Amity University-Noida MBA Admissions 2026
Ranked among top 10 B-Schools in India by multiple publications | Top Recruiters-Google, MicKinsey, Amazon, BCG & many more.
The CAT 2025 results were declared on December 24, 2025, by IIM Kozhikode, bringing clarity to nearly three lakh MBA aspirants across India. As candidates begin analysing their performance and admission prospects, a natural question arises — how does CAT 2025 compare with CAT 2024?
From the number of test takers and toppers to gender, category, and academic background trends, the CAT 2025 result data reveals several notable shifts compared to last year. This article offers a data-backed comparison of CAT 2025 and CAT 2024, helping aspirants understand what truly changed this year.
Read detailed analysis on CAT Toppers 2025
| Parameter | CAT 2024 | CAT 2025 |
| Registered candidates | 3.28 Lakh | 2.95 Lakh |
| Appeared candidates | 2.88 Lakh | 2.58 Lakh |
| Exam conducting IIM | IIM Calcutta | IIM Kozhikode |
| Result Declaration | Dec 19, 2024 | Dec 24, 2025 |
Key takeaway: CAT 2025 witnessed a drop in both registrations and appearances, indicating either a more cautious applicant pool or increased diversification towards other MBA exams.
One of the biggest changes in CAT 2025 is lower participation.
CAT 2024: Around 2.88 lakh candidates appeared
CAT 2025: Around 2.58 lakh candidates appeared
Ranked among top 10 B-Schools in India by multiple publications | Top Recruiters-Google, MicKinsey, Amazon, BCG & many more.
400+ Company Visits | Highest CTC Offered: 21 LPA | Average CTC Offered: 8.65 LPA | 100% Placement Assurance
This nearly 30,000-candidate drop suggests:
Reduced multiple-attempt behaviour
Greater focus on profile-based MBA admissions
Despite fewer test takers, competition at the top percentiles remained intense.
Get your results instantly with our calculator!
CAT 2025 produced 12 candidates with a 100 percentile, which is lower than CAT 2024, where the number was in the higher teens.
100 percentile: 12 candidates
99.99 percentile: 26 candidates
99.98 percentile: 26 candidates
This indicates a slightly tighter score distribution at the very top, reinforcing that even a marginal error had a greater impact on percentile in CAT 2025.
Gender-wise participation in CAT 2025 remained largely consistent with CAT 2024.
Female: 0.97 lakh
Male: 1.61 lakh
Transgender: 9
While male candidates continue to dominate numerically, female representation at top percentiles showed improvement, including 2 female 100 percentilers in CAT 2025.
This aligns with CAT 2024, where women also demonstrated stronger percentile efficiency relative to participation.
A key change in CAT 2025 compared to CAT 2024 is the strong showing of non-engineers at the highest percentiles.
Among CAT 2025 100 percentilers:
Engineers: 3
Non-engineers: 9
This continues and strengthens a trend first noticed in CAT 2024, where non-engineers began closing the gap at the top. The CAT exam’s increasing focus on reasoning, comprehension, and decision-making appears to be levelling the field.
The category-wise distribution of candidates in CAT 2025 remains almost identical to CAT 2024.
General: 65.76%
NC-OBC: 17.82%
SC: 8.78%
ST: 2.38%
EWS: 5.26%
PwD: 0.49%
This stability suggests that cat cutoff trends and reservation dynamics are unlikely to change drastically between CAT 2024 and CAT 2025, especially for IIM admissions.
CAT 2025 toppers came from a broader range of states, including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana, Gujarat, West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Karnataka.
Compared to CAT 2024 — which saw heavier clustering around a few metro states — CAT 2025 reflects a more geographically diverse topper pool, indicating deeper CAT penetration in Tier-2 and Tier-3 regions.
Despite fewer candidates:
IIM shortlisting remains highly competitive
Profile factors (academics, work experience, diversity) continue to play a decisive role
A high percentile alone, as seen in both CAT 2024 and CAT 2025, does not guarantee top IIM calls
Additionally, with 93 non-IIM institutions accepting CAT 2025 scores, aspirants now have broader quality MBA options beyond the IIMs.
The comparison between CAT 2025 and CAT 2024 shows evolution, not disruption.
Fewer candidates, but similar competition
Stronger non-engineer presence at top percentiles
Stable category and gender trends
More geographically diverse toppers
For MBA aspirants, the message is clear: percentile matters, but profile strength matters more than ever.
On Question asked by student community
Hello,
If I had to choose between these options, I would personally go with:
IIIT Dharwad CSE
VIT Chennai CSE (Category 2)
SNU Chennai CSE (Cyber Security)
IIIT Dharwad is a good choice if you're focused on coding, software roles, and long-term career growth. The IIITs are known for their
Hello,
With a NEET MDS 2026 rank of 1602 in the General category , you have a good chance of getting an MDS seat in several government and reputed private dental colleges, especially in clinical and non-clinical branches depending on the counselling round and state quota. Previous counselling trends indicate
Hello Dear Student,
Yes, you may still be eligible for the fee waiver scheme even if you applied under the Open category, provided you satisfy the scheme's eligibility conditions. Maharashtra offers tuition and examination fee waivers for eligible girl students in professional courses, subject to income and other criteria.
However,
Hello Dear Student,
If your Class 12 marksheet shows "Passed" overall and you are currently pursuing BCA, then you should generally be eligible for CAT, CUET PG, and NIMCET.
Hi,
First of all, it takes a lot of courage to move forward after giving so many years to UPSC preparation. Your decision to restart with CAT 2026 is practical and positive.
Some suggestions for your CAT preparation:
Stay consistent with daily practice for Quant, LRDI, and VARC.
Since you
Ranked among top 10 B-Schools in India by multiple publications | Top Recruiters-Google, MicKinsey, Amazon, BCG & many more.
AICTE Approved | NAAC A++ | Category 1 University by MHRD | Highest CTC 1.4 Cr LPA from Amazon | Application Deadline: 12th Jun'26
40 LPA Highest Package | Up to 100% Scholarship worth 24 Crore via GUTS exam
Highest CTC 60 LPA | 46000+ Alumni Network | 500+ Global Recruiters
MBA @ P P Savani University | NAAC A+ Grade | 100% Placement Assistance | Apply Now
AICTE Approved | NBA Accredited | NAAC A+(2nd Cycle) Accredited. Highest CTC: 24 LPA | Average CTC: 11.17 LPA