CAT Preparation 2025: How to Approach Quantitative Aptitude Section
Common Admission Test 2025 ( CAT )
Exam On - 30 Nov '25
Quantitative Aptitude section of CAT exam is a combination of Arithmetic, Algebra and Geometry. Maximum questions are asked from these three topics. Here's expert advice on how to prepare for Quantitative Aptitude section of CAT 2025. By Deekshant Sehrawat
CAT Quant preparation requires sharp memory, deep understanding and a lot of practice. Candidates planning to appear for CAT 2025 must have already started off with the preparations. In this article, I'll share some micro-level CAT preparation tips for Quantitative Aptitude.
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There is a 90% more chance of getting best college recommendations by sharing preferences.As CAT exam 2025 will get closer, the value of every single day and every single hour being invested will go up drastically. Having a clear plan of action will certainly enable you to make better use of the time, and also increase the chances of deriving far better returns on this invested time.
Yes, the difficulty level of CAT syllabus is very high as compared to other MBA entrance exams. However, if you prepare well and follow the CAT exam pattern well, you will be able to score well. Besides having an understanding of the CAT syllabus 2025, candidates also need to be well aware of the CAT exam pattern before they start preparing for the exam. The CAT exam pattern was revised in 2021 and the number of questions were reduced from 76 to 66. The structure of CAT 2023 and CAT 2024 was the same. The syllabus is still tougher than other exams.
The most important things to keep in mind are:
- CAT exam mode is online
- Each question carries three marks
- There is negative marking of minus one mark for wrong attempts
The section-wise distribution of questions and difficulty levels as per the latest CAT exam pattern are listed below:
- Quantitative Ability (QA) - 24 questions, difficulty level - moderate to high
- Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) - 20 questions, difficulty level - moderate
- Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) - 22 questions, difficulty level - moderate. to high
CAT is a speed based test which is designed to assess a candidate's analytical aptitude, logical reasoning skills, data interpretation and English comprehension. Now, it may sound tough, but these are the skills which we are taught in school so there is nothing new to learn. What is required is to learn these subjects at advanced level. If you are an average student but have studied Science or commerce in Class-12 and graduation, you will find a lot of familiar topics in Data Interpretation, Quantitative Aptitude and Logical Reasoning. All you will need is brush up the basics and practice the concepts on advance level problems.
However, since the competition is so high in CAT and less than 95 percentile can break your dream of joining a top college like IIM, the preparation for CAT requires a lot of focus, dedication, discipline and diligence. If you can do that, despite being an average student, you can crack the CAT exam.
Since the CAT question paper has Quantitative Aptitude as the third section, by the time it will appear, you will most likely be exhausted by VARC and DILR. Good part is that now CAT Quantitative Aptitude section has only 22 questions to be solved in 40 minutes. Ensuring a good start to CAT will help you feel more confident in solving the last section.
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Let’s Start With Your Strategy for CAT Quant Preparation
Let’s assume that you intend to invest around 100 hours (this number could differ for different students and the rest of the things will proportionately alter) of your CAT preparation time in the QA section between now and the CAT 2025 exam day. This excludes the hours spent in your classroom coaching, CAT mock tests and their analyses. This simply is the time you spend by yourself on improving the various topics in the specific section – CAT Quantitative Aptitude.
Also read:
- CAT Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus
- CAT quant topic wise weightage
- 6 strategies for quant preparation
Topic-Wise Break Up of Quantitative Aptitude Section of CAT
CAT Quantitative Aptitude syllabus can be seen as a combination of Arithmetic (excluding Number Systems, which can also be seen as a separate entity), Algebra and Geometry. An indicative breakup among the four areas could be as follows:
| CAT Quants Topics |
Hours to Devote |
|---|---|
| Number Systems |
12 |
| Arithmetic |
28 |
| Algebra |
30 |
| Geometry |
30 |
Usually, it is recommended to start CAT preparation about a year or nine months in advance. However, one can prepare for this exam even in six months if they put 8-10 hours daily into it. Candidates who have attempted the CAT before may not face a lot of hurdles in six-month preparation as they have a foundation in CAT preparation from previous year, but candidates who are appearing in the exam for the first time may face obstacles, mostly related to accuracy. The syllabus of CAT is vast and includes a lot of reading.
One also has to spend a lot of time in practice sessions and mock tests to be able to master all types of CAT questions - easy, moderate and tough. If you are a student of engineering/technical or commerce background you will need to pay extra attention on VARC .
However, you'll be able to manage the syllabus of DILR and Quantitative Aptitude with adequate practice of topics. But if you are a student from Arts background, it is advised to start CAT preparation much earlier because you will have to brush up a lot of Mathematics. Reading Comprehension is one subject that cannot be mastered by student belonging to any academic stream, if their English comprehension is not strong. To develop reading habit all CAT aspirants will have to start much earlier.
The best way to prepare for DILR section is through practice. Before starting the preparation, aspirants should be accustomed to the question types by going through previous years’ question papers and solving those. Since there is not much conceptual understanding required in this section, practice is the key to excel in this area.
Some of the most popular books on DILR section that you can refer are How to Prepare for Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning for CAT by Arun Sharma, Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit Sinha, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning for CAT by Pearson, to name a few.
But the above assumes an equal proficiency across all four areas, which is unlikely to be true for most of you. Hence, you can possibly take away around 10 hours from two of your strongest areas and invest them in one/two of your weakest area(s) among the four. So, if you are weak in Arithmetic, just about average in Number Systems, strong in Geometry, and very strong in Algebra, the break-up could be tweaked to look something like:
Number of Hours to Spend on CAT Quantitative Aptitude Topics
You can check the table below for estimated time taken for each topic of CAT quantitative aptitude syllabus. You can make a time table for quant preparation on the basis of this estimation. This can be a reference point and you should adjust the timing depending on your weak and strong areas.
| CAT Quatitative Aptitude Topics |
Hours |
|---|---|
| Number Systems |
15 |
| Arithmetic |
35 |
| Algebra |
24 |
| Geometry |
26 |
Also Read:
This is just an example of how best to plan your time investment in CAT preparation. It is also advisable not to use the entire quota for any specific area in one go and use the same in tranches. For example, you could break the total time into roughly three phases, using around one-third of the allotted hours in each while moving across areas in sequence and then return to the first one again and so on. This will ensure that you stay in touch with all the areas through to the end. A smart way also would be to keep the last iteration for revision. Alternatively, you could account for that in your overall time and keep 15 per cent of total hours as blocked for revision at the end. In that case, you can plan for only 85 per cent of the time in that section in the manner suggested above.
| Free DILR Questions with Answers for Practice | Free VARC Questions with Answers for Practice | Free Quantitative Aptitude Questions with Answers for Practice |
Do not ignore tough topics of Quantitative Aptitude: The general tendency is to do more in areas that you are already comfortable in. If you are more interested in Arithmetic, for example, chances are you will spend more time on it, despite being relatively better placed in it. On the other hand, you will keep avoiding areas/topics that you are relatively weaker in (and they are also likely to be the ones you are less interested in). Proceeding in that way, you will never improve in areas that you really need to improve in.
Don't overspend time on strong areas: It is also argued by some that you should invest more in your strengths to make them stronger. But the point is that if you are already at say 90 (on a scale of 100) in a given area/topic, there is no point in investing more time. You simply need to do more questions that are in the top 10 per cent. Practicing more questions at levels lower than 90 in that area/topic will be a waste of time.
Strike a balance between strengths and weaknesses: Within each of the four areas also, you should spend more time on topics you are weaker in, and less time on topics you are stronger in – doing questions only at levels higher than your current levels. This approach will enable you to derive maximum output from your time/efforts invested in the preparation. Having a clear idea of the time you need to invest in each topic in CAT Quantitative Aptitude in front of you will also ensure urgency apart from pushing you to be more consistent in your efforts.
How to identify and be able to spend that time according to your needs, is where your coaching/mentors/guidance needs to adapt to your needs! Increasingly, across all levels of education, one-size-fits-all approach is being abandoned for its inefficiency and ineffectiveness.
Rigidness is passé. Plan your CAT 2025 preparation according to your needs. For any given level of ability and preparation, how well you adapt your preparation and invest your time according to your own specific needs will decide how superior a return are you able to achieve.
About the Author
Deekshant Sehrawat is a man of many facets. An IIT Delhi, IIM Calcutta alumnus Deekshant, is the founder of a top MBA preparation online coaching. Deekshant is also a lyricist and has co-authored a number of songs with Dr. Palash Sen, lead singer of Hindi rock band Euphoria.
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Aspirants should start preparing for CAT exam at least nine months in before the test date. CAT preparation requires long-term planning thus one must start early. The best time to start CAT preparation is in March. Starting early will also help you assess that whether you need to join a coaching institute or not.
Divide your preparation into two phases -
The CAT syllabus includes the following topics:
You can read the following CAT books for exam preparation: