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Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content
Updated on Sep 3, 2026 15:39 IST
Practicing official XAT question papers has many benefits. Download XAT question paper with solution and know why you should practice XAT previous year papers for exam preparation. With only a few months to go for XAT 2027, this is the best time for practicing official question papers.

Shiksha has collated official XAT question papers of previous years for exam aspirants. Download these past years' XAT question paper with solution PDFs for free. Also read XAT preparation tips 2027.

XAT question papers PDF download

XAT question papers

XAT 2027 aspirants should make sure they practice previous years' papers of last 10 years. This is an essential requirement for mastering key topics of XAT such as Decision Making, Reading Comprehension passages and poem. Ideal time to practice XAT question papers of previous years in a month before the exam, but those who have started XAT 2027 preparation recently or are planning to start soon, should go through the official papers once to understand the exam pattern. They should definitely check out XAT 2026 question papers once to know the latest topics and weightage. Practicing official question papers of XAT exam has many benefits, the most important being, practical experience of actual exam and understanding of the types of questions asked.

XAT previous year papers are available online, as the exam conducting institute XLRI, Jamshedpur releases the question paper every year along with official answer keys. Shiksha has collated official XAT question papers of last 10 years for aspirants. They can download these XAT question papers with solutions PDFs from 2015 to 2026 here. But first, let's look at other aspects of the XAT question paper. 

Table of contents
  • When to Start Practicing XAT Previous Year Question Papers and Sample Papers?
  • Benefits of Practicing XAT Previous Year Papers
  • XAT Question Paper: Marking Scheme

When to Start Practicing XAT Previous Year Question Papers and Sample Papers?

The best time to start practicing XAT sample papers and mock test series is after completing the syllabus. You can start practicing XAT question papers in December 2026. The XAT exam is scheduled on January 4, 2027, so one month of previous papers practice along with mocks and revision will suffice.

Benefits of Practicing XAT Previous Year Papers

XAT 2026 is a speed based exam where you are tested on well you can put theorerical knowledge to practice. Practicing previous year's XAT question papers help in understanding the XAT 2027 exam pattern and marking scheme as well as help in knowing how to tackle different type of questions. Given below are some benefits of practicing XAT previous year papers and sample test:

  • Solving official XAT question papers will help aspirants in familiarizing themselves with the pattern of the exam and marking scheme.
  • XAT previous year papers will help candidates in identifying the trend of types of questions asked in previous exams and thus assessing what type of questions will be asked in the upcoming exam.
  • XAT is the only MBA entrance exam that has a poem as RC passage. And to solve RC questions based on a poem, no resource other that XAT questions paper is appropriate.
  • It will help candidates in identifying weightage given to each topic of XAT syllabus 2027 in the exam.
  • It will help aspirants in discovering tricks and shortcuts to solve questions faster with 100 per cent accuracy.
  • Practicing XAT previous year papers in time bound manner will help candidates in improving their speed, accuracy and time management skills.
  • The XAT sample papers will prepare candidates for all types of questions – tough, easy, lengthy, tricky, calculation-based, etc.

Download XAT Question Paper with solution PDF of past 11 years

XAT 2026 Question Paper with Solution PDF  XAT 2019 Question Paper with Solution PDF
XAT 2024 Question Paper with Solution PDF XAT 2018 Question Paper with Solution PDF
XAT 2023 Question Paper with Solution PDF XAT 2017 Question Paper with Solution PDF
XAT 2022 Question Paper with Solution PDF XAT 2016 Question Paper with Solution PDF
XAT 2021 Question Paper with Solution PDF XAT 2015 Question Paper with Solution PDF
XAT 2020 Question Paper with Solution PDF  

XAT Question Paper Highlights 2027

XAT question paper consists of MCQs from Decision Making, Verbal & Logical Ability, Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation and General Knowledge. Maximum number of questions are asked from Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation and the least number of questions are asked from Decision Making. Let's look at the expected XAT 2027 question paper pattern:

  • XAT question paper 2027 will be divided into 2 parts
  • Part 1 of XAT question paper will consists of Decision Making, Verbal & Logical Ability Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation
  • Part 2 of the question paper will consist of GK questions
  • Part 1 of XAT 2027 will have time limit of 170 minutes
  • Part 2 will have time limit of 10 minutes
  • Every question will be in MCQ format with 4 answer options to choose the righr answer from
  • Candidates will have to mark their answers and save them before moving to the next question
  • It is not mandatory to attempt all 95 questions. Candidates can skip questions if they don't know the correct answer.
  • Decision Making section is all about analytical and logical reasoning. The questions are based on situational passages on business ethics and decision.
  • The Reading Comprehension (RC) section of XAT usually includes four passages and one poem. Questions will be inference based.
  • GK is mostly based on current affairs. Static GK questions are less in number.

Prepare with XAT previous year papers 2015-2026 & preparation guides. Get XAT topper tips & expert advice.

Download Here

XAT Question Paper 2026: Expected Difficulty Level

The XAT is a high difficulty level exam. Given below is the break up of XAT question paper 2027 for reference:

XAT Sections

No. of Questions

Total Marks

Level of Difficulty

Decision Making

21

21

Moderate

Verbal and Logical Ability

26

26

Moderate

Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation

28

28

Tough

General Knowledge

250

20

Tough

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   How many questions were there in XAT 2025?
A: 

As per the latest XAT exam pattern, there will be 95 questions in XAT 2025 in MCQ format.

  • Verbal Ability section of XAT will have 26 questions
  • Decision Making section of XAT will have 21 questions
  • Quantitative Ability section will have 28 questions
  • GK section will have 20 questions

There will be no essay writing this year. It will be conducted during the selection process.

It is not mandatory to solve all the questions. Candidates should solve only those questions which they can solve correctly as there is negative marking in XAT. During the exam preparation, focus on the chapters from which majority of the questions are added. This will help them in achieving the sectional and overall cut offs are required.

Q:   How many XAT mock tests should I practice?
A: 

A candidate should practice at least 35 to 40 XAT mock tests during preparation. They should attempt mocks of various varieties and difficulty levels. 

In the last two weeks before XAT exam, they must practice at least five mock tests and analyse performance. It is most likely that by the end of exam preparation, candidates will be scoring 98 plus percentile in mocks. If that happens, they will score well in exam too.

Q:   When should I start practicing XAT mock tests?
A: 

Aspirants should start practicing XAT mock tests after completing the syllabus. Ideal time duration to solve XAT mock tests is October to December. Official mock test is released a week before the exam, so candidates must attempt it at least once before the exam. 

Q:   What type of Reading Comprehension passages are there in XAT?
A: 

In XAT, Reading Comprehension passages are usually taken from Philosophy, Psychology, History, Art, research articles. Sometime, the XAT RC section also has poems. These areas are chosen to test the candidates, who are largely Science, Commerce and Engineering graduates, on their ability to come out of their comfort zone and adapt to unfamiliar situations. Out of 26 questions, about 14-16 questions are based on RC passages or a poem. Candidates must target solving about 10 questions accurately to score well. XAT has negative marking so do not mark an option as your answer if you are not 100 percent sure of it.

XAT Question Paper: Marking Scheme

XAT exam has negative marking for incorrect attempts. Given below is the marking scheme of XAT exam:

XAT Marking Scheme

Correct answer

+1

Incorrect answer

-0.25

More than 8 unanswered questions

-0.10

Also Read:

XAT Mock Test

Shiksha has prepared free XAT mock test for practice. Candidates preparing for XAT 2025 can take this mock test and check the preparation level:

XAT Mock Test 1 Download Questions Download Solutions
XAT Mock Test 2 Download Questions Download Solutions
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Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content

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

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