CAT 2025 Difficulty Level: Section-Wise Analysis of VARC, DILR & Quant

CAT 2025 Difficulty Level: Section-Wise Analysis of VARC, DILR & Quant

Team Careers360Updated on 30 Nov 2025, 06:31 PM IST

The CAT 2025 difficulty level will play a major role in shaping candidates’ overall performance, percentile outcomes, and section‑wise strategies. Although the exact level can only be confirmed once all slots are over, early live feedback suggests a mix of moderate to challenging questions across VARC, DILR, and Quant sections.

This Story also Contains

  1. CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 1 Insights
  2. CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 2 Insights
  3. CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 3 Insights
CAT 2025 Difficulty Level: Section-Wise Analysis of VARC, DILR & Quant
CAT 2025 Difficulty Level: Section-Wise Analysis of VARC, DILR & Quant

CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 1 Insights

The CAT 2025 Slot 1 paper is now concluded, and the early feedback indicates that this session was decidedly tougher than CAT 2024, despite no major changes in the overall pattern. Minor tweaks in the Verbal Ability section were observed, but the overall difficulty is estimated to fall between the levels seen in CAT 2022 and CAT 2023. This will influence scores, attempts, and percentile outcomes.

Key Takeaways from Slot 1:

Overall Paper Difficulty: Tougher than 2024, with a challenging mix across VARC, DILR, and Quant. Candidates may need to focus on accuracy and time management.

Score vs Percentile (Expected):

99 percentile → ~78–82 marks (lower than last year by ~15 marks, indicating a tougher paper)

95 percentile → ~56–58 marks

90 percentile → ~45–48 marks

80 percentile → ~40–42 marks

This shows that even a modest attempt can yield a strong percentile if accuracy is maintained.

CAT VARC – Slot 1 Difficulty:

Slightly tougher than 2024 due to minor changes in VA questions

RCs remain the main scoring area

Fewer time-consuming or ambiguous questions

Attempts may be slightly lower than last year due to increased difficulty

CAT DILR – Slot 1 Difficulty:

More challenging than CAT 2024, but manageable with logical set selection

Candidates are advised to focus on 2–3 sets with high accuracy

Balanced mix of MCQs and TITA questions continues

CAT Quant – Slot 1 Difficulty:

Moderate to difficult, but fundamentals remain key

Strong emphasis on Arithmetic, followed by Algebra, Geometry, and Numbers

At least 4–6 direct, high-scoring questions for quick attempts

Candidates should prioritize accuracy over attempting all questions

CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 2 Insights

With CAT 2025 Slot 2 now concluded, the first round of expert feedback suggests that the paper was slightly easier than Slot 1, but still clearly tougher than CAT 2024. Overall, the difficulty level again appears to fall between CAT 2022 and CAT 2023, with small variations across sections influencing score versus percentile trends.

Compared to Slot 1, Slot 2 candidates may need 3–6 extra marks to achieve the same percentile range. This is primarily due to an easier Quant section and slightly lighter difficulty in Verbal Ability. However, aspirants should note that final percentiles will be decided after normalization, and raw-score differences may be scaled accordingly.

CAT VARC – Slot 2 Difficulty Level

The Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension section in Slot 2 was marginally easier than Slot 1.

What students reported:

  • RCs were of similar difficulty compared to Slot 1
  • The VA questions (8 in number) were easier than Slot 1
  • Lower ambiguity in verbal questions
  • Higher attempt potential with better accuracy than Slot 1
  • This suggests that candidates who were comfortable with last year’s VARC pattern could attempt a few extra questions here, which may push percentile cutoffs slightly upward for Slot 2.
BIMTECH PGDM Admissions 2026

AACSB Accredited | Highest CTC: 22 LPA

The Vedica Scholars Programme for Women 2026

Assured Placements and Career Support

CAT DILR – Slot 2 Difficulty Level

The DILR section was reported to be very similar to Slot 1, with some students finding it marginally tougher.

  • Comparable difficulty to Slot 1
  • Set selection remains crucial
  • Not extremely calculation-heavy, but logic-driven
  • Accuracy will matter more than attempts
  • Overall, DILR continued to remain a differentiator in Slot 2.
CAT 2025 College Predictor
Use CAT 2025 College Predictor to check your chances for IIM and top MBA calls based on CAT percentile, profile, work experience and cut-off trends.
Use Now

CAT QA – Slot 2 Difficulty Level

Quantitative Aptitude in Slot 2 was easier than Slot 1, primarily due to increased weightage of Arithmetic.

Key observations:

Two extra questions from Arithmetic made the paper more approachable

Arithmetic being the most comfortable area for most students worked in their favour

Candidates could attempt 1 extra question compared to Slot 1

Because of this, percentile cutoffs in Slot 2 are expected to be slightly higher

CAT 2025 Difficulty Level – Slot 3 Insights

To be updated as soon as Slot 3 concludes.

Bookmark this page and stay tuned for the Slot 2 and Slot 3 analysis. Early insights from Slot 1 suggest that careful attempts, time management, and accuracy can lead to excellent percentile outcomes, even in a tough paper.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: What will be the overall difficulty level of CAT 2025?
A:

The CAT 2025 difficulty level is expected to be moderate, based on the pattern seen in CAT 2024. VARC may stay readable, DILR may continue with approachable sets, and QA will likely focus on basics.

Q: Which section of CAT 2025 is expected to be the hardest?
A:

Traditionally, DILR is considered the toughest section, but in 2024, it became more approachable. For CAT 2025, DILR is still expected to be the trickiest, while QA and VARC may remain moderate.

Q: Will CAT 2025 be tougher than CAT 2024?
A:

If CAT repeats the 2024 pattern, the exam may not be tougher. CAT 2024 was slightly easier than previous years, so 2025 may follow a similar approach. Still, CAT is unpredictable, and difficulty can vary across slots.

Articles
|
Upcoming Bschool Exams
Ongoing Dates
ACAT Application Date

7 Oct'25 - 26 Jan'26 (Online)

Ongoing Dates
VITBEE Application Date

31 Oct'25 - 12 Apr'26 (Online)

Ongoing Dates
B-MAT Application Date

19 Nov'25 - 8 Feb'26 (Online)

Certifications By Top Providers
Online MBA
Via Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida
Corporate Law
Via National Law University, New Delhi
Strategic Management
Via Indian Institute of Management Bangalore
Online BBA
Via Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida
Management of Commercial Banking
Via Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
Management of Inventory Systems
Via Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
Udemy
 703 courses
Edx
 467 courses
Swayam
 236 courses
Emeritus
 231 courses
Explore Top Universities Across Globe
University of Essex, Colchester
Wivenhoe Park Colchester CO4 3SQ
Oxford Brookes University, Oxford
Headington Campus Oxford OX3 0BP UK
Northumbria University, Newcastle City Campus
Sutherland Building, Northumberland Road, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 8ST
Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff
Llandaff Campus, Western Avenue, Cardiff, CF5 2YB
University of Reading, Reading
Whiteknights PO Box 217 Reading Berkshire RG6 6AH
Bristol Baptist College, Bristol
The Promenade, Clifton Down, Bristol BS8 3NJ

Questions related to CAT

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to CAT ?

Hello,

Here are some top colleges accepting XAT and CAT exams :

Top colleges accepting CAT:

  • IIMs (All Indian Institutes of Management)

  • FMS Delhi

  • SPJIMR Mumbai

  • MDI Gurgaon

  • IIT Bombay (SJMSOM)

  • IIT Delhi (DMS)

  • IIFT

  • IMT Ghaziabad

  • JBIMS Mumbai

Top colleges accepting XAT:

  • XLRI Jamshedpur

  • XIMB Bhubaneswar

  • IMT Ghaziabad

  • Great

Hi there,

A female candidate with a CAT percentile of 67.97 and low sectional scores should target private and tier-2/3 B-schools that accept overall CAT scores in the 60–70 percentile range and have flexible sectional criteria.

Some suitable options include AIMS Institute Bangalore, Doon Business School Dehradun, Christ Institute of

Hi there,

Yes, you are eligible for XISS Ranchi with a CAT percentile of 67.60.

According to recent admission trends, the CAT cutoff for the PGDM in Human Resource Management for the general category has been around 60 percentile. For other programs such as Marketing, Finance, and Rural Management, the

Hi there,

Careers360 offers a wide range of eBooks and study materials to assist with CAT preparation. You can access past CAT question papers with solutions to understand the exam pattern and difficulty level. Additionally, there are quantitative aptitude handbooks, cheat sheets, and section-specific practice sets for arithmetic, algebra, and

Hi there,

The minimum eligibility criteria for a general candidate to receive a call from IIM Sambalpur are as follows:
VARC: 65%ile
QUANTS: 65%ile
LRDI: 65%ile
Overall: 90%tile
Keep practising and aim to improve your score. You can also focus on other management exams where you may secure a strong