CAT Exam Analysis 2026 (Slot 1,2,3) | CAT Paper Analysis, Difficulty Level And Expected Cutoffs.

CAT 2026 Score Calculator By Career Launcher

After the CAT exam, every student wants to know one thing: how did I score? Our CAT Score Calculator is built to give you an estimated score that stays as close as possible to your actual CAT score.

The questions that follow are always the same: How have I done? What percentile can I expect? Will it be enough for a call from my target B-school? Answering any of them starts with knowing your score, and that is what the calculator gives you, within minutes of finishing your exam.

Here is how it works:

• Enter your response data: the number of questions you answered correctly, answered incorrectly and left unattempted.
• Get your estimated CAT score: the calculator works out your score from this data, based on the CAT marking scheme of +3 for every correct answer and -1 for every incorrect MCQ answer (no negative marking for TITA questions).

CL has been estimating CAT scores from students’ response data every year. We refine the calculator each time using historical CAT data, so the estimates keep getting more reliable. The CAT 2026 Score Calculator will be live on CAT day, 29th November 2026.

Career Launcher's AI-Driven CAT 2026 Percentile Predictor

CAT admissions run on percentiles, not raw scores. Once you know your estimated score, our CAT Percentile Predictor shows where that score is likely to place you among all test takers. It is refined every year using historical data, and students’ actual percentiles have closely matched its predictions.

Here is how the CL CAT 2026 Percentile Predictor helps you:

• Know where you stand: it estimates your expected percentile, so you can see how your score compares with other CAT takers.
• Compare across slots: it normalises scores across slots using the scaling formula provided by the CAT conducting authorities, so your result can be compared fairly whichever slot you wrote.
• Plan your shortlist: use your predicted percentile alongside the expected B-school cutoffs below to judge your chances of a call.
• Reliable where it matters most: it gives its most accurate results at higher percentiles. Below the 70th percentile, estimates may vary slightly due to limited data.

Which Top B-Schools Can You Target?

Your CAT percentile is only one part of the shortlisting decision. B-schools also look at your academic record, work experience, category and diversity, so two candidates with the same percentile can get different outcomes.

A noticeable difference exists in the expected B-school cutoffs for different candidates with different profiles.

Even though both have the same percentile, Candidate A might have a higher chance of getting a call from top B-Schools because of the profile.

This is why a percentile alone does not tell you where you can get a call. The expected percentile cutoffs for top IIMs are given below for reference.

CAT Cut-Off 2026 (Expected)

CAT cutoff is the minimum percentile that a candidate is expected to achieve to get into a B-school. While top B-schools are known to have a higher CAT cutoff range, the minimum cutoff varies both from institute to institute and profile to profile.

Shortlisting from B-schools after CAT exam depends on various factors such as the candidate’s CAT percentile, academic record, work experience, category, academic diversity and the institute’s specific criteria.

Further, it is worth noting that there are two stages in the admission procedure of CAT:

• Stage I → It includes the profile score and the CAT test score, out of which the profile score may include your academic performance, work experience, and academic and gender diversity, which may vary based on the Institute’s pre-defined weightages/ preferences.
  (The CAT percentile is a key part of the shortlisting process, but interview calls also depend on factors like your academic record, work experience, and category. While you can’t change most of your profile-related details, you can focus on maximising your CAT score.)
• Stage II → It includes the WAT-PI and other rounds, which are again something in your control, and you can work on them to gain admission to your dream B-school.

Find below the tabulated CAT cutoff 2026 of top-tier IIMs based on the previous year’s cutoff:

*Please note that the above-mentioned percentiles are just the indicative numbers (as per the admission criteria of B-schools for 2026-27 academic batch).

For Example: The above percentiles do not guarantee an admission call from a B-school. The final admission decisions are based on the composite score.

The composite score typically includes components such as your CAT score, academic performance (10th, 12th, graduation marks), work experience, gender diversity, and discipline background. For instance, even two candidates with the same CAT percentile may receive different outcomes depending on their academic profile and work experience weightage in a particular institute’s selection criteria.