In the Old Rajinder Nagar vs Mukherjee Nagar choice, live where your classes are: the cross-town metro costs Rs 43 each way and about 31 minutes on trains. On Hostel360 as of October 2026, Mukherjee Nagar has 77 listings with its name in the address against 21 for Old Rajinder Nagar, so it offers more choice. Old Rajinder Nagar has the closer metro station. The rest of this page is decision criteria only.
For lanes, blocks and room types inside each area, read our Old Rajinder Nagar PG guide for UPSC aspirants and our guide to PGs in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi. Current rooms are on the Old Rajinder Nagar PGs and hostels page and the Mukherjee Nagar PGs and hostels page, with girls-only filters for girls hostels in Old Rajinder Nagar and girls hostels in Mukherjee Nagar. To widen the search, browse all hostels and PGs in Delhi.
| Key number | Value | Scope / data checked |
|---|---|---|
| Listings naming the area in the address | Old Rajinder Nagar 21, Mukherjee Nagar 77 | Hostel360, data checked October 2026 |
| Girls-only listings in those counts | 4 vs 23 | Hostel360, data checked October 2026 |
| Nearest metro, straight-line | Rajendra Place 0.94 km vs GTB Nagar 1.78 km | Computed from area and station points, October 2026 |
| Weekday token fare between the two | Rs 43 one way | DMRC journey planner, Rajendra Place to GTB Nagar, October 2026 |
| UPSC CSE prelims 2027 | 23 May 2027 | UPSC Annual Calendar 2027 |
Old Rajinder Nagar vs Mukherjee Nagar: how do the numbers compare?
Mukherjee Nagar has 3.7 times as many listings that name it in the address (77 against 21), more girls-only rooms and far more reviews per listing. Old Rajinder Nagar has a slightly higher median rating, 4.6 against 4.4, and a metro station under 1 km away. The share rated 4.0 or higher is identical at 68%.
The top rows count Hostel360 listings whose address text names the area (data checked October 2026). The radius rows count every listing within a straight-line distance of each area's map point, so they include neighbouring colonies; road distance is longer.
| Measure | Old Rajinder Nagar | Mukherjee Nagar |
|---|---|---|
| Listings, address names the area | 21 | 77 |
| Girls-only / boys-only / co-ed | 4 / 8 / 9 | 23 / 28 / 26 |
| Median Google rating (rated listings) | 4.6 (19 rated) | 4.4 (76 rated) |
| Rated 4.0 or higher | 13 of 19 = 68% | 52 of 76 = 68% |
| Median number of Google reviews | 8 | 27.5 |
| Main pincodes | 110060 (18), 110005 (3) | 110033 (57), 110009 (17) |
| Nearest metro, straight-line | Rajendra Place, Blue Line, 0.94 km (Karol Bagh 1.01 km) | GTB Nagar, Yellow Line, 1.78 km |
| Listings within 1 km of the area point | 68 | 72 |
| Listings within 3 km of the area point | 158 | 235 |
The 1 km counts are close (68 vs 72) because Old Rajinder Nagar borders Karol Bagh, where 53 more listings carry the Karol Bagh name, 51 of them in pincode 110005. Open to the Karol Bagh side? Then the supply gap shrinks. Also, a 4.6 median from listings with a median of 8 reviews is a thinner signal than 4.4 from listings with 27.5. Treat the rating gap as a tie.
What does it cost to live in one area and study in the other?
Rs 43 each way by token on the Delhi Metro, Rajendra Place to GTB Nagar, with a change at Rajiv Chowk and 31 minutes on trains, per the DMRC journey planner (October 2026). Over 26 class days that is Rs 2,236 a month, plus about 27 hours of travel, before walking to either station.
We ran the route through the official DMRC journey planner for a weekday morning. It returned 13 stations: Blue Line from Rajendra Place to Rajiv Chowk (about 9 minutes), then Yellow Line to Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar (about 17 minutes), plus the interchange. The DMRC fare page puts trips of 12 to 21 km at Rs 43 Monday to Saturday and Rs 32 on Sundays and national holidays. Coaching runs six days a week, so we use 26 days and the weekday fare.
| Cross-commute, Rajendra Place to GTB Nagar | Math | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Token, one month | 43 x 2 x 26 | Rs 2,236 |
| Smart card, per ride | 43 x 0.9 | Rs 38.70 |
| Smart card, one month | 38.70 x 52 | Rs 2,012 |
| Token, November 2026 to May 2027 (7 months) | 2,236 x 7 | Rs 15,652 |
| Smart card, same 7 months | 2,012.40 x 7 | Rs 14,087 |
| Train time, one month | 31 min x 2 x 26 | 1,612 min, about 27 hours |
The smart card line uses the 10% per-journey discount on the DMRC smart card page. The money is modest next to rent. The time is the real cost: 27 hours a month is more than a full day and night of study lost. Add the 1.78 km straight-line stretch between Mukherjee Nagar and GTB Nagar station, which most students cover by e-rickshaw or on foot, and the door-to-door trip is longer still. We could not find an official e-rickshaw fare table, so we have not priced that leg.
So cross-commute only for a test series or optional class that meets two or three days a week, and price just those days at the weekday fare.
Which area has more girls-only PGs?
Mukherjee Nagar, clearly. On Hostel360 as of October 2026, 23 of its 77 address-matched listings are girls-only, about 30%, against 4 of 21 in Old Rajinder Nagar, about 19%. Within 1 km of GTB Nagar metro, 69 of 122 listings are girls-only, which is 57%.
The wider radius tells the same story. Within 3 km of the Mukherjee Nagar point, 107 of 235 listings are girls-only (46%). Within 3 km of Old Rajinder Nagar, it is 53 of 158 (about a third), and many of those are on the Karol Bagh side, where 20 of 53 listings are girls-only.
For a woman student whose classes are in Old Rajinder Nagar, four address-matched girls-only options is a small pool, so compare co-ed buildings with separate floors as well. Decide early whether you want a single or shared room, since that halves an already short list; our comparison of single vs sharing rooms for exam preparation sets out the trade-off.
When should a UPSC aspirant book a room in either area?
Before the notification, not after. The UPSC Annual Calendar 2027 sets the CSE notification for 13 January 2027, prelims for 23 May 2027 and Mains from 20 August 2027. Prelims is 223 days from 12 October 2026, so a November move leaves one clean run of preparation.
Work the agreement dates backwards from the exams. An 11-month agreement starting 1 November 2026 ends on 30 September 2027, after both prelims and the five-day Mains window. One starting in March 2027 would end in January 2028, but you would be house-hunting during the last weeks before prelims. Ask in writing whether the agreement can run month to month if you clear prelims and stay for Mains.
What to check before paying in either area
Run these checks on the visit, before any money moves. Each line is tied to how Old Rajinder Nagar or Mukherjee Nagar works for an aspirant: dense old buildings, late library hours and coaching-timed food. Get the deposit, refund period and agreement dates in writing.
- Basement and lower floors: in Old Rajinder Nagar's 110060 blocks, refuse any room or reading space below street level; use our basement room safety checklist on the stairs, drainage and second exit.
- Exit routes in tall Mukherjee Nagar blocks: in 110033 buildings, count the staircases from your floor and check that the terrace door is not locked.
- Agreement dates against the 2027 calendar: the end date should fall after 20 August 2027 if you plan to sit Mains from the same room; see what else to read in our PG rental agreement checklist.
- Deposit refund timeline: aspirants leave in clusters after prelims results, so get the refund period written down before Old Rajinder Nagar or Mukherjee Nagar owners face a rush of exits.
- Police verification: ask whether the owner files tenant verification with Delhi Police for each resident, and keep your copy.
- Power backup during study hours: confirm it runs fans and sockets, not only lights, in the evening hours when you return from the library.
- Mess timing against your batch: if your batch ends late on the GTB Nagar or Karol Bagh side, ask whether dinner is held or packed.
- Curfew against library hours: get the gate-closing time in writing, then match it to the late slot at your library.
The accommodation guide for UPSC, SSC and CA aspirants covers the safety lessons from both areas and the general room checks in more depth.
Your next step: pick the side of your classes
The Old Rajinder Nagar vs Mukherjee Nagar question usually settles on two addresses: your coaching centre and your library seat. If both are on the Pusa Road side, shortlist in Old Rajinder Nagar and Karol Bagh; if both are around GTB Nagar, shortlist in Mukherjee Nagar. Only if they split, use the Rs 43 fare and the 27 hours a month to decide which side to sleep on. Then book visits from the matching area page, all on one afternoon.
