CAT Previous Year Papers (2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017): Download PDFs with Solutions

Q: What are the most important formulas in Quantitative Aptitude for CAT?

For cracking Quantitative Aptitude section of CAT, candidates must memorise all the Arithmetic formulae as this topic dominated the QA section of CAT. The candidates must also memorise Algebra and Geometry theorems.

Q: What are the important topics of CAT syllabus from which maximum questions are asked?

CAT lays a lot of emphasis on analytical skills so the questions are asked mostly from those topics which require deep learning and practice. The three sections of CAT question paper are designed in such a way that candidates have to use their ability of minute observation and fast calculation. Shared below are the section wise main topics from which questions are asked in CAT. Verbal Ability: Parajumbles, Parasummary, Sentence Completion and Inferences Reading Comprehension: Questions based on passages, Para meaning, Order of sentences Data Interpretation: Tables, Graphs, Pie Charts, Venn Diagram, Data Sufficiency Logical Reasoning: Blood Relation, Seating Arrangement, Syllogism, Coding-Decoding, Sets and Caselets, Family Tree, Assumptions Quantitative Aptitude: Geometry, Algebra Number System Modern Math, Arithmetic, Mensuration The difficulty level of CAT questions is usually moderate to high. Only a few questions are easy and quick to solve. To crack the CAT exam, one needs to pay attention to the abovementioned topics.

Q: Is CAT exam tough for an average student?

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.

Q: What is the structure of CAT question paper?

Till 2014, there were only two sections in CAT. Quantitative Aptitude was clubbed with Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning was clubbed with Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension. In 2015, the Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning were clubbed together and Quantitative Aptitude and Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension made two individual sections. Since 2015, the sectional segregation has remained the same but the number of questions have come down from 100 to 66. The exam duration has also been reduced. Until 2019, the CAT exam was of 180 minutes and the total number of questions were 100. However, in 2020, the question paper structure was revised due to COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, the total number of questions came down to 76. In 2021 and 2022, the number of questions were further lowered to 66. For the last two years, CAT is conducted for 2 hours, and the number of questions is 66. In CAT 2024 however, the number of questions were increased to 68. The latest CAT question paper structure is: Total questions: 68 Number of sections: 3 Order of sections - 1. VARC 2. DILR 3. Quantitative Aptitude Sectional time limit: 40 minutes VARC questions: 24 DILR questions: 22 Quantitative Aptitude questions: 22.

Q: How to download CAT response sheet and answer key?

CAT answer key is released in online mode only. The link to download it is made live at the CAT exam website within a week of the exam. Candidates who have appeared for the test can download it by using their CAT login ID and password. To download CAT answer key and response sheet candidates have to follow the below-mentioned steps: 1. Visit the official website of CAT exam (iimcat. ac.in) 2. Click on the 'login' tab 3. Enter CAT login ID and password 4. Click on sign in to go to student dashboard 5. Look for response sheet/answer key tab 6. Click on the link to open the answer key 7. Download the PDF and save it The CAT answer key will be available for download from December 5-8, 2023 only. In case a candidate fails to download their answer key within the deadline, they will not be able to access it later under any circumstances. Thus, candidates must download their scorecards.

Q: What is the sectional weightage of VARC in CAT?

The Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension section of the CAT exam has 24 questions. This section has the maximum weightage. 24 questions carry 72 marks. The major part of this section is dominated by Reading Comprehension. It covers about 14-16 questions through 4-5 passages. Rest of the questions are asked from Verbal Ability like Para jumbles, Para summary and Para completion. Every Reading Comprehension passage of the CAT carries about four to five questions. There are usually 3-4 para jumble questions, 3-4 para summary questions and 2-3 para completion questions. Lately it has been seen the CAT does not have word meaning or grammar-based questions. CAT VARC is a high weightage section of high difficulty level. High difficulty level, because the CAT Reading Comprehension passages are long, dense and inference based. To read and understand the passages in a short time poses a challenge to a large number of candidates. So, it is very important to develop reading habit if you want to score high in CAT.

Q: What is the sectional weightage of Quantitative Aptitude in CAT?

The Quantitative Aptitude section of CAT is the third and the last section of the question paper. It has 22 questions and the total marks is 66. This section of the CAT exam is usually dominated by Arithmetic and Algebra. Most of the questions out of 22 are asked from these two topics. There are about 7-9 Algebra questions and 7-9 Arithmetic questions (the exact number varied for all three slots). Apart from these two topics, there are questions from Mensuration Modern Math and Number System in the Quantitative Aptitude section CAT. Some of the important sub topics in this section include: Arithmetic topics: Ratio and Proportion, Simple and Compound Interest, Profit and Loss Mixtures and Allegations Averages, Percentages, Mean Median Mode, Time and Work, Time Speed and Distance Algebra topics: Basics Algebraic Formulae, Number of integer solutions, Quadratic Equations, Finding out roots, Maxima and Minimal, Higher Degree Equations, Linear Equations, Problems on ages, Descartes Rule of Signs, Inequalities, Logarithm, Functions, Modifications of Graphs, The smallest Value in a Maximum Function Number System topics: Finding Out Last Two Digits, Number of Trailing Zeroes, Finding out Remainders based on, Basic Divisibility Rules, Binomial Theorem, Simplifying the Dividend (Single and/or Multiple Divisors), Basics of Numbers, Properties of Numbers, Divisibility Rules, Divisibility and Factors, the highest Common Factor and the lowest Common Multiple, Finding Out the Last Digit, Fermat's Theorem, Euler's Theorem, Pattern Recognition and Cyclicity of Remainders, Wilson's Theorem, Base Systems, Conversion of Bases, Addition/Subtraction/ Multiplication in different bases Geometry Topics: Lines and Angles, Triangles Basic Concepts, Area, Angles, Similar Triangles Polygons, Circles, Solids / Mensuration 3D Geometry, Coordinate Geometry, Trigonometry Modern Math topics: Sequence and Series Binomial Theorem, Set Theory, Permutation and Combination, Probability.

Q: What is the sectional weightage of DILR in CAT?

The total number of questions in the Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning section of CAT exam is 22 (as per CAT 2024 question paper). Earlier, the number of DILR questions was 20. There is equal number of question distribution between Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, which means both sections have 11 questions each. The total marks for DILR is 66. The questions on Data Interpretation as based on Tables, Graphs, Pie Charts, Venn Diagram, whereas Logical Reasoning questions are based on Blood Relation, Seating Arrangement, Caselets and Syllogism. This section of the CAT is usually moderate in terms of difficulty level and about 12-14 correct attempts are good enough to score high marks. Some of the other important topics include Series, Proposition, Direction Sense, Coding-Decoding, Assumptions, Clocks and Calendars, Statements, Binary Logic, Data Structures, Data Sufficiency and Data Arrangement. To score high in this section, candidates must practice a good number of practice tests and sectional mock tests. The better you learn to interpret given data and apply reasoning to a given situation, the better you get at solving related questions.

Q: Which CAT slot has the toughest question paper?

There is no pattern to which CAT question paper can be the toughest. The CAT question paper of every slot has unique questions. The examination body strives to maintain the same difficulty level of the paper across all slots but it may happen that a question can be more difficult from another. It is seen that, to keep the uniqueness of the question paper intact, the examination authority also changes the topic wise weightage a little bit across the exam slots. In most of the previous years, it is seen that the morning slot of the CAT exam is tougher than the rest two. However, candidates must not worry about the difficulty level of the slots as, the scores of all the candidates are normalised on a common scale to root out the possibility of advantage or disadvantage to any student due to difference in difficulty level. To know how the CAT scores are normalised, read this article: https://www.shiksha.com/mba/articles/understanding-cat-normalization-process-blogId-9386.

Q: Is it difficult for non-English medium students to crack CAT?

It is difficult but not impossible. If you give yourself a good enough time to improve English comprehension, grammar and vocabulary, you will be able to do it. Yes, a non- English medium student will require longer time for CAT preparation as they will have to start reading and improving English comprehension. So, may be they need to start English preparation for CAT in the second year of graduation, instead of final year (much earlier than English medium students). They may also need two attempts to crack CAT with high percentile. But that's not true for all. If you work hard and study smartly, you will be able to crack it.

13.4K Students Q&A

Admit Card - 5 Nov '25 - 30 Nov '25

Updated on Sep 19, 2025 12:33 IST

By Vipra Shrivastava, Senior Manager - Content

CAT previous year paper practice is essential for a good performance in the exam. If you are preparing for CAT 2025, then you must check the CAT 2024 question paper to know what to study and how. As part of your CAT exam preparation, you must refer to not only the CAT question paper 2024 but also papers of previous years. CAT 2025 exam is two months away, so this is the right time to start CAT question paper practice.

CAT 2024 question paper PDFs have been shared below along with previous years CAT paper PDFs of 2023, 2022, 2021, 2022, 2019, 2018 and 2017. Aspirants can download the CAT previous year papers free of cost.

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1 Oct 2025: CAT Exam Exam Exam 2

Table of content

Download CAT Question Paper PDFs of Last Seven Years
Previous Year CAT Question Paper PDF 2024, 2023, 2022
CAT Previous Year Papers 2021-2017
Shiksha's Exclusive CAT Practice Papers: DILR, QA, VARC
Shiksha's Exclusive CAT Preparation Guides
CAT 2024 Question Paper
CAT 2023 Question Paper
CAT Previous Year Papers: Importance of Practicing
CAT Mock Tests by Shiksha
FAQs Related to CAT Question Papers

Download CAT Question Paper PDFs of Last Seven Years

Aspirants can download official CAT question paper PDFs of past five years. They can download and practice these CAT exam previous year question papers free.

CAT 2024 Question Paper Slot 2	CAT 2023 Question Paper Slot 3
CAT 2024 Question Paper Slot 3	CAT 2022 question paper slot 3
CAT 2023 Question Paper Slot 1	CAT 2019 Question Paper
CAT 2022 question paper slot 1	CAT 2018 Question Paper
CAT 2021 Question Paper	CAT 2017 Question Paper
CAT 2020 Question Paper

Commonly asked questions

Q: Is CAT exam tough for an average student?

Q: What is the structure of CAT question paper?

Download previous year CAT question papers and sample papers. Use them for practice and improve your speed and accuracy. You can download CAT previous year question papers and the preparation guides for free.

Previous Year CAT Question Paper PDF 2024, 2023, 2022

CAT 2024 Question Paper PDF Slot 3 (Official)

CAT 2024 question paper

CAT Question Paper 2024 PDF Slot 2 (Official)

CAT 2024 Question Paper Slot 2

CAT Question Paper 2023 Slot 3 (Official)

CAT Question Paper Slot 3

CAT Question Paper 2023 Slot 1 (Official)

CAT 2023 Question Paper - Slot 1

CAT Question Paper 2022 PDF Slot 1 (Official)

CAT 2022 Question Paper Slot 1

CAT Question Paper 2022 PDF Slot 3 (Official)

CAT 2022 Question Paper Slot 3

CAT Previous Year Papers 2021-2017

CAT Question Paper 2020 PDF

CAT 2021 question paper

CAT Question Paper 2019 PDF

CAT 2020 Question Paper

CAT Question Paper 2018 PDF

CAT 2019 Question Paper

CAT Question Paper 2017 PDF

CAT 2018 Question Paper

CAT 2017 Question Paper

Shiksha's Exclusive CAT Practice Papers: DILR, QA, VARC

DILR Questions with Answers for Practice

Quantitative Aptitude Questions with Answers for Practice

VARC Questions with Answers for Practice

Shiksha's Exclusive CAT Preparation Guides

Important MBA Entrance Exams You Should Not Miss

How To Prepare for CAT

How To Prepare for MBA Entrance Exams

Preparation Guide for MBA Entrance Exam - Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

Preparation Guide for MBA Entrance Exams- Quantitative Aptitude

Preparation Guide for MBA Entrance Exams- Verbal Ability

CAT 2024 Question Paper

there was a slight change in the exam format in 2024. CAT 2024 question paper had 68 questions instead of 66. There were 2 extra questions in the DILR section but the time limit was the same. Overall, the CAT question paper 2024 was of moderate difficulty level. Check here an overview of the CAT question paper 2024.

CAT Sections	Number of questions	Marks
VARC	24	72
DILR	22	66
Quantitative Aptitude	22	66
Total	68	204

Also Read: CAT Total Marks and Number of Questions

CAT 2024 question paper: Section wise break up

VARC: This section CAT paper 2024 had 16 RC based questions and there were no parajumbles. Rest of the CAT questions were on parasummary, paracompletion and odd sentence. Difficulty level of VARC questions was easy to moderate.
DILR: In the DILR section, there were 5 sets. Most of the questions were in sets of 3-4. The total number of questions were 22, but most of them were doable. Difficulty level of DILR questions was moderate.
Quantitative Aptitude: This section of CAT 2024 had 8-10 questions from Arithmetic. Candidates could complete the section on time. There were 1-2 question each from rest of the topics of CAT Quantitative Aptitude. Difficulty level of questions was moderate to tough.

Commonly asked questions

Q: Is it difficult for non-English medium students to crack CAT?

CAT 2023 Question Paper

CAT 2023 question paper was moderate to tough for all test sessions. There was no surprise element. VARC was dominated by RC, Quantitative Aptitude was dominated by Arithmetic and Algebra. DILR had 2 questions sets each on DI and LR. Check the table below for key highlights of CAT Question Paper 2023:

CAT Sections	Number of questions	Break up	Difficulty level
VARC	24	4 passages with 4 questions each, 2 parajumble questions, 2 parasummary questions, 2 paracompletion questions and 2 odd one out questions	Moderate
DILR	20	4 sets of 5 questions each	Moderate to difficult
Quantitative Aptitude	22	7 Algebra questions, 7 Arithmetic questions, 3 Geometry questions, 4 Number System questions, 1 Modern Maths questions	Difficult
Total	66	--	--

Check here CAT question paper PDFs

CAT Percentile predictor prepared by Shiksha.com helps students to get their predicted CAT percentile on the basis of their expected exam score. So, predict your CAT score by clicking the link below:

Predict CAT Percentile

Commonly asked questions

Q: What are the most important formulas in Quantitative Aptitude for CAT?

Q: What are the important topics of CAT syllabus from which maximum questions are asked?

CAT Previous Year Papers: Importance of Practicing

CAT 2025 aspirants must understand the benefits of solving CAT last year papers, sample papers and mock tests, during CAT preparation:

CAT previous year question papers help in understanding the latest CAT exam pattern and marking scheme.
Practicing CAT question papers improves speed and accuracy in solving questions. One needs to aim for 80-85 percent accuracy in CAT 2025.
Practicing CAT exam paper helps in understanding how much time is required for which type of question. This will help them in strategising for the exam day.
Practicing CAT previous year papers help candidates in knowing which section can be time taking and lengthy. They can use this knowledge to prepare accordingly.
Previous years' CAT papers are a good resource of Reading Comprehension practice. They can do time bound practice of CAT RC passages.

Check Out:

When to Start Practicing Previous Year CAT Question Papers

Ideal time to start solving CAT exam previous year papers is a month before the exam because by that time you will have completed the CAT syllabus and attempted enough mocks to understand the nature of exam. Next, is the time to practice actual CAT questions so that your memory is fresh with the at the time of CAT 2025.

If you have already appeared for CAT once, then you can solve practice questions and sample papers alongside covering the CAT syllabus too, as you will already have the knowledge of the concepts and your fundamentals will be clear for all subjects. After completing a set of chapters, solve a CAT sample paper or a CAT mock test to see if you're on the right track or not.

Commonly asked questions

Q: What are the benefits of solving CAT question papers?

CAT Mock Tests by Shiksha

CAT mock test practice is the core of exam preparation. One must practice about 30-40 CAT mock tests towards the end of the prep schedule. Shiksha offers free CAT mock test for candidates. These CAT mock tests are based on the basis of the latest CAT exam pattern and previously asked questions. Candidates can practice this CAT mock test free by clicking on the link.

CAT_Mock_Test_1	CAT_Mock_Test_Solutions
CAT_Mock_Test_2	CAT_Mock_Test_2_Solutions

Also read:

Check Cut offs of top MBA entrance exams and predict calls from IIMs and other Top MBA Colleges. Check Fees, Placement Reviews, Admission, Shortlist Criteria and eligibility of all MBA Colleges by clicking the link below:

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