Common Admission Test 2025 ( CAT )
CAT cut offs for General, OBC, ST, ST categories are different. While the CAT cut off percentiles for General and NC-OBC candidates are higher, for SC and ST categories, it is low. Check here CAT 2023 cut off for General, OBC, ST, ST categories.
CAT 2023 cut offs
CAT 2024 aspirants must prepare and perform keeping in mind the previous years’ IIM cut offs for MBA admission. The CAT cut offs are minimum percentile required to be selected for the Personal Interview (PI) and Written Ability Test (WAT) round of the IIMs. The institutes release, CAT cut offs for PI shortlisting, every year. The CAT 2024 cut offs will be released after the CAT 2024 result announcement. Aspirants can check here CAT 2023 cut off for General, OBC, ST, ST categories to know the expected percentile for the upcoming admission season.
Sectional cut-off in the CAT exam refers to the section-wise percentiles required by the candidate to make it to the Personal Interview round of the IIMs or other top MBA colleges. The sectional cut-offs are lower than the overall cut-offs of any institute. To understand better, check the table below for sectional CAT cut-offs for IIM Ahmedabad:
Category | VARC percentile | DILR percentile | QA percentile | Overall percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
General | 70 | 70 | 70 | 80 |
NC-OBC-Transgender | 65 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
SC | 60 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
ST | 50 | 50 | 50 | 60 |
PwD (General, NC-OBC-cum-transgender, SC) | 60 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
PwD (ST) | 50 | 50 | 50 | 60 |
For sectional cut-offs of all IIMs, check this article – IIM shortlist and selection criteria
CAT cutoffs are usually not announced with the CAT result. The CAT cutoffs are also not released to the public.
They are published after a few days of the result announcement when the IIMs and other colleges start their shortlisting process. The IIMs opens their shortlisting window based on the CAT cut-offs two to three days after the result announcement. The CAT percentile of candidates shortlisted for the Written Ability Test (WAT), Group Discussion (GD), and Personal Interview (PI) can be considered the cut-off for that IIM. For example, if a candidate with a CAT percentile of 99 belonging to the General category is selected for the WAT/GD-PI of IIM Calcutta, then the CAT cut-off for IIM Calcutta is 99 percentile. Only those candidates who make it to the WAT/GD-PI round of IIMs will get to know the cut-offs.
Check below the table for category wise CAT 2023 cut offs for IIMs. These are qualifying CAT cut offs for PI shortlisting. The final CAT 2023 cut offs were higher.
| Category wise CAT 2023 Cut Offs (Qualifying) |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IIM |
General |
NC-OBC |
SC |
(ST |
PwD |
| 80 |
75 |
70 |
60 |
60 |
|
| 85 |
75 |
70 |
65 |
60 |
|
| 85 |
75 |
70 |
65 |
55 |
|
| 90 |
82 |
65 |
60 |
60 |
|
| 90 |
80 |
80 |
45 |
45 |
|
| 85 |
75 |
65 |
55 |
55 |
|
| 90 |
80 |
55 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 92 |
74 |
54 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 82 |
72 |
50 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 75 |
75 |
60 |
50 |
50 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 95 |
78 |
55 |
30 |
30 |
|
| 94 |
77 |
60 |
40 |
40 |
|
| 85 |
75 |
70 |
65 |
55 |
|
MBA aspirants must know that the IIMs and other B-Schools consider CAT percentile for shortlisting candidates. They do not look at the CAT raw or scaled score. The CAT result is also prepared in percentile. However, the marking is done in terms of scores. So, to arrive at CAT cut offs, the CAT scores are converted into CAT percentile.
31 Jan '26 - 2 Feb '26
7 Feb '26 - 8 Feb '26
9 Feb '26
10 Feb '26 - 13 Feb '26
23 Feb '26
28 Feb '26
3 Mar '26
5 Feb '26
22 Mar '26
Check below the table for CAT 2023 cut off percentiles, derived from calculation of CAT scaled score.
| CAT Percentile
|
CAT Scaled Score |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VARC |
DILR |
QA |
Overall |
|
| 100 |
61 |
50 |
50 |
143 |
| 99.99 |
58 |
42 |
44 |
120 |
| 99.50 |
44 |
31 |
29 |
85 |
| 99.00 |
40 |
28 |
26 |
77 |
| 97.00 |
33 |
22 |
23 |
63 |
| 95.00 |
29 |
19 |
18 |
55 |
| 90.00 |
24 |
16 |
14 |
46 |
| 85.00 |
21 |
14 |
12 |
34 |
| 80.00 |
18 |
12 |
10 |
40 |
| 70.00 |
13 |
8 |
7 |
32 |
CAT percentile is a candidate's performance against all the test takers. The CAT scorecard has sectional and overall percentiles mentioned on it. This is how, CAT percentile is calculated, which is then used to determine CAT cut offs for MBA admission.
P = (R/N) × 100
where,
P= Percentile score
R= Rank of the candidate arrived at on the basis of scaled CAT score or the total number of test takers ranking below a particular candidate.
N= Number of candidates who appeared in CAT exam (all three sessions)
Yes, it is possible to score 99.99 percentile in CAT in first attempt. Many toppers of previous years' are such candidates. One must study in a focussed manner and do a lot of mock test practice. Exam day strategy is also crucial for better performance.
IIM Trichy accepts minimum CAT percentile for shortlisting candidates for the Personal Interview round. For IIM Trichy MBA admission 2024, the estimated overall CAT cutoff for the General category students is 92 percentile. Candidates can refer to the table given below to check out the section-wise minimum CAT percentile required for various categories:
Category | PVRC | PDILR | PQA | Overall percentile rank (PT) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
General | 70 | 70 | 70 | 92 |
NC-OBC | 45 | 45 | 45 | 74 |
EWS | 40 | 40 | 40 | 70 |
SC | 35 | 35 | 35 | 54 |
ST | 25 | 25 | 32.5 | 40 |
DAP | 25 | 25 | 32.5 | 40 |
On an average, about 10-15 CAT aspirants score 100 percentile. Given below is the data of CAT 100 percentilers of last 3 years:
Exam year | CAT 100 percentilers | State wise numbers |
|---|---|---|
CAT 2024 | 14 | 1- Andhra Pradesh |
CAT 2023 | 14 | 1 – Andhra Pradesh |
CAT 2022 | 11 | 2 - Delhi 1 - Gujarat 1 - Haryana 1 - Kerala 1 - Madhya Pradesh 2 - Maharashtra 2 - Telangana 1 - Uttar Pradesh |
Read More:
Vipra Shrivastava is MA in English Literature from Delhi University with extensive experience in content writing of over 14 years. She has been handling content for Management, Accounting and Commerce streams for 8
Read Full Bio29 Jan '26 | XAT 2026 Cut Offs Release |
16 Jan '26 | XAT 2026 result |
9 Jan '26 | SNAP 2025 result announcement |
20 Dec '25 | SNAP 2025 session 3 |
13 Jan '26 - 17 Jan '26 | NMAT 2025 Exam Date (Additiona... |
5 Jan '26 - 10 Jan '26 | NMAT 2025 Scheduling (Addition... |
17 Oct '24 - 5 Dec '24 | IIFT 2025 registration and app... |
23 Feb '26 | MAT Feb 2026 PBT Registration ... |
26 Feb '26 | MAT Feb 2026 PBT admit card |
14 Feb '26 - 22 Feb '26 | IBSAT 2025 Selection Process |
30 Dec '25 | IBSAT 2025 Result |
31 Jan '26 - 2 Feb '26 | CMAT 2026 exam answer key obje... |
25 Jan '26 | CMAT 2026 exam |
10 Jan '26 - 12 Feb '26 | MAH MBA CET 2026 registration |
7 Apr '26 - 8 Apr '26 | MAH MBA CET 2026 exam |
Jan '26 | TANCET registration window |
Mar '26 | TANCET admit card download |
Mar '25 | IRMASAT 2025 Final Result Anno... |
Feb '25 | IRMASAT Personal Interviews |
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 4 days ago
CAT is one of the accepting exams for admission to MBA at ISMR Pune. However, it is not compulsory. Aspirants with a score in CMAT, MAT, XAT, MAH MBA CET, etc. can also get admission. Candidates selected based on their entrance exam scores also need to pass the personal interview round for admission
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered 4 days ago
No, CAT scores are not compulsory for admissions into MBA course at Chhatrapati Shahu Institute of Business Education and Research. The institute accepts other national/ state level management entrance exams too. The names of the accepted entrance examinations are: XAT/ MAT/ ATMA/ MAH MBA CET.
A
Contributor-Level 9
Answered 4 days ago
No, CAT scores are not compulsory for admissions into MBA course at GLA University, Mathura. The university also considers scores from other management entrance exam and one university level entrance exam too. The names of the other accepted entrance exams are: MAT/ XAT/ UPSEE.
C
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a week ago
No, CAT scores are not important for enrollment into Masters of Business Administration course at Chitkara University. Because CAT is not the only scores which are considered by the university, it also accepts the scores of MAT/ XAT/ NMAT/ CMAT.
K
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a week ago
Minimum qualifying cut off for IIM Ahmedabad is 95 percentile whereas for IIM Bangalore and IIM Calcutta, it is 85. However final cut offs for these three top IIMs are between 99 to 100 percentile.
S
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
GIBS is pretty flexible when it comes to entrance exams. They accept almost all the common management tests — CAT, XAT, MAT, CMAT, ATMA, State CET, and even GMAT. In my batch itself, we had students who came through different exams, not just CAT.
Honestly, that's one thing I liked about GIBS — they d
M
Contributor-Level 8
Answered a week ago
Yes, you can join Adarsh Institute of Management and Information Technology without appearing for CAT. This is because, the institute also accepts other tests. The accepted exams include CAT/ XAT/ MAT/ CMAT/ KMAT/ PGCET/ GMAT. Hence, if you have appeared for any of these, you can still apply.
M
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a week ago
Yes, Myra School of Business does offer CAT scores based Scholarships upto INR 1.5 lakh. In recognition of outstanding performance in CAT, MSB awards special scholarships as follows:
h
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a week ago
LISAA School of Design, Bangalore BDes admission is done based on performance in the in-house entrance test. LISAA CAT is conducted at the LISAA centres. Candidates need to connect with the admission team to set up a time slot. Besides, it is important that the eligibility criteria is fulfilled.
M
Contributor-Level 9
Answered 2 weeks ago
No, CAT is not mandatory for School of Business and Management, Christ University MBA admissions. Students can alternatively submit scores of other national-level management exams. These include MAT/ XAT/ CMAT/ ATMA and GMAT/ GRE are also accepted.
S
Contributor-Level 10
14 candidates have scored 100 percentile in CAT 2024, out of a total of 2.93 Lacs candidates. Out of 14 toppers, 1 is a woman candidate. Check below CAT 2024 result data:
Check the below table for data and statistics of CAT 2024 test takers and toppers.
Discipline
percentiles 14 - Nos
Male - 13
Engg – 13
Non-Engg – 1
Delhi 2
Haryana 1
Kerala 1
Maharashtra 5
Odisha 1
Rajasthan 1
Telangana 2
percentiles 29 -Nos.
Male - 27
Engg – 25
Non-Engg - 4
Delhi 4
Gujarat 2
Haryana 1
Karnataka 3
Kerala 1
Madhya Pradesh 1
Maharashtra 5
Odisha 1
Punjab 1
Rajasthan 3
Tamil Nadu 1
Telangana 1
Uttar Pradesh1
Uttarakhand 1
West Bengal 2
percentiles 30-Nos
Male - 29
Engg – 20
Non-Engg -10
Delhi 2
Gujarat 2
Haryana 4
Karnataka 4
Madhya Pradesh 3
Maharashtra 3
Tamil Nadu 2
Telangana 3
Uttar Pradesh 2
West Bengal 4