CAT Score vs Percentile 2026: Section-wise Analysis

What is CAT Score?

Your CAT score is the total marks you obtain after applying the CAT marking scheme and normalisation process. It is reported as a scaled score, not a raw score. For every correct answer, you receive 3 marks, while 1 mark is deducted for every incorrect MCQ. There is no negative marking for incorrect TITA questions. 

For example, if you score 84–85 scaled marks, you are likely to secure around a 99 percentile. Whereas a scaled score of about 52 marks generally corresponds to a 90 percentile, depending on the exam’s difficulty and normalisation.

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What is CAT Percentile?

Your CAT percentile indicates how you performed compared to other candidates who appeared for the exam. It does not represent the percentage of marks you scored. For example, if you secure a 99 percentile, it means you performed better than 99% of the candidates, and only 1% scored higher than you. 

Similarly, a 95 percentile means you outperformed 95% of the test-takers. The percentile is calculated using your scaled score after normalisation and is the primary criterion used by IIMs and other MBA colleges during shortlisting. 

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CAT 2026 Score vs Percentile (Expected)

The CAT 2026 score vs percentile helps you estimate the percentile you are likely to achieve based on your scaled score. 

For example, if your overall scaled score is around 85 marks, you can expect a 99 percentile, while a score of 62 marks is typically sufficient for around 95 percentile. If your target is the 90th percentile, aim for an overall scaled score of approximately 52 marks. 

CAT Percentile	Scaled Score
99.90	170
99.50–99.90	160–169
99.00–99.50	150–159
98.50–99.00	140–149
97.50–98.50	130–139
95.50–97.50	120–129
93.00–95.50	110–119
90.00–93.00	100–109

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CAT Score vs Percentile Previous Years

CAT scores corresponding to a particular percentile have varied across years due to changes in exam difficulty, paper pattern, number of candidates and the normalisation process. The tables below provide the previous-year CAT score vs percentile for the last 5 years, helping candidates understand how scores have translated into percentiles over time. 

CAT Percentile vs Marks 2025

The table below shows the relationship between CAT percentile and total scaled score in 2025.

Percentile	Total Scaled Score
99.99%	132.79
99.95%	118.37
99.90%	111.48
99.50%	93
99.00%	84.8
98.00%	76
97.00%	70
95.00%	62.3
90.00%	51.50
85.00%	44.2
80.00%	38
75.00%	33
70.00%	29.5
65.00%	26
60.00%	23
55.00%	20

CAT Percentile vs Marks 2024

The following table presents the overall CAT scores corresponding to different percentiles in 2024.

Percentile	Overall Score
100	151
99	96
98	85
95	70
90	57
85	49
80	43

CAT Percentile vs Score 2023

The table below highlights the marks required for selected CAT percentiles in 2023.

Percentile	Marks in 2023
99.9	101
99.5	84
99	76
97	61
95	54
90	44
80	35

CAT Score vs Percentile 2022

The following table shows the CAT score and corresponding percentile trend for 2022.

Percentile	Marks in 2022
99.9	109
99.5	92
99	84
97	72
95	62
90	49
80	36.02

CAT Marks vs Percentile 2021

The table below presents the relationship between CAT marks and percentile in 2021.

Percentile	Marks in 2021
99.9	124
99.5	110
99	98
97	82
95	73
90	60
80	45

CAT Marks vs Percentile 2020

The following table shows the CAT marks corresponding to selected percentiles in 2020.

Percentile	Marks in 2020
99.9	130
99.5	115
99	101
97	85
95	76
90	63
80	48

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How Many Marks Are Needed for 90+ Percentile in CAT 2026?

A 90+ percentile is a competitive score for admission to several leading MBA colleges that accept CAT scores. Based on the latest score trends and normalised score analyses, candidates generally need an overall scaled score of around 52 marks to achieve a 90 percentile. CAT section-wise scores are approximately 26 marks in VARC, 17 marks in DILR, and 15 marks in QA. 

Section	99 Percentile	95 Percentile	90 Percentile
VARC	44	32.5	26
DILR	29.8	21.5	16.7
QA	27.3	18.5	15
Overall	84.8	62.3	51.50

CAT Section-wise Score vs Percentile

Since the conducting IIM does not release an official section-wise score vs percentile table, these estimates are prepared using actual candidate data and score trends. They help aspirants understand the approximate VARC, DILR, and QA scores and difficulty level For instance, candidates targeting a 99 percentile generally need around 44 marks in VARC, 30 in DILR, and 27 in QA. 

CAT 2025

The CAT 2025 sectional score data below shows the approximate scores corresponding to different percentile levels in VARC, DILR and QA. It helps candidates compare the sectional performance required across different percentile benchmarks.

Percentile	VARC Score	DILR Score	QA Score
99.9	53	38	37
99.5	48	33	31.2
99	44	29.8	27.3
95	32.5	21.5	18.5
90	26	16.7	15
85	22	14	12
80	19	11.5	10
70 / 60	11 (60%ile)	8.5 (70%ile)	7.1 (70%ile)

CAT 2024

The CAT 2024 sectional score trends provide a year-wise reference for VARC, DILR and Quant. The data highlights how the score requirement varied across percentile levels in each section.

Percentile	VARC Score	DILR Score	Quant Score
99.9	55	50.1	45
99.5	44	41.4	36.5
99	40.3	37.8	33
97	33.54	30.8	25
95	30	27	22
90	24	22.5	17
85	20.42	19.5	13.7
80	18.2	17	11.6
75	15.60	14.95	9.92

CAT 2023

The CAT 2023 data shows sectional scores for VARC and DILR at selected percentile levels. These figures can be used to understand the variation in sectional score requirements across different performance bands.

Percentile	VARC Score	DILR Score
100	61.66	50.4
99.99	58.20	42.66
99.9	51.14	36.58
99.5	44	30.58
99	39.83	27.29
95	28.78	18.92
90	23.37	15.63
80	17.58	11.67

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CAT Score vs Percentile Section-wise Comparison (2022–2025)

Here is a look at the section wise CAT percentile comparison for the last four years. 

Year	VARC (99%ile Score)	DILR (99%ile Score)	QA (99%ile Score)
CAT 2025	44	30	27
CAT 2024	40	37	33
CAT 2023	39.7	27.4	30
CAT 2022	41.7	31.9	44.2

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CAT Normalisation Process

Your raw score is the total marks you get based on the official CAT marking scheme before any normalisation is applied.

• You get +3 marks for every correct answer.
• You lose 1 mark for every incorrect MCQ.
• There is no negative marking for incorrect TITA (Type in the Answer) questions.
• Unanswered questions do not affect your score.

Response Type	Marks Awarded
Correct Answer	+3
Incorrect MCQ	-1
Incorrect TITA	0
Unanswered	0

What is the Scaled Score in CAT?

Since CAT is conducted in multiple slots, the difficulty level of each slot may vary slightly. Some slots may be easier, while others may be more difficult.

To ensure fairness, the IIMs use a normalisation process. This process adjusts every candidate’s raw score based on the difficulty level of their slot. The adjusted score is called the scaled score.

Your CAT percentile is calculated using the scaled score, not the raw score.

What is CAT Raw Score?

CAT raw score is the total marks a candidate obtains in the CAT exam before the score is converted into a percentile. It is calculated based on the number of correct and incorrect answers across the three sections: VARC, DILR, and QA. 

Generally, candidates receive 3 marks for every correct answer, while 1 mark is deducted for an incorrect MCQ response. There is no negative marking for non-MCQ questions. The raw score is then used in the CAT scoring and normalisation process, as the exam is conducted in multiple shifts. The resulting scaled score is used to calculate the candidate’s CAT percentile. 

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CAT Normalisation Process

The normalisation process happens in four simple steps:

Step 1: Calculate the Raw Score

Your raw score is calculated using the CAT marking scheme.

• +3 for every correct answer
• -1 for every incorrect MCQ
• 0 for incorrect TITA questions
• 0 for unanswered questions

Step 2: Compare Performance Across Slots

The IIMs compare the average performance of candidates in each exam slot. This helps them understand whether a particular slot was easier or more difficult than the others.

Step 3: Calculate the Scaled Score

Using a statistical formula, the raw scores are adjusted based on the difficulty level of each slot. Candidates who appeared in a tougher slot may receive a slightly higher scaled score, while those in an easier slot may receive a slightly lower one.

Step 4: Calculate the Percentile

After the scaled scores are calculated, all candidates are ranked according to their performance. Your percentile shows the percentage of candidates who scored lower than you.

For example, if your percentile is 99, it means you scored better than 99% of the candidates who appeared for CAT.

Formula Used for CAT Scaled Score

The IIMs use the following formula to calculate the normalised (scaled) score:

Normalized Score = μ + ((X − μs) / σs) × σ

Where:

• X = Your raw score
• μs = Average score of candidates in your exam slot
• σs = Standard deviation of scores in your slot
• μ = Average score of all candidates across all slots
• σ = Standard deviation of scores across all slots

Formula Used to Calculate CAT Percentile

After normalisation, the percentile is calculated using the following formula:

Percentile = ((N − R) / N) × 100

Where:

• N = Total number of candidates who appeared for CAT
• R = Your rank based on the scaled score

Example: If 3 lakh candidates appeared for CAT and your rank is 3,000, your percentile would be close to 99, which means you performed better than about 99% of the test-takers.

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