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CAT 2026

Common Admission Test

Exam date

29 Nov 2026

In 7 months

Registration ends

15 Sept 2026

In 4 months

Result

30 Dec 2026

Official website Colleges accepting CAT

Quick facts

Eligibility: Bachelor's degree with minimum 50% (45% for SC/ST)
Application fees: ₹2,400 (General), ₹1,200 (SC/ST)
Admit card: 25 Oct 2026
Registration opens: 1 Aug 2026
Accepted by: 20 IIMs + 1000+ MBA colleges accepting CAT score

Exam pattern

Format: Computer-Based Test — MCQ + Type-In Answer (TITA, no options)
Total questions: 66
Duration: 2 hours (40 min per section, no jumping between sections)
Total marks: 198
Marking scheme: +3 for correct, −1 for wrong MCQ; +3 / 0 for TITA

Syllabus

3 sections — full topic breakdown below.

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)

24 questions / 72 marks

Reading Comprehension (4 passages, ~16 questions)
Para-jumbles (TITA)
Para-summary
Sentence Completion / Odd-One-Out
Critical Reasoning
Inference-based questions

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)

20 questions / 60 marks

Bar / Line / Pie Charts
Tables & Caselets
Logical Reasoning Sets — Arrangement, Matching, Selection, Distribution
Cubes, Calendars, Clocks
Sequencing & Ranking
Network / Routes
Games & Tournaments

Quantitative Ability (QA)

22 questions / 66 marks

Arithmetic — Percentages, Profit & Loss, Time-Speed-Distance, Time & Work, Ratios & Proportions, Averages, Mixtures
Algebra — Linear & Quadratic Equations, Inequalities, Functions, Logarithms
Numbers — Number System, Divisibility, Remainders, Base Conversion
Geometry — Lines & Angles, Triangles, Quadrilaterals, Circles, Coordinate Geometry, Mensuration
Modern Math — Permutations & Combinations, Probability, Set Theory, Sequences & Series

Important notes

•Section-locked — finish VARC before DILR before QA. 40 min hard cap each.
•TITA questions have no negative marking — attempt them all.
•Percentile cutoffs: IIM A/B/C ~99%, top non-IIM 95%+, new IIMs 90%+.