XAT Exam Analysis 2026 (Live) - Section Wise Analysis, Difficulty Level & Ideal Attempts

---

XAT 2026 Overall Exam Analysis

The overall breakup of XAT 2026 paper with section-wise marking scheme and difficulty level of the exam has been tabulated below.

---

XAT 2026 Exam Analysis - Verbal Ability And Logical Reasoning

The VALR section in XAT was moderate to difficult, with a strong focus on comprehension and critical reasoning. Students who selected questions wisely could attempt around 16–18 doable questions, making accuracy and smart choices key to a good score.

---

XAT Exam Analysis 2026 - Decision Making 

The Decision Making section in XAT was of moderate difficulty, testing candidates on ethical reasoning and practical judgment rather than formula-based logic. With a clear and balanced approach, around 12–14 questions were doable, making careful evaluation crucial for maximizing scores.

---

XAT Quantitative Ability And Data Interpretation Analysis 2026

The QADI section was moderate to difficult, with a mix of calculation-intensive questions and data interpretation sets that required strong conceptual clarity. Candidates who managed time well and chose questions strategically could attempt around 18–20 doable questions, making accuracy a key differentiator.

XAT Quantitative Ability 2026 Analysis

XAT Data Interpretation 2026 Analysis

---

XAT Score VS Percentile 2026 (Expected)

After the exam is over, the next immediate question that will pop up in every aspirant's mind is probably, "How did I perform in the exam?" The answer to this question will be revealed once the answer key is released. However, to quell this curiosity, our experts have compiled the expected XAT score versus percentile table below, based on past trends.

You can use our XAT score calculator to fill in your estimated attempts and gain insight into your performance in XAT 2026. Following this, you can know exactly where you stand amongst the competition by analyzing the expected XAT 2026 score vs. percentile.

*The above figures are just expectations based on the difficulty level of the XAT 2026 paper and past trends from previous XAT exams.

---

XAT Paper Pattern 2026

The exam pattern for XAT 2026 is similar to that of XAT 2025. As per last year, the XAT exam has a total of 95 questions.

Some key points that an aspirant must remember about the XAT 2026 exam pattern are as follows:

---

XAT 2026 Exam Pattern: Marking Scheme

The XAT exam consists of 95 questions, based on the recent exam pattern.

---

XAT Cutoff 2026 (Expected)

Based on past year trends and other parameters XAT 2026 cut-offs are expected to be around 98+ %ile.

---

XAT Exam Analysis: Time Management in XAT 2026

The duration of the XAT exam is reduced to 180 minutes or three hours, which is divided into two parts with no sectional time limitation for any particular section.

To complete the first part, candidates will be allotted a total of 170 minutes. This section includes verbal ability and logical reasoning, quantitative ability and data interpretation, and decision-making, with a total of 75 questions. The next part of the exam consists of 20 questions on general knowledge, and for that, candidates are given a total of 10 minutes.

Effective time management and strategic test-taking approaches are essential for success. It is advisable for all serious XAT candidates to intensify their preparation, practice previous years' XAT papers, and start attempting mock tests regularly. This practice will not only help familiarize candidates with the exam format but also enhance their confidence and performance in the actual exam, thereby improving their chances of admission to top B-schools accepting XAT scores.

---

XAT Analysis 2025

The overall level of difficulty of XAT 2025 was moderate and easier compared to last year. Based on the review of the sections, VA was easy to moderate and the RC questions were also on the easier side. The logical reasoning section was slightly easier than the XAT 2024. However, the decision-making section was challenging and slightly trickier than the last year in terms of difficulty level.

The number of doable questions for each section are as follows:

• Verbal and Logical Ability: 16-18
• Decision Making: 12-14
• Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation: 17-18
• General Knowledge 10-11

In the General Knowledge section, there was a balance between current affairs and static GK, and essay writing comprised three options to choose from.

XAT 2025 Analysis

---

XAT Analysis 2024

The overall level of difficulty of XAT 2024 was moderate to difficult, with a good score of 36-37 marks. Based on the review of the sections, VA was easy to moderate, while the RC questions were moderate to difficult. The logical reasoning section was also moderate. Similarly, the Decision Making section was moderate in terms of difficulty level. The level of difficulty of QA was difficult, while DI was moderate.

The good scores for each section were as follows:

• Verbal and Logical Ability: 14-15
• Decision Making: 15-16
• Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation: 15-16

In the General Knowledge section, there was a balance between current affairs and static GK, and essay writing comprised three options to choose from.

XAT 2024 Analysis

---

XAT Analysis 2023

The overall level of difficulty of XAT 2023 was moderate, with a good score of 35 marks. Based on the review of the sections, VA was easy to moderate, while the RC questions were moderate to difficult. The logical reasoning section was also moderate. Similarly, the Decision Making section was moderate in terms of difficulty level. The level of difficulty of QA was easy to moderate, while DI was moderate.

The good scores for each section were as follows:

• Verbal and Logical Ability: 14+
• Decision Making: 11+
• Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation: 10+

In the General Knowledge section, there was a balance between current affairs and static GK, and essay writing comprised three options to choose from.

XAT 2023 Analysis

---

XAT Analysis 2022

Overall, XAT 2022 aspirants had to face 100 MCQ questions and an essay writing question in 190 minutes. The Verbal and Logical Ability was easy, and the decision-making section was also not very ambiguous. The Quantitative Aptitude section was easy to understand, and the Data Interpretation section was straightforward.

The overall structure of the paper was similar to XAT 2021, except that an essay paper was introduced in the paper just a few days before the exam.

According to our CAT experts, the section-wise good score for XAT 2022 would be:

• Verbal and Logical Ability: 9+
• Decision Making: 7+
• Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation: 10+

The overall difficulty level of XAT 2022 was moderate. The cutoff for the male-engineer category was 32-33.

XAT 2022 Analysis

---

XAT Analysis 2021

After the nightmare of XAT 2020 and a generally unpleasant year of 2020, XAT 2021 was a welcome change. XAT 2021 came back to its usual form which was similar to what was seen in 2017 and 2019. Thus, in terms of the level of difficulty, XAT 2021 was an exam with a moderate difficulty level.

In terms of sectional difficulty:

• VALR (Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning): Similar to that of XAT 2019 but easier to read and comprehend. The LOD for this section was Moderate.
• DM (Decision Making): Similar to the DM section of XAT 2019/XAT 2018 which was Moderate in terms of the level of difficulty.
• QADI (Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation): QADI section was slightly easier than that of XAT2019 but with a couple of DI sets that were lengthy if not difficult. However, with quite a few Arithmetic questions, the section was Moderate in terms of LOD.

XAT 2021 Analysis