential topics from the exam point of view.

4. Math Puzzles Volume 1 by Presh Talwalkar

• After these three books, the last book is this, which we strongly recommend you study because it provides comprehensive information as per the UCEED Syllabus 2026.
• This book has questions based on riddles, counting, geometry, probability, mathematics, etc., for making exam question papers. These books are the primary source.
• You can study from these four books for the UCEED entrance examination because they have various questions you can ask in the test. After learning from these books, we can guarantee that you will get good marks on the examination.

Best Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026 for NIFT

If you appear for the NIFT Exam, refer to the best books describing each concept.

The following NIFT Preparation Books cover all the topics per the syllabus and provide practice questions under each topic.

1. How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for CAT by Arun Sharma

• The tricks and techniques mentioned in this book for the CAT examination will help you solve the NIFT examination's quantitative aptitude.
• Studying aptitude from these books can enhance your speed while solving the NIFT Question Papers.
• In this book, different difficulty levels of questions are given to solve, but you don’t have to solve all of them.
• You can solve the illustration and solve examples that are enough for the NIFT examination.

2. Takshzila

• They have created books that are very good for the NIFT examination. You can refer to their material.
• They have also created very insightfully designed preparation material. This book contains all the questions that can be asked in the NIFT entrance examination.

3. Verbal Reasoning Test Workbook by Mike Byron

• NIFT asks quantitative aptitude and verbal reasoning questions, so this book is the best. In this book, you will get all the questions NIFT asks in their verbal reasoning section in the examination.
• You should study well from these books to get good marks in the NIFT entrance examination.
• All three of these books are the best books for NIFT Exam Preparation. You should study from a selected portion of these books to enhance your speed in solving the questions in the examination.
• You will get confused about what to study or not to study from these books, so this is a self-study guide by Creative Edge, which will only help you learn by yourself.

Best Books for Design Entrance Exams 2026 for NID

The National Institute of Design entrance exam is slightly more accessible than other design tests. If you appear for the NID Exam, you must refer to the best books that explain each concept in depth.

We have provided the best NID preparation Books in the post below.

1. How to do non–verbal reasoning: A step-by-step guide by Kay Philip

• From this book, you get to learn how you can solve non-verbal reasoning quickly.
• In this book, you will get various questions and different techniques to solve the questions.
• This book is one of the best for preparing for non-verbal reasoning for the design entrance exam.

2. Diagrammatic Reasoning Tests by Mike Byron

• This book has practice questions and previous year's Question Papers for NID. You can also practice non-verbal reasoning questions from this book.
• While studying from this book, you can also enhance your imagination and observation skills, which are required for NID and UCEED.
• So, these are all the books you should consider studying if you want to crack any of the design entrance examinations.

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Check: NID Exam Syllabus

Why Choosing the Right Design Entrance Exams Books Matters

Selecting the best books for design entrance exams can make or break your preparation. With hundreds of resources available, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. The right set of books saves time, provides structured learning, and ensures that your practice is aligned with the latest exam trends.

Books recommended by toppers and design mentors not only help in concept clarity but also build problem-solving and visualization skills crucial for exams like NID and UCEED.

Key Takeaways

• The Best Books for Design Entrance Exams can help prospective students prepare for and successfully pass the various exams they may face.
• These books are an essential resource when preparing for a design entrance exam, as they provide detailed information on the topics covered and provide practice tests to help students become familiar with the exam format.
• With the proper preparation, these books can help students gain admission to their chosen design school.

Conclusion

The journey to becoming a successful designer begins with the right preparation strategy. The best books for design entrance exams help you understand exam patterns, master sketching, and develop creative thinking. Combine these resources with regular practice, curiosity, and a love for design — and success will follow naturally.

Whether you’re targeting NID, UCEED, NIFT, or CEED, these best books for design entrance exams are your most reliable companions on the road to success.