CAT Notification 2026 - CAT 2026 Exam Date

CAT 2026 notification is expected soon. The exam will be conducted in November 2026, and candidates can expect to receive their results in January 2027. It's the perfect time for candidates to start their preparation. Suppose you are an aspiring candidate who wants to pass the exam. You need a proper strategy with expert guidance. Every year, 2-3 lakh aspirants take this exam, and only a few of them get a seat in their dream IIM. In this exam, 21 IIMs participate and offer 5300 (approx.) seats. So competition is tough in this CAT exam. If you are a student who doesn't know where to start the journey, what to study, or what things they avoid during preparation, this can also lead to exam failure. This article is about the CAT notification first; just understand the dates and the exam pattern.

CAT Notification 2026: Important Dates

Mentioned below are the expected CAT 2026 Important Dates. Through this, the aspirants will be able to get familiar with CAT 2026 registration date, last date to register, exam date etc.

CAT 2026 Important Dates & Timeline	Important Dates
CAT 2026 Notification Date	Last week of July 2026 (Tentative)
CAT 2026 Registration Starts	First week of August 2026 (Expected)
CAT 2026 Registration Last Date	Third week of September 2026 (Expected)
CAT 2026 Exam Date	Last Sunday of November 2026 (Tentative)
CAT 2026 Result Date	First week of January 2027 (Tentative)

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CAT 2026

CAT exam 2026 will be conducted by one of the IIMs. After the exam, the results will be provided within one month through SMS. Candidates can also visit the official website to check their scores. Every year, lakhs of aspirants appear for the CAT exam. So it is important to create a strategy that will help you get into your dream B-school. Here is what you can expect:

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Did you Know: Until the year 2008, CAT was a paper-based test.

CAT 2026: Important Facts

Here is a quick overview of important facts about CAT:

Name of test	Common Admission Test (CAT)
Purpose of test	Qualifying test for admission to 21 IIMs and 100+ reputed B-schools across India
CAT 2026 Exam Date	Last Sunday of November 2026 (Tentative)
CAT Entrance exam sessions	3 Sessions/Slots
Slot Timing	Slot 1 (8.30 am to 10.30 am) Slot 2 (12.30 pm to 2.30 pm) Slot 3 (4.30 pm to 6.30 pm)
Conducted by	One of the IIMs (To be announced)
Exam type	National level
Periodicity	Once in a year
Score/Percentile Validity	One Year
Annual Number of Test Takers	2-2.5 lakh
Pattern of Test	MCQs and Non-MCQs
Number of Questions	Approximately 66–68
Test Duration	2 hours
Marking Scheme	+3 for every correct answer -1 for each wrong answer (MCQs only)
Syllabus	Questions from VARC, QA and DILR
Mode of Conduct	Computer-based test
Application Fee (tentative)	Rs. 2600/- for General & NC-OBC candidates Rs. 1300/- for SC/ST/PWD candidates
Reservation of seats in IIMs and B-schools	As per the Government of India regulations

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In the last few years, there have been significant changes in the format of the Common Admission Test (CAT). The number of questions changed from 100 in 2019 to 76 in 2020 and then to 66 in 2021, which was a significant change. In 2024–2025, the number was around 66–68 questions. The same pattern is expected to continue for CAT 2026. Registration will be done online on the official website.