CAT FAQ — CAT 2026 Dates, IIMs, Fees & CAT Gurukul

CAT (Common Admission Test) is a computer-based test conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs). CAT scores are a prerequisite for admission to various postgraduate and fellow/doctoral programmes of the IIMs, and listed non-IIM institutions also use CAT scores. The official website is iimcat.ac.in.

As per the official CAT 2026 advertisement, CAT 2026 is on Sunday, 29 November 2026, in three sessions. Admit cards can be downloaded from 4 to 29 November 2026, and the result is expected in the first week of January 2027 (tentative). Always confirm dates on iimcat.ac.in.

The official CAT 2026 advertisement lists 22 IIMs: Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore, Bodh Gaya, Calcutta, Guwahati, Indore, Jammu, Kashipur, Kozhikode, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Raipur, Ranchi, Rohtak, Sambalpur, Shillong, Sirmaur, Tiruchirappalli, Udaipur and Visakhapatnam.

As per the official CAT 2026 advertisement, the registration fee is ₹2,700 for most candidates and ₹1,350 for SC, ST and PwBD candidates. The fee is paid once, whatever the number of institutes you apply to, and is not refundable.

CAT 2026 is held at test centres in around 170 cities across India. Candidates choose up to five test cities in order of preference while registering.

CAT tests three areas: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR), and Quantitative Ability (QA). Check the official CAT website for the current year's detailed pattern.

CAT Gurukul is an online CAT and MBA entrance preparation platform from Ready For Exam. It offers practice sets for VARC, DILR and Quant, sectional tests and full-length CAT practice mocks with analysis, and also supports XAT, NMAT and SNAP preparation.

You can start free. The CAT Gurukul All-Access Pass is ₹399 per month or ₹2,999 per year, and the Family Pass is ₹4,999 per year for up to three students. One pass unlocks every CAT Gurukul course and test for its full duration.

CAT is taken by graduates and final-year undergraduates for postgraduate management programmes. IPMAT is taken after Class 12 for five-year integrated management programmes offered by some IIMs.