CAT Score vs Percentile-Check Section-Wise Analysis last 5 years(2024-2020)

Chanpreet Kaur's profile photo

Chanpreet Kaur

Content Writer | MBA Professional | Updated on - Sep 16, 2025

The CAT Score vs Percentile shows the relationship between the percentile range with the marks scored by the candidate in the CAT exam. Previous years’ CAT score vs percentile indicates that a score of around 81-96 translates to around 99 percentile in CAT. Students scoring overall 73-85 marks in CAT 2025 are expected to get a CAT score of around 98 percentile.

  • To score 95 percentile in CAT 2025, students must score around 59-70 overall marks in CAT 2025 and must score 30-32 in VARC, 20-27 in DILR, and 18-22 in QA.
  • Students with an overall score of 50-57 in CAT 2025 are expected to get a CAT percentile score of around 90.
  • 85 percentile in CAT 2025 is expected to translate to around 41-49 CAT score in 2025.
CAT Score vs Percentile
 

What is CAT Score vs Percentile?

CAT score vs percentile is a comparative analysis of the performance of candidates, helping them to analyze and convert their CAT scores into CAT percentile scores. As per the CAT score vs percentile from the last two years, the expected score range for 99 percentile in CAT is around 81-96. 95 percentile in CAT 2025 is expected to translate to a CAT score of around 73-85 marks.

CAT marks vs percentile is determined based on various factors as listed below.

  • Difficulty Level of CAT 2025
  • Number of Test-Takers in CAT 2025
  • Sectional Variability in CAT 2025

Key Summary

  • As per CAT score analysis from past years, 99 percentile in CAT 2025 is expected to translate to around 81-96 marks.
  • The expected sectional score for 99 percentile in CAT is expected to be: VARC- 41-42, DILR- 30-38, QA- 26-33.
  • To score 98 percentile in CAT 2025, students must secure at least 63-85 marks in CAT 2025.

CAT Score vs Percentile- Overall Analysis

As per the CAT score vs percentile analysis from past years, aspirants scoring 81 to 96 marks in CAT 2025 are expected to get a CAT percentile score of the 99th percentile.

  • For 99 percentile in CAT 2025, students must score around 41-42 in VARC, 30-38 in DILR, and 26-23 in QA.
  • To score 98 percentile in CAT 2025, aspirants must score 73-85 overall in CAT 2025, and sectional scores must be around 36-38 in VARC, 26-34 in DILR, and 23-29 in QA.
  • Students with a CAT score of around 50-70 are expected to get a CAT percentile score of around 90-95 percentile.
Percentile VARC Score DILR Score QA Score Overall
99 41-42 30-38 26-33 81-96
98 36-38 26-34 23-29 73-85
95 30-32 20-27 18-22 59-70
90 24-26 17-22 14-17 50-57
85 20-22 13-19 12-14 41-49
80 18-20 11-17 10-11 36-43
CAT Score vs Percentile- Overall Analysis

Also Read

What marks is 99.9 percentile in cat?

A 99.9th percentile in CAT means that the candidate should score 155–160 marks overall, the candidate needs to score approximately 68 marks. In each section (VARC, DILR, and QA)

This percentile range provides the admission opportunity into top BLACKI IIMs and other top non-IIMs like JBIMS, Mumbai, FMS, Delhi, and DMS, IIT Delhi.

Section Approximate Max Marks Estimated Marks for 99.9 P
VARC (Verbal & RC) ~68 50–54
DILR (Data & Reasoning) ~68 50–54
QA (Quant) ~68 55–57

Top Colleges with 99.9 Percentile in CAT 2025

Institute Expected Cutoff Percentile
IIM Ahmedabad 99–100 percentile
IIM Bangalore 99–100 percentile
IIM Calcutta 99–100 percentile
IIM Lucknow 99–100 percentile
IIM Kozhikode 99–100 percentile
JBIMS, Mumbai 99.9+ percentile
FMS, Delhi 99+ percentile
DMS, IIT Delhi 98+ percentile
MDI, Gurgaon 97+ percentile
SPJIMR, Mumbai 95–99 percentile
IIFT, Delhi 95–99 percentile

How much score is the 95 percentile in CAT?

A 95 percentile in CAT means the estimated scores are around 123–133 marks, which can place the candidate in colleges like IIM Udaipur, IIM Rohtak, IIM Ranchi, IIM Trichy, IIM Bodhgaya, and IIM Amritsar.

Total Marks Estimated Score for 95th Percentile
204 ≈ 123–133 marks

Top Colleges with 95 percentile in CAT

Category Institutes / Range
Newer IIMs & IIM Shillong/Indore IIM Udaipur, Rohtak, Ranchi, Trichy, Bodhgaya, Amritsar, Shillong, Indore (94–96 percentile)
Top Non-IIMs SPJIMR, IMT Ghaziabad, IIFT, MDI, JBIMS (95–99); XIM, DoMS IIT Delhi (~92–94)
Other Options SJMSoM IIT Bombay, VGSoM IIT Kharagpur, NITIE, DoMS IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur/Roorkee, DFS/DSE (IISc)

CAT Good Score 2025

A score range of 120-149 out of 204 marks, with the percentile range of 95-99, is considered a good score in CAT 2025, which provides the opportunity to place the candidates in the Newer IIMs, FMS, SP Jain, MDI, and IMT Ghaziabad.

Percentile Expected CAT Score Range Target Schools
99+ 150+ Top IIMs (IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, etc.)
95-99 120-149 Newer IIMs, FMS, SP Jain, MDI, IMT Ghaziabad
90-94 100-119 Private B-Schools like XLRI, XIMB, TAPMI, Great Lakes
80-89 80-99 Tier-2 and Tier-3 B-schools, Institutes with lower cutoffs

CAT Score vs Percentile- Slot Wise

CAT score vs percentile is different for different CAT slots as the difficulty level of questions varies for each slot. To score 99 percentile in the easy slot, candidates must score around 91+ marks, 85+ marks in the difficult slot, and 88+ marks in the moderate slot.

CAT Score vs Percentile- Easy Slot

CAT Easy Slot Expected CAT Percentile
150 100 percentile
97 99.5 percentile
91 99 percentile
80 98 percentile
67 95 percentile
55 90 percentile
46 85 percentile
40 80%ile

CAT Score vs Percentile- Difficult Slot

CAT Difficult Slot Expected CAT Percentile
140 100 percentile
95 99.5 percentile
85 99 percentile
74 98 percentile
62 95 percentile
50 90 percentile
41 85 percentile
35 80 percentile

CAT Score vs Percentile- Moderate Slot

CAT Moderate Slot Expected CAT Percentile
140 100 percentile
96 99.5 percentile
88 99 percentile
77 98 percentile
65 95 percentile
53 90 percentile
44 85 percentile
38 80 percentile
CAT Score vs Percentile- Moderate Slot

CAT Score vs Percentile- Section-Wise

Aspirants can go through the tables below to check the expected CAT score vs percentile for each section of CAT 2025 based on the CAT score vs percentile trends from past years.

CAT Score vs Percentile- VARC

Percentile CAT 2024 Score
99.9 51-55
99.5 44-45
99 41-42
98 36-38
95 30-32
90 24-26
85 20-22
80 18-20

CAT Score vs Percentile- DILR

Percentile CAT 2024 Score
99.9 37-50
99.5 31-41
99 30-38
98 26-34
95 20-27
90 17-22
85 13-19
80 11-17

CAT Score vs Percentile- QA

Percentile CAT 2024 Score
99.9 35-45
99.5 28-37
99 26-33
98 23-29
95 18-22
90 14-17
85 12-14
80 10-11

CAT Score vs Percentile- QA

Questions to Attempt for 99+ Percentile in CAT 2024?

The percentile in the CAT exam is determined by several factors, including the difficulty level of the paper, the performance of other candidates, and the scaling process. Based on trends from past years, to get a 99+ Percentile, the CAT score generally ranges between 102 and 117 in total raw scores.

With 80% accuracy, you need to attempt 42–48 questions across sections. You Here is an approximate breakdown of the score required for the 99+ percentile and the number of section-wise attempts, assuming 80% accuracy:

Section Raw Score of 99+ percentile Questions to Attempt (80% Accuracy) Accuracy Assumed
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) 37-42 16-18 80%
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) 30-35 12-14 80%
Quantitative Ability (QA) 35-40 14-16 80%
Overall 102-117 42-48 80%

CAT Safe Score & Percentile

CAT safe score is different for different IIMs. As per the CAT cutoff for previous years, the expected CAT safe score for IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore is 99.5+ percentile. For IIM Calcutta and IIM Lucknow, the expected CAT safe score is around 99.7+ and 99+ percentiles.

College VARC DILR QA Overall Safe Percentile
IIM Ahmedabad 70 70 70 80 99.5+
IIM Bangalore 80 80 80 85 99.5+
IIM Calcutta 80 80 75 85 99.7+
IIM Lucknow 85 85 85 90 99+
IIM Kozhikode 75 75 75 85 98.5+
IIM Indore 80 80 80 90 98+
IIM Mumbai 80 80 75 85 98+

CAT Safe Score & Percentile

Estimated CAT 2024 Total Score vs Percentile

Total Marks (out of 204) Percentile Range
190 - 204 99.9+
170 - 189 99.5 - 99.9
150 - 169 99.0 - 99.5
130 - 149 98.0 - 99.0
110 - 129 95.0 - 98.0
90 - 109 90.0 - 95.0
70 - 89 80.0 - 90.0
50 - 69 70.0 - 80.0
30 - 49 50.0 - 70.0
Below 30 Below 50

“Typically, IIMs and top-tier B-schools look for candidates in the 99+ percentile range, but lower percentiles can still secure you admissions to other well-known institutes.”

Also Read

CAT Score vs Percentile Trends

Subsequently, the CAT Score vs. Percentile graph goes up and down every year based on the difficulty of the CAT test, candidates’ ability, and percentile conversion. Here is a comparison of CAT Score vs Percentile for 2023 and 2024 (based on historical trends and assumptions for CAT 2024):

Percentile CAT 2023 Approx. Score CAT 2024 Expected Score Trend Analysis
99.9+ 130-140 135-145 Slightly higher for 2024 if the paper is easier.
99+ 100-110 105-115 Higher cutoffs expected for easier QA and VARC.
95+ 75-85 80-90 Possible slight increase in cutoffs.
90+ 60-70 65-75 Cutoff trends to increase marginally.
85+ 50-60 55-65 Consistent difficulty expected.
80+ 40-50 45-55 Trends remain similar across moderate-level papers.

Factors Influencing CAT Percentiles

  • Difficulty Level: A tougher paper usually means lower raw scores for high percentiles.
  • Number of Test-Takers: A larger pool of candidates may slightly shift percentile boundaries.
  • Sectional Variability: Performance across sections often varies; one tough section can influence overall scores.

How CAT Score vs Percentile Is Calculated

CAT percentiles are calculated using the following steps:

  1. Raw Score Calculation: A formula derived from the CAT marking system is applied, whereby three points are awarded for each correct answer, and one point is deducted for each incorrect answer.
  2. Normalization: Raw scores collected are aligned across the different slots so as to achieve a balance. This process contributes to the differences in the difficulty level of the task needed for each slot, which are only slightly different.
  3. Percentile Assignment: The probability scores are then ranked and the percentage rank is determined by applicable statistical techniques.

CAT Score vs Percentile Previous Year Analysis (2024-2022)

The previous year analysis of CAT score vs percentile (2024-2022) shows that CAT 2024 had a relatively easier CAT exam as compared to the previous years, 2023 and 2022, which resulted in s steep rise in score requirement across all percentile ranges.

  • The 99.9 percentile saw a significant variation, with CAT 2024 required the highest score of 131, whereas in 2023 it was 102 and 110 in 2022.
  • For 99.5 and 99 percentile the required scores were highest in 2024 (104 and 96 respectively), moderate in 2022 (93 and 84) and lowest in 2023 (84 and 76).
  • 97–95 Percentile Range required scores in 2024 (79–71) are well above 2022 (71–60) and 2023 (61–55).
  • For 90 Percentile there was a huge difference of marks i.e, 59 in 2024, 49 in 2022, and 44 in 2023.
  • To get 85–80 Percentile, the CAT scores followed the same pattern,7 50–40 in 2024, higher than 41–36 in 2022 and 38–33 in 2023.
Percentile CAT 2024 CAT 2023 CAT 2022
99.9 131 102 110
99.5 104 84 93
99 96 76 84
97 79 61 71
95 71 55 60
90 59 44 49
85 50 38 41
80 40 33 36
CAT Previous Years Cutoff Analysis (2024-2022)

CAT Score vs Percentile- Last 5 Years

CAT score vs the Percentile of the last 5 years shows a distinctive fluctuation in the difficulty of the exam and normalization.

  • For the 100 percentile, scores were fairly stable in the range of 132–145, with 140+ in CAT 2024. 
  • The 99.9 percentile saw a decline in 2023 of 101–102, but it increased to 108+ in 2024. 
  • For the 99 percentile, scores have reduced from 83–100 in previous years to 78+ in 2024. 
  • The mid-range percentiles, like 95 and 90, also required less marks than in 2020, which indicates that papers have become more challenging. 
  • In 2023, even a 38–39 mark was placed in the 70 percentile, whereas earlier in 2020, it was 18–30. 
  • In 2024, marks for lower percentiles increased slightly, so there was more competition among average scorers. Small variations in marks can make a huge difference in your percentile.
Percentile CAT 2020 Score CAT 2021 Score CAT 2022 Score CAT 2023 Score CAT 2024 Score
100 132–137 134–145 135–145 139–143 140+
99.9 115–124 120–124 109–110 101–102 108+
99.5 90–104 110 92–93 84–86 103+
99 75–98 98–100 83–84 76–78 78+
97 61–79 82 72 61–62 68+
95 54–70 73 62 54–57 58+
90 44–58 60 49–45 44–47 47+
85 37–45 49 42–44 42–44 44+
80 28–44 45 36–39 41–43 43+
70 18–30 30 28.5–29 38–39 35+

Also Read

CAT Score vs Percentile 2024

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 Score vs Percentile 2023

Percentile VARC Score DILR Score Quant Score
100 61.66 50.4 49.46
99.99 58.20 42.66 44.89
99.9 51.14 36.58 34.96
99.5 44 30.58 28.28
99 39.83 27.29 25.20
95 28.78 18.92 16.87
90 23.37 15.63 13.63
80 17.58 11.67 9.2

CAT Score vs Percentile 2022

Percentile VARC Score DILR Score QA Score
99.5-100 44-48 33-36 36-40
99 41-45 30-32 33-37
95 29-33 20-24 23-30
90 24-28 17-20 17-24
80-85 17-24 11-16 11-15

CAT Score vs Percentile 2021

Percentile VARC Score DILR Score QA Score
99.5 42 30 41
99 38 25 35
98 34 22 31
95 29 18 22
90 24 14 19
85 22 12 16
80 20 10 13

CAT Score vs Percentile 2020

Percentile VARC Score DILR Score QA Score
99.5 47 41 48
99 40-45 35-36 40-44
98 38-42 31-34 36-40
95 32-37 27-30 33-38
90 29-33 23-27 25-34
80 25-27 16-19 17-20

CAT Scaled Score vs Percentile

Based on last year’s CAT score and percentile analysis by experts, we have provided below the scaled score required for getting 70-100 percentile.

Percentile Scaled Score
70%ile 29-31
80%ile 36-38
85%ile 41-43
88%ile 45-46
90%ile 49-50
95%ile 62-65
97%ile 70-72
98%ile 80-85
99%ile 87-88
99.3-99.8%ile 95-105
99.9%ile 108-110
100%ile 125-127

CAT Score vs Percentile FAQs

Ques. What is the difference between score and percentile in CAT?

Ans. CAT Score means the actual marks a candidate achieve in the CAT exam. The CAT score is calculated with respect to the CAT marking scheme: +3 for each correct MCQ, −1 for each incorrect MCQ, and usually no negative for non-MCQs (TITA or type-in) or unanswered questions as per each section VARC, DILR, QA.

CAT Percentile is a relative measure of performance, which tells you how you have performed as compared to all test-takers in the respective years across all the slots.

Feature Score Percentile
What it measures How many marks you actually got (correct vs incorrect) after normalization etc. How you performed relative to all test takers (i.e. your standing among them)
Absolute vs Relative Absolute — fixed value depending on what you answered correctly/wrongly. Relative — depends on how others did too. If many do poorly, a lower score may get a high percentile. If many do very well, even high scores might map to “lower” percentile comparatively.
Dependence on difficulty / scaling Very much — because raw scores need scaling if slots differ. But once scaled, it becomes more “fair”. Indirectly — difficult exam tends to shift scores lower for many, so percentiles may kick in differently; scaling helps adjust for this.
Fixed vs Variable Fixed for you — a particular number of marks. Variable — can change across years. What gave 99 percentile one year may give 97 or 98 percentile another year depending on overall performance/difficulty.
Use in admissions Colleges often look at your score (sectional + total), along with your percentile, to decide whether you meet cutoff norms. More commonly used for cut-offs, shortlistings, comparison, and determining whether your performance is “top x%”.

Ques. What percentile is 72 marks in CAT?

Ans. A 72 marks in CAT will give you around 95 percentile, which can provide you admission into Newer IIMs like IIM Udaipur, IIM Rohtak, IIM Raipur, and IIM Ranchi and Non-IIMs like SPJIMR, Mumbai, MDI Gurgaon, and IMT.

Top Colleges with 72 Marks in CAT

Type Institutes You Might Aim For (~90-95 percentile)
IIMs (Newer / Lower Tier / Baby IIMs / IIMs with slightly lower cutoffs)
  • IIM Udaipur
  • IIM Rohtak
  • IIM Raipur
  • IIM Ranchi
  • IIM Bodhgaya
  • IIM Amritsar
  • IIM Shillong
  • IIM Jammu
  • IIM Sirmaur
Non-IIM / Private / Other Top B-Schools
  • SPJIMR, Mumbai
  • MDI Gurgaon
  • DoMS IIT Delhi
  • SJMSoM IIT Bombay
  • XIM Bhubaneswar
  • IMI, New Delhi
  • Institute of Management Technology (IMT) Ghaziabad
  • Goa Institute of Management
  • IISWBM, Kolkata
  • BIM Trichy
  • Great Lakes Institute of Management (Chennai)

Ques. What percentile is 40 marks in CAT?

Ans. As per the CAT score vs percentile from previous years, the expected CAT percentile score for 40 marks is expected to be around 85 percentile. The sectional score for 40 marks in CAT is around 20-22 in VARC, 13-19 in DILR, and 12-14 in QA.

CAT Score CAT Percentile
40-49 85+ percentile

Ques. How much percentile is a 25 score in CAT?

Ans. Candidates with a score of 25 marks in CAT 2025 are expected to get a CAT percentile score of less than 80 percentile. However, students will get different CAT percentile scores for scoring 25 marks in different CAT sections as discussed below.

CAT Section CAT Percentile for 25 Marks
VARC 90
DILR 95
QA 98

Ques. What are the total marks for CAT 2025?

Ans. As per the CAT 2025 exam pattern, 24 questions will be asked from VARC, 22 from DILR, and QA each. For each correct answer, 3 marks will be awarded. In VARC, students can score a maximum of 72 marks, and in DILR and QA, each, students can score a maximum of 66. Total marks for CAT 2025 are 204.

Particulars Details
Number of Questions Section-Wise VARC- 24 DILR- 22 QA- 22
Total Number of Questions 68
Marks for Each Correct Answer +3
CAT Marks Section-Wise VARC- 72DILR- 66QA- 66
Total Marks 204

Ques. What is CAT score vs percentile in previous years?

Ans. CAT score vs percentile are different for different years based on the difficulty level, number of aspirants, etc. Students can check the CAT score vs percentile for previous years in the table below.

Percentile CAT Scaled Score (2022) CAT Scaled Score (2023) CAT Scaled Score (2024)
100 145.83 138.59 140+
99.95 115 106.95 108+
99.90 109.9 101.43 103+
99.50 92.87 84.29 86+
99 83.64 76.02 78+
98 73.88 66.68 68+
95.5 59.75 56.41 58+
90 48.44 45.16 47+
85 41.32 42.29 44+
80 36.02 41.19 43+

Ques. Can I get IIM with the 95 percentile?

Ans. With 95 percentile in CAT 2025, it is difficult to get admission to top IIMs like IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, and IIM Calcutta. However, candidates can get admission to mid-tier and newly established IIMs with 95 percentile in CAT, like IIM Amritsar, IIM Nagpur, IIM Sambalpur, IIM Shillong, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Jammu, etc.

IIM Institute Expected CAT Cutoff
IIM Amritsar 95-96
IIM Nagpur 95-96
IIM Sambalpur 95-96
IIM Tiruchirapalli 94-95
IIM Raipur 94-95
IIM Ranchi 94-95
IIM Kashipur 94-95
IIM Visakhapatnam 92-94
IIM Udaipur 92-94
IIM Bodh Gaya 92-94
IIM Shillong 90
IIM Sirmaur 90
IIM Jammu 90
IIM Rohtak 90-92

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College.

Fees Structure

Structure based on different categories

CategoriesState
General2400
sc1200
pwd1200

In case of any inaccuracy, Notify Us! 

Comments


No Comments To Show