CAT Admit Card Date:12 Nov' 25 - 30 Nov' 25
As per the recent notification regarding CAT 2025 Admit Card, 2.95 Lakhs candidates will be able to download the CAT 2025 Card from the official website -iimcat.ac.in. CAT 2025 Admit Card release date is 12 November 2025. Last year a total of around 2.93 lakh candidates appeared for the exam out of 3.29 lakh registered eligible candidates. The overall attendance was approximately 89%. MBA aspirants who wish to do management courses in the top reputed B-schools like IIMs, IITs, or any other private and public universities could appear for the CAT exam on November 30. As everyone knows, the CAT is one of the most important MBA entrance exams every MBA aspirant attends. So, a question arises: how many students take the CAT exam every year? Read this careers360 article to know the total number of CAT exam applicants and the count of candidates who appeared in the CAT exam in previous years.
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CAT 2025 was conducted by IIM Calcutta on November 30, 2025. The total number of students successfully registered for CAT 2025 is 2.95 Lakhs. The number of CAT registrations 2025 and the total count of students participating in the CAT exam are mentioned here.
Total CAT 2025 Registrations | 2. 95 Lakh |
Number of students attending the CAT 2025 exam | TBA |
Total CAT 2024 Registrations | 3.29 lakh |
Number of students attend the CAT exam | 2.93 lakh |
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Last year, In 2023 IIM Lucknow conducted CAT entrance, and 2.88 lakh candidates appeared for the CAT out of 3.28 lakh. Check out the last four year's CAT exam attendance.
Year | CAT Conducting IIMs | Total CAT registrations | Total Students Appeared for CAT exam |
| 2024 | IIM Calcutta | 3.29 Lakhs | 2.93 Lakhs |
2023 | IIM Lucknow | 3.28 lakh | 2.88 lakh |
2022 | IIM Bangalore | 2.55 lakh | 2.22 lakh |
2021 | IIM Ahmedabad | 2.30 lakhs | 1.90 lakh |
2020 | IIM Indore | 2.30 lakhs | 1.90 lakh |
The total number of colleges accepting CAT scores is around 1000+. There are 21 IIMs, 8 IITs, and other premium B-schools run by public or private. Based on their performance in the CAT exam, candidates will be called for a written test, GD, or PI for the final selection. Top MBA colleges accepting CAT results are mentioned in the tables below.
IIMs Accepting CAT | Number of Seats | IIM Fee |
385 | Rs. 25 lakh | |
412 | Rs. 24.50 lakh | |
462 | Rs. 31 lakh | |
436 | Rs. 14.16 lakh | |
375 | Rs. 20.50 lakh | |
451 | Rs. 16 lakh | |
180 | Rs. 21 lakh | |
60 | Rs. 17.30 lakh | |
240 | Rs. 17.9 lakh | |
60 | Rs. 8.85 lakh | |
160 | Rs. 10 lakh | |
60 | Rs. 10.34 lakh | |
45 | Rs. 11.5 lakh | |
| ||
210 | Rs. 14.20 lakh | |
210 | Rs. 13.15 lakh | |
120 | Rs. 19 lakh | |
180 | Rs. 13.25lakh | |
126 | Rs. 12.10lakh | |
60 | Rs. 12 lakh |
IITs Offering MBA Admission | Total Seat Intake |
115 | |
152 | |
200 | |
70 | |
95 | |
92 | |
78 |
Apart from IIMs and IITs, the list of colleges accepting the 90-100 percentile of CAT scores is listed below.
Best MBA colleges accepting CAT percentile 90-100 | Course Fees |
Rs. 20,960 | |
Rs. 24.16 lakh | |
Institute of Management Technology (Ghaziabad) | Rs. 19.53 lakh |
Rs. 20 lakh | |
Rs. 2 lakh | |
Rs. 24 lakh | |
SDA Bocconi Mumbai | Rs. 20 lakh |
The total number of seats available at IIMs is 5,500, and for IITs, it is 760. The majority of the MBA colleges in India accept the CAT marks for management course admissions. The total number of MBA seats available in India is 15000+. Candidates who achieve CAT cutoff marks above the 90 percentile can join any of the top B-schools in India.
Check out: IIM vs IIT MBA: Which one to choose?
Around 2 to 3 lakh candidates appear for the CAT exam every year. The difficulty level of the CAT exam is higher to select the eligible candidates based on their logical, analytical, mathematical, and language skills. So, the success rate of the CAT exam is only 2 percent. This means only 2 candidates out of 100 will clear the CAT exam with decent scores.
Browse for more details on the CAT entrance exam
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Around 2.93 lakh candidates appeared for CAT 2024 out of 3.29 lakh.
On Question asked by student community
Hello,
To get admitted to the Institute of Management Studies (IMS), BHU, for an MBA in 2026, you must clear the CAT entrance exam. For that you need to fill out the application form of the CAT in August 2026, which you can get on the Official CAT website
I hope it will clear your query!!
Hello
You can get all the papers on the Careers360 website. To access the paper and download it for practice, just visit here:
https://design.careers360.com/articles/nift-cat-2024-question-paper-with-solutions
Hope it will help you!!
Hello dear candidate,
Yes, you have a very good chance of getting a BPT seat with 488 out of 600 and TS EAMCET rank of 14,000 under the ST category.
As the cut off of BPT for ST category students are generally between 25,000 to 45,000 ranks, depending upon the college and you have TS EAMCET rank of 14,000.
Thank you.
If you got 802 marks in Telangana Intermediate and belong to the ST category, you have a fair chance to get admission in a BPT course in 2025, but it depends on the college and cut-off. Most BPT colleges in Telangana ask for 12th marks in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, and some also use the TS EAMCET rank for admission. The cut-off for ST students is usually lower than for general students, but it changes every year. It is better to check the previous year’s cut-offs of the colleges you want to apply to.
Hello, Getting shortlisted for IIM Lucknow or IIT Bombay (SJMSOM) with your profile is challenging, primarily due to your 58% in Class 10th, which significantly impacts the composite score calculation for both institutes. While your 98 percentile CAT score is excellent, and your 24 months of work experience, B.Com (Hons) background (providing academic diversity, especially for IIM-L), and KVS National player status are valuable additions, top IIMs and IITs heavily weigh consistent academic performance. Your 74% in 12th is also on the lower side. IIM Lucknow places substantial weight on 10th and 12th marks, making a call quite difficult despite your strengths. You likely have a relatively better, though still uncertain, chance at IIT Bombay, as their weighting might be slightly less penalizing for past academics compared to IIM-L, and your high CAT score is a major factor. However, the low 10th score remains a significant hurdle for both prestigious institutions.
I hope you found this information helpful and for study related queries you can ask in careers360 app, Have a great day and!
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