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CAT 2026 pass percentage is the minimum percentile a candidate needs to get in the CAT 2026 exam to be eligible to apply to different CAT accepting colleges. The CAT pass percentage is calculated based on the normalized CAT scores. The CAT pass percentage varies for every college. The CAT pass percentage is released in the form of a CAT cutoff by all the participating MBA/ PGDM/ MMS institutes. In this article, learn the college-wise expected CAT pass percentage.
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The CAT pass percentage will depend on factors like CAT 2026 difficulty, seats offered, the number of candidates appearing, and the normalization effect. Considering all these contributing factors, the expected CAT pass percentage for 2026 for different categories is provided in the table below.
| CAT Pass Percentile | VARC Score | DILR Score | QA Score | CAT Total Marks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
99.5 | 42 | 30 | 30 | 105-110 |
99 | 36 | 25 | 25 | 95-100 |
95 | 30 | 20 | 22 | 70-75 |
90 | 24 | 14 | 13 | 58-62 |
80 | 20 | 11 | 9 | 44 |
70 | 18 | 9 | 7 | 30 |
Also see: What is a good CAT score? How to achieve it in CAT exam
Here are the CAT pass percentage previous year trends to help candidates preparing for the CAT 2026 exam understand the required percentile and target accordingly.
| CAT Percentile | CAT Exam 2024 | CAT Exam 2023 | CAT Exam 2022 | CAT Exam 2021 | CAT Exam 2020 |
| 99.59 | 123 | 101 | 109 | 124 | 130 |
| 99.5 | 104 | 84 | 92 | 110 | 115 |
| 99 | 96 | 76 | 84 | 98 | 101 |
| 97 | 79 | 61 | 72 | 82 | 85 |
| 95 | 70 | 54 | 62 | 73 | 76 |
| 90 | 58 | 44 | 49 | 60 | 63 |
| 80 | 44 | 35 | 36 | 45 | 48 |
VARC is one of the important sections of the CAT exam. The candidate must score higher in the VARC section to maximise chances of selection. Here are the CAT pass percentage VARC scores for your reference.
| CAT VARC Percentile | CAT VARC Score 2024 | CAT VARC Score 2023 | CAT VARC Score 2022 |
| 99.9 | 55 | 57.32 | 52.43 |
| 99.5 | 44 | 44 | 45.57 |
| 99 | 40 | 39.7 | 41.77 |
| 97 | 33 | 31.47 | 34.18 |
| 95 | 30 | 28.68 | 29.12 |
| 90 | 24 | 23.39 | 24.06 |
| 85 | 20 | - | - |
| 80 | 18 | 17.68 | - |
| 75 | 15 | 15.27 | - |
DILR previous year scores vs the percentile breakout are given below. Candidates preparing for the CAT exam can check the table for more information.
| CAT DILR Percentile | CAT DILR Score 2024 | CAT DILR Score 2023 | CAT DILR Score 2022 |
| 99.9 | 50 | 42.7 | 48.31 |
| 99.5 | 41 | 29.71 | 34.37 |
| 99 | 37 | 27.39 | - |
| 97 | 30 | 20.88 | - |
| 95 | 27 | 19.6 | - |
| 90 | 22 | 15.63 | 18.56 |
| 85 | 19 | 13.01 | - |
| 80 | 17 | 11.67 | - |
| 75 | 14 | - | - |
The CAT exam section of QA is considered difficult among the three sections. Candidates appearing for the CAT 2026 exam must check the CAT QA previous-year scores vs the percentile breakout given below for better understanding.
| CAT QA Percentile | CAT QA Score 2024 | CAT QA Score 2023 | CAT QA Score 2022 |
| 99.9 | 45 | - | 46.3 |
| 99.5 | 36 | - | 36.85 |
| 99 | 33 | - | 36.07 |
| 97 | 25 | - | 26.85 |
| 95 | 22 | - | - |
| 90 | 17 | - | - |
| 85 | 13 | - | - |
| 80 | 11 | - | - |
| 75 | 9 | - | - |
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The pass percentage in the CAT exam for IIMs is expected to be in the range of 97-99.9 CAT percentile. The CAT pass percentage is used by IIMs to shortlist candidates for the next selection rounds. The CAT pass percentage 2023, the CAT 2022 pass percentage, and the CAT pass percentile 2021 are given in the table below.
| List of IIMs | Expected CAT Pass Percentage | CAT Pass Percentage 2023 | CAT Pass Percentage 2022 | CAT Pass Percentage 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
99-100 | 99.68 | 99-100 | 99-100 | |
99-100 | 99.89 | 99-100 | 99-100 | |
99 | 99.71 | 99 | 99 | |
97+ | 98 | 97-98 | 97-98 | |
97+ | 98 | 97-98 | 97-98 | |
97-98 | 98 | 97-98 | 97-98 | |
95+ | 96 | 95-96 | 95-96 | |
95+ | 96 | 95-96 | 95-96 | |
95+ | 96 | 95-96 | 95-96 | |
94 | 95 | 94-95 | 94-95 | |
94 | 95 | 94-95 | 94-95 | |
94 | 95 | 94-95 | 94-95 | |
94 | 95 | 92-94 | 92-94 | |
92 | 93 | 92-94 | 92-94 | |
92 | 93 | 92 | 92 | |
92 | 93 | 90 | 90 | |
90 | 92 | 92 | 92 | |
95 | 96 | 92-94 | 93-94 | |
95 | 96 | 90 | 91-92 |
CAT scores are accepted nationwide by colleges other than IIMs for admission to their MBA/PGDM programs. The non-IIMs CAT pass percentage for 2023, the CAT pass percentage 2022, the CAT 2021 pass percentage, and the CAT pass percentage 2020 are given in the table below.
| CAT Accepting Colleges | Expected CAT Pass Percentage | CAT Pass Percentage 2023 | CAT Pass Percentage 2022 | CAT Pass Percentage 2021 | CAT Pass Percentage 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
99 | 98.2 | 97-99 | 98-99 | 97-99 | |
94 | 95 | 90 | 85 | 85 | |
98+ | 97 | 97+ | 98 | 98+ | |
90+ | 95 | 90 | 70 | 90 | |
99+ | 99 | 99 | 99+ | 99 | |
90+ | 98 | 95-99 | 95-97 | 95-99 | |
95+ | 95 | 94+ | 97+ | 95+ | |
95+ | 96 | 95 | 97 | 95 | |
85+ | 90 | 95-99 | 95-99 | 95-99 | |
90+ | 94 | 91 | 91 | ||
95+ | 95 | 90 | 85.11 | 85.11 | |
85+ | 90 | 85 | 80 | 80 |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The qualifying score for the CAT exam varies from one institute to another. The qualifying CAT cut off required for the top MBA colleges in India is 90 to 99 percentile.
The CAT pass percentage generally ranges from 90-99 percentile for most of the good B schools. For getting into IIMs the required CAT pass percentage is usually between 97-99.9 percentile. IIMs also have sectional CAT pass percentage criteria for selection.
There is no specified percentage required for clearing the CAT exam. The IIMs and other B schools accepting CAT scores for admission to their MBA/PGDM programs have their own respective CAT pass percentage for shortlisting applicants.
A good CAT score will differ from college to college. If a candidate aims for IIMs a good CAT score would be 97-99.9 percentile for normalized CAT scores. For colleges other than IIMs any CAT score above 90 percentile will be considered as a good score.
IIM with lower CAT pass percentage are easy to get into. IIMs such as IIM Bodh Gaya, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Amritsar, IIM Shillong, and IIM Nagpur are much easier to get into if the CAT scores are low and the overall is not strong enough for top IIMs.
On Question asked by student community
Hey there,
For NIT Hamirpur MBA, the General-category CAT cutoff is not a fixed official percentile. NIT Hamirpur's 2026–27 admission process gives CAT a 10/10 weightage in the test component, followed by an interview; it accepts CAT, CMAT and MAT.
As a practical target, 80+ percentile is worth considering, while
If by B-category you mean management/private quota MBBS seats, the cutoff is very different from government-quota MBBS.
In Tamil Nadu, management-quota MBBS seats are available in self-financing/private medical colleges through the state counselling process. The closing rank varies significantly between colleges and counselling rounds. The 2025 counselling data shows that
Hello Student,
With a CAT 2025 percentile of 98.25, you have a good chance of receiving calls from several IIMs, particularly newer IIMs. However, IIM Ahmedabad , Bangalore , Calcutta , and Lucknow generally require higher percentiles for General-category candidates. Calls also depend on sectional percentiles, academics, work experience, and
Hello Aspirant,
Yes, you can access CAT preparation resources, including mock tests, practice questions, previous-year papers, and study material. Explore the CAT preparation resources and test series using the link below:
https://www.careers360.com/mba/download/ebooks-and-sample-papers?exam=45
Hope this Helps!
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