Xavier Aptitude Test 2026 ( XAT )
XAT 2026 exam analysis is available now. According to the question paper review, the overall difficulty level was moderate. Check out detailed XAT 2026 analysis, number of good attempts and expected cut offs here.
XAT 2026 exam analysis
XAT 2026 exam analysis – The initial review of XAT exam paper today reveals that the questions were overall moderate, with a few tough ones in Decision Making section. In comparison to last year, the VALR questions were slightly tougher this year. QA-DI section saw easier quants questions but tougher data interpretation questions.
Shiksha has shared below detailed XAT 2026 analysis with complete review of section wise difficulty level, weightage of topics, number of good attempt and expected XAT cutoffs. The XAT 2026 question paper analysis will help test takers in analyzing their performance.
Check below key highlights of XAT 2026 exam:
Latest - XAT 2026 exam live updates - question paper analysis, answer key, diffculty level, expected cut offs
XAT 2026 question paper PDF download
XAT 2026 answer keys - memory based
There was no change in sectional weightage of XAT 2026 question paper from last year. Check the table for details.
| XAT Sections |
No. of Questions |
Total Marks |
Level of Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decision Making |
21 |
21 |
Moderate |
| Verbal and Logical Ability |
26 |
26 |
Easy |
| Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation |
28 |
28 |
Moderate to Difficult |
| General Knowledge |
20 |
20 |
Easy |
| Total |
95 |
95 |
Moderate |
Also Read:
Total number of questions is 95 in XAT; candidates must aim to attempt nearly 40 to get a good score:
| XAT sections |
Number of good attempts |
|---|---|
| VALR |
13-14 |
| Decision Making |
11-12 |
| QA DI |
18-19 |
| GK |
10-11 |
The Decision Making section has questions in sets. There were 7 scenarios with 3 questions each. Some, of the questions were tricky with close answer options. About 11-12 questions with 75-80% accuracy will be considered good in this section.
Also Read:
The XAT 2026 analysis reveals that VALR section was moderate. About 13 to 14 attempts with 75% accuracy will get you good score. Check below the break up of VALR section of XAT question paper 2026.
| VALR Section |
No. of Questions |
|---|---|
| RC Passages – 5 (300-450 words) |
15 |
| Grammatically correct sentence |
2 |
| Fill in the blanks (4 blanks) |
1 |
| Jumbled Paragraphs (5 statements) |
2 |
| Critical Reasoning |
3 |
| Main idea/message of the given image |
1 |
| Poem-based passage |
2 |
In the QA DI section Arithmetic and Mensuration were dominant topics. Check below detailed break up of DI section:
| Quantitative Aptitude |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Topics |
Easy |
Medium |
Difficult |
Total |
| Arithmetic |
2 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
| Geometry |
1 |
2 |
2 |
5 |
| Modern Math |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
| Algebra |
2 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
| Numbers |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
| Data Interpretation |
||||
| Scatter Plot / Line Graph (observation) based set |
0 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
| Arithmetic based set |
0 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
| Average based set |
0 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
| Number-matrix based set |
0 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
| Total |
5 |
18 |
5 |
28 |
There were 20 easy questions in GK questions. More questions were asked on current affairs, than Static GK. There were 12 current affairs questions and 8 Static GK questions.
Based on the difficulty level of today’s exam, here is an estimation of XAT 2026 score vs percentile. XAT 2026 cut off will be released in the last week of January 2026.
| XAT Score |
XAT Percentile |
|---|---|
| 38.7 |
99.17 |
| 34.7 |
97.67 |
| 33.8 |
97.11 |
| 33.5 |
96.89 |
| 32.4 |
96.03 |
| 29.4 |
92.75 |
| 27.1 |
89.24 |
| 20.5 |
73.15 |
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Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 2 days ago
XAT 2026 result will not be sent in email. However, XLRI will send an email to candidates informing them about the availability of scorecard and how to download it. Candidates must keep a check on their email account for result notification.
P
Contributor-Level 6
Answered 2 days ago
XAT 2026 result date has not been announced by XLRI. However, since the scorecards are released by the third week of January every year, the XAT result 2026 can also be expected to be released by January 17 or 20, 2026.
N
Contributor-Level 6
Answered 6 days ago
The Bangalore University MBA Cutoff 2025 has been announced for admission to the MBA/PGDM programme via the Karnataka PGCET, CAT, NMAT, XAT, and other accepted exams. According to the Bangalore University Karnataka PGCET Cutoff 2025, students needed to obtain a rank of 3375 for admission to ABBS Ba
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 6 days ago
Every question of XAT carries 1 mark and a score of 38 to 42 usually covert into 99 percentile, so candidates should aim for the same number of correct attempts in the exam. XAT has negative marking so they should not attempt any question, if they are not sure of, otherwise it will affect the overal
N
Contributor-Level 6
Answered 6 days ago
The CCSU MBA Cutoff 2025 has been released for admission to the MBA programme via the XAT, MAT and CAT entrance examinations. The CCSU XAT Cutoff 2025 was 50 for the Gender-Neutral Candidates under the All India quota. In the case of CCSU MAT Cutoff 2025, the qualfying cutoff percentile was 75 for t
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a week ago
GIBS accepts scores from all major management entrance exams, including:
CAT
XAT
MAT
CMAT
GMAT
ATMA
State CET
This gives students multiple options to apply. Along with entrance exam scores, GIBS also looks at the overall profile, communication skills, and interest in management, which makes the admission pr
A
Contributor-Level 8
Answered 2 weeks ago
Yes, apart from CAT/XAT/MAT/CMAT/ATMA, PIBM conducts its own entrance exam called PMAT (PIBM's Online Aptitude Test). Shortlisted candidates from PMAT then appear for the Written Test, Group Discussion (GD), and Personal Interview (PI) as part of the selection process.
R
Beginner-Level 5
Answered 2 weeks ago
Yes, if you have secured an 82nd percentile in XAT, you can get the scholarships for pursuing an MBA course at FOSSTIMA Business School. The concessions on fees that the school provides are:
A
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 weeks ago
No. Scores in CAT/XAT/GMAT is not mandatory for admission into BITS Pilani MBA in Business Analytics. However, those who have appeared for these entrance exams will get their score considered in the selection criteria. Appearing for BAAT exam is mandatory for MBA Business Analytics admission.
D
Contributor-Level 6
Answered 2 weeks ago
The XAT Cutoff 2025 was released for admission to the MBA/ PGDM programme for Gender-Neutral candidates belonging to the All India quota. The Rajagiri Business School XAT Cutoff 2025 was 15 percentile for admission to the PGDM course. Candidates needed to secure at least 15 percentile to avail admis
N
Contributor-Level 10
Will XAT 2026 result be sent in email?