Most Repeated CAT Arithmetic Topics 2026: 41% Quant Weightage, Chapter-Wise Priority & PYQ Analysis

CAT 2025 Arithmetic Weightage

Arithmetic continued to be the major section of the CAT Quantitative section in 2025 (all slots). It provided the maximum number of questions as compared to the other topics like Algebra, Geometry & Mensuration, Number System, and Modern Mathematics.

Important Observation: Almost 2 out of every 5 questions in the Quantitative section of CAT 2025 were from Arithmetic. Thus, it is the most important topic to prepare for the CAT 2026.

Most Repeated CAT Arithmetic Topics

Below given is the detailed topicwise breakdown of the arithmetic topics, which are found to be most repeated based on previous year trends (CAT 2025):

Ratio and proportion, percentage,profit and loss are few of the most important topics in arithmetic section.

The distribution indicates that CAT did not focus on a single Arithmetic chapter. The paper included diverse topics; therefore, skipping any chapter while preparing could cost precious marks.

If you are preparing for Arithmetic, download The CAT Arithmetic Hackbook PDF: Zero Math Background? No problem; strengthen your concepts, practise topic-wise questions, and build a solid foundation for CAT Quant.

Year-wise CAT Arithmetic Question Distribution (2022-2025)

Given below is the comparative analysis and breakdown of the number of questions from arithmetic from the previous years (2025-2022) across slots:

From the analysis, it is clear that the arithmetic section shows a high weightage in the CAT exam and is consistent.

How Should You Prioritise These Topics for CAT 2026?

Preparing for the Arithmetic chapter by chapter is not an efficient approach; instead, one should focus on the topics that are expected to come in the exam based on the CAT 2025 distribution, and prepare accordingly.

This order will help you plan your preparation accordingly and make the most of your time.

This order helps you to do the chapters with the maximum returns first, while also making sure that the lower-frequency topics are done before the exam.

How Much Time Should You Spend on Arithmetic?

Given that Arithmetic constituted almost 41% of the CAT 2025 Quantitative Aptitude questions, it is only fair that it is allocated this much percentage of your preparation time.

Based on this recommended timeline, you can plan your preparation better and utilise your time effectively.

A Better Way to Prepare These Topics for CAT 2026

You see, instead of studying all chapters separately, make a list of similar topics and study them together. It will save a lot of your time and effort as you will not have to learn concepts from scratch.

Percentage-Based Topics

Percentages, Profit & Loss, and Simple Interest & Compound Interest: These chapters can be studied together as they have a lot of similarities and sometimes require you to use the same concept while solving problems.

Ratio-Based Topics

Ratio & Proportion, Mixture & Alligation, and Partnership: These topics can also be studied together as they are related to each other

Motion and Time

Time, Speed, Distance, and Time & Work: You can study these two chapters together as they both require you to form equations and solve them logically.

Remaining Topics

Finish Averages and Arithmetic Progression at the end as these are rarely asked in CAT 2025, but take less time to learn and hence would help you in completing the syllabus of Arithmetic.

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CAT Quantitative Aptitude - Arithmetic Sample Questions

Arithmetic being the most asked section of the quantitative aptitude of CAT, below are some of the sample practice questions based on the CAT Previous Year Questions:

1. A certain amount of money was divided among Pinu, Meena, Rinu and Seema. Pinu received 20% of the total amount, and Meena received 40% of the remaining amount. If Seema received 20% less than Pinu, the ratio of the amounts received by Pinu and Rinu is: [CAT 2025 - Slot 2]

A. 2 : 1
B. 5 : 8
C. 1 : 2
D. 8 : 5

2. Ankita is twice as efficient as Bipin, while Bipin is twice as efficient as Chandan. All three start working together on a job, and Bipin leaves after 20 days. If the job is completed in 60 days, the number of days required by Chandan alone to complete the job is: [CAT 2025 - Slot 2]

A. 80
B. 100
C. 120
D. 160

3. Teams A, B and C, consisting of 5, 8 and 10 members, respectively, can complete a task in 40 hours, 50 hours and 40 hours, respectively. Two members of Team A, three members of Team B and one member of Team C work together for 23 hours. The Team C member is then replaced by some members of Team B, while the others continue working. If the task is completed in exactly 24 hours, how many Team B members replaced the Team C member? [CAT 2025 - Slot 3]

A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4

4.Renu would take 15 days working 4 hours per day to complete a task, whereas Seema would take 8 days working 5 hours per day to complete the same task. They decide to work together. Seema works twice as many hours per day as Renu, while Renu works twice as many days as Seema. If Renu works 2 hours per day, then the number of days Seema will work is: [CAT 2024 - Slot 1]

A. 8
B. 10
C. 12
D. 15

5. Bina incurs a 19% loss when she sells a product for ₹4860 to Shyam, who then sells it to Hari. If Bina had sold the product to Shyam at Hari's purchase price, she would have earned a 17% profit. The profit earned by Shyam is: [CAT 2024 - Slot 2]

A. ₹1680
B. ₹1800
C. ₹2160
D. ₹2430

6. A fruit seller has mangoes, bananas and apples. Initially, 40% of the stock consists of mangoes. During the day, he sells half the mangoes, 96 bananas and 40% of the apples. By the end of the day, exactly 50% of the fruits have been sold. What is the smallest possible total number of fruits in stock at the beginning? [CAT 2024 - Slot 2][TITA Question]

7. In a group of 250 students, the percentage of girls is at least 44% and at most 60%. Every student opts for either Swimming, Running, or both. If 50% of the boys and 80% of the girls choose Swimming, while 70% of the boys and 60% of the girls choose Running, what are the minimum and maximum possible numbers of students who opted for both activities? [CAT 2024 - Slot 3]

A. 72 and 88
B. 75 and 96
C. 72 and 80
D. 75 and 90

8. Brishti went on an 8-hour car trip. Before the trip, the odometer reading was a palindrome, and after the trip, it became 26862, which is also a palindrome. If she never drove faster than 110 km/h, what is the greatest possible average speed during the trip? [CAT 2023 - Slot 1]

A. 80 km/h
B. 90 km/h
C. 100 km/h
D. 110 km/h

9. Working alone, the times taken by Anu, Tanu and Manu to complete a job are in the ratio 5 : 8: 10. Together, they can complete the job in 4 days, working 8 hours per day. Anu and Tanu work together for the first 6 days, working 6 hours 40 minutes per day. How many hours will Manu take to complete the remaining work alone? [CAT 2022 - Slot 2]

10. Bob can finish a job in 40 days if he works alone. Alex is twice as fast as Bob and three times as fast as Cole. They work in pairs on alternate days as follows: Alex & Bob, Bob & Cole, Cole & Alex, and then repeat the cycle. The total number of days Alex would have worked when the job is completed is: [CAT 2022 - Slot 3]

A. 18
B. 20
C. 21
D. 24

Practice more questions from previous years by downloading CAT Quant PYQs- Complete 5-Year Question Bank (2021 - 2025) PDF

How to Use Previous Year Questions Effectively

Solving previous year papers is not sufficient in itself; we need to utilise the PYQs properly.

• First, practice the chapter-wise previous year questions after learning that particular chapter well.

• Then, after completing the chapters, solve mixed-topic Arithmetic sets from previous years.

• You need to learn from the mistakes made in previous year papers, especially the concepts you didn't master that led to the errors, and not just focusing on calculation errors.

• Before taking up mocks, it is essential to revise the chapters that have come frequently in previous year papers.

This is the right approach to use previous year questions smartly.

What CAT 2025 Reveals About Arithmetic

The paper of CAT 2025 had several aspects that may benefit future test-takers.

• Arithmetic was the most prominent topic in the quantitative ability section.

• The questions had a good distribution among various topics.

• Six Arithmetic topics had three or more questions each, suggesting that it was necessary to have a reasonable understanding of the subject rather than just focusing on a couple of chapters.

• Moreover, topics that are usually overlooked, such as Arithmetic Progression, also made an appearance in the question paper.

This suggests that it is important to thoroughly study all the chapters rather than just studying the ones with a high frequency of questions.

Common Mistakes While Preparing CAT Arithmetic

Many people waste a lot of time preparing Arithmetic but are unable to utilise their hard work by making various mistakes:

• They give equal attention to chapters having low weightage

• They leave out important chapters like Ratio & Proportion and Percentages, assuming them to be simple

• They memorise formulae without practising problems based on them

• They leave Previous year questions for the last moment

Section-wise CAT 2026 Quant Useful Resources

Given below are the most useful resources from each section of quantitative aptitude of CAT, to help you practice better:

These ebooks will help you gain clarity about the topicwise concepts and practice questions based on them.