you just need to get your OBC certificate corrected and need to inform the CAT helpdesk about this error.
Great Lakes - PGDM & PGPM Admissions 2026
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CAT Admit Card Date:05 Nov' 25 - 30 Nov' 25
CMAT or CAT? Wondering which exam to give? When it comes to pursuing an MBA in India, two of the most popular entrance exams are the Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) or known as NTA CMAT and the Common Admission Test (CAT). These tests serve as a gateway to some of the top management institutes in India. Still, they differ significantly in their pattern, difficulty level, conducting bodies, and the institutions that accept their scores. Here’s a detailed comparison to check CAT vs CMAT: which is better?
Latest: CAT college predictor | Colleges accepting 70-90+ percentile
Must See: CAT GD PI Preparation
The full form for CAT in MBA is the Common Admission Test. The CAT 2026 is a national-level entrance exam conducted annually by Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) on a rotational basis in online mode. CAT scores are accepted by IIMs and other top B-Schools than IIMs. Candidates who qualify for the entrance exam with good marks based on the cutoff of CAT are called upon for further rounds as a part of the IIM admission process
CMAT exam full form is a Common Management Admission Test which is a national-level entrance test. CMAT 2026 is conducted in online mode by the National Testing Agency i.e. NTA. Until 2018, CMAT was administered by the All India Council for Technical Education yearly as per the regulations of MHRD (Ministry of Human Resource Development), Government of India.
Here is an overview comparison of CMAT vs CAT through different parameters.
CAT vs CMAT | CAT | CMAT |
Conducting Body | IIMs | NTA |
Type of Questions | MCQs and TITA | MCQs only |
Exam Month | November | January |
Number of Section | 3 sections | 5 sections |
Difficulty Level | high | moderate |
Marks per questions | +4 | +4 |
Official Website | ||
CAT vs CMAT Exam Fee | INR 2,500 (General category) and INR 1,250 (Reserved category) | INR 2,500 for General (Male) and INR 1,250 for rest of the students |
Mode | Online mode | Online mode |
Number of applications | More than 3 lakhs | More than 1 lakhs |
Admissions Open | Globally Recognized by AACSB (US) & AMBA (UK) | 17.8 LPA Avg. CTC for PGPM 2025
Ranked No. 3 Business School in India and no.35 in world by Financial Times MiM 2025 Ranking | Highest CTC: INR 89 LPA
To ace in both exams, you should be aware of the sections and number of questions that can come in the final exam. Here is a comparison of the CAT and CMAT exams according to their sections and number of questions. The CAT exam pattern was revised last year, The total number of questions asked in the previous CAT exam was 68 questions, added 2 additional questions in the DILR section.
Section | Number of Questions | Maximum marks | Time Limit |
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) | 24 | 72 | 40 minutes |
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) | 22 | 66 | 40 minutes |
Quantitative Aptitude (QA) | 22 | 66 | 40 minutes |
Total | 68 questions | 204 marks | 160 minutes |
Section | Number of Questions | Maximum marks | Time Limit |
Language Comprehension | 20 | 80 | No time limit |
Logical Reasoning | 20 | 80 | No time limit |
Quantitative Techniques & Data Interpretation | 20 | 80 | No time limit |
General Awareness | 20 | 80 | No time limit |
Innovation & Entrepreneurship | 20 | 80 | No time limit |
Total | 100 | 400 | 180 minutes |
CMAT: More than 1000 institutes across India accept CMAT scores. Some of the prominent ones include Great Lakes Institute of Management, K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research, and Goa Institute of Management.
CAT: All 21 IIMs in India use CAT scores for admission, making it the more prestigious of the two exams. Besides the IIMs, other top-rated institutions like Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Delhi, SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, and Management Development Institute (MDI) Gurgaon also accept CAT scores.
Also Read
Top MBA Colleges in India accepting CAT score
Top B-schools Accepting CMAT Scores
Choosing between CMAT and CAT largely depends on a candidate’s career goals, preferred colleges, and comfort with the respective exam formats. While CAT opens doors to the elite IIMs and is suitable for those looking for a rigorous challenge, CMAT offers a broader array of options and might be preferable for those who are also interested in exploring opportunities in mid-tier management schools. Aspiring MBA students should consider their academic strengths, preparation levels, and career objectives when deciding which exam to pursue.
Given below are the best mock test series by Careers360 for CMA and CAT exam preparation.
On Question asked by student community
With a 70 percent in CAT Examination, you can go for various B-Schools or private collages. The S. K. Patel Institute of Management in Gandhinagar is an option for those who score 70-80 percent in their CAT examination or The Gujarat Institute of Management (GIM) in Goa with a cutoff of 60-80 percentage. These are the collages you can look for in Gujarat or nearby.
Collage in other regions: BA Colleges Accepting 70-80 Percentile in CAT 2025
Thank You.
Hello dear candidate,
NO. your application for CAT will not rejected for wrong gender small mistake in the OBC NCL certificate. You will be considered as an OBC candidate.
you just need to get your OBC certificate corrected and need to inform the CAT helpdesk about this error.
Hello,
Here are some top MBA colleges in India with fees under Rs. 2 lakh and their exam/cutoff details:
SIMSREE, Mumbai – Fee around Rs. 1.3–1.4 lakh for 2 years. Accepts CAT, CMAT, MAH-CET, MAT, ATMA. Cutoff is very high, usually 99+ percentile in CAT/CMAT.
PUMBA (Dept. of Management Sciences, Savitribai Phule Pune University) – Fee around Rs. 1.2–1.3 lakh. Accepts CAT, CMAT, MAH-CET, ATMA. Cutoff approx. 75+ percentile in CAT, 90–95+ percentile in CMAT, high scores in MAH-CET.
TISS, Mumbai (MA HRM & other management-related programmes) – Fee around Rs. 1.7–1.9 lakh. Accepts CAT for some courses. Qualifying cutoff is around 60–70 percentile, but final selection cutoffs are higher.
These are the main government institutes where the full MBA/PG programme fee is within Rs. 2 lakh. Cutoffs vary slightly each year and by category, but SIMSREE and PUMBA generally need high scores, while TISS has its own process along with CAT shortlisting.
Hope it helps !
Hey! With a NEET score of 344 in the ST category, it is highly unlikely to get admission in any government BDS college in Delhi through the All India Quota. The cutoff for government BDS seats in Delhi usually falls around 400–450 for ST category, so your score is below that range.
You can consider private dental colleges, state quota seats in other states, or reattempt NEET next year to improve your chances.
Hello dear candidate,
YES, with NEET score 344in the ST category you have high chances of getting admission in a BDS College in J&K through JKBOPEE counselling.
check the seat availability and next participate in JKBOPEE Counselling with all the necessary documents.
Thank you.
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