CMAT 2026 exam will be held on January 25, 2026.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced the CMAT 2026 exam date. As per the recent notification, CMAT 2026 will be held on Janaury 25, 2026. Earlier CMAT 2026 registartion was open from October 17 to November 24, 2025. CMAT 2026 registration fee last date was fee November 25, 2025. As per last year’s data, 74,012 candidates registered for the exam, with 63,145 appearing and recording an 85.32% attendance. The CMAT 2026 exam will be conducted across 178 centres in 107 cities, and the difficulty level is expected to remain easy to moderate. CMAT is a national-level management entrance exam conducted by NTA for admission to AICTE-approved MBA and PGDM programmes, and its scores are accepted by 1000+ top B-schools across India, including KJ Somaiya, JBIMS Mumbai, Welingkar, and PUMBA.
Participate Careers360's free CMAT mock test
The Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) is a national-level business aptitude test conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for admission to PGDM and MBA programmes. The scorecard for the CMAT exam will be accepted by 1000+ AICTE-approved colleges to offer admission into MBA programmes. Some of the top MBA colleges accepting CMAT scores are KJ Somaiya, JBIMS Mumbai, Welingkar, PUMBA, etc.
CMAT Exam 2026: Key Highlights
MBA aspirants planning to take the CMAT entrance test this year can check the key highlights below.
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
CMAT exam conducting body | National Testing Agency (NTA) |
CMAT official website | exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/ |
CMAT exam fees |
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CMAT reservation |
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CMAT test cities | 107 |
No. of CMAT colleges | 1000+ |
CMAT Important topics for preparation | Algebra, Time-Speed-Distance, Alligation & Mixtures, Graph, Linear Arrangements, Number Series, Matrix Arrangements, Blood Relationship Tests, Reading Comprehension, English Usage Errors, Parajumbles, GK questions |
CMAT question paper medium | English |
CMAT exam duration | 180 minutes (3 hours) |
CMAT exam pattern | 5 sections
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Negative marking in CMAT exam | 1 mark will be deducted for incorrect answer |
CMAT exam difficulty level | Easy to Moderate |
CMAT cutoff | 280-340+ marks out of 400 for top CMAT colleges |
CMAT score validity | Validity of CMAT exam result shall be only for the current academic session, i.e. 2026-27 |
Also read | CMAT Score Vs Percentile
Quick tips to prepare for CMAT Entrance Test 2026
Below tips can help candidates ace 300+ marks in CMAT 2026:
Some commonly asked questions around the CMAT exam have been answered below.
| CMAT FAQs | CMAT Answers |
|---|---|
What is CMAT full form? | Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) |
Is CMAT conducted twice a year? In which month CMAT exam is conducted every year? | CMAT is conducted once a year. CMAT 2026 will be conducted probably in the last week of January 2026. |
Is CMAT 2025 registration open? | Yes, the CMAT 2026 application window was available till December 25, 2024. |
What is the syllabus of CMAT? | CMAT syllabus includes topics from Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning, Language Comprehension, General Awareness, and Innovation & Entrepreneurship |
Is CMAT accepted by IIMs? | No, CMAT is not accepted by IIMs. MBA at IIMs can only be pursued by giving CAT exam |
Which college is best under CMAT? | |
What is the CMAT exam used for? | Admission to postgraduate management programmes (MBA/PGDM/PGP/PGPM) |
Is CMAT exam necessary for MBA? Is CMAT eligible for MBA? | CMAT score is accepted by all AICTE-approved institutes but it is not a mandatory requirement for MBA admission, as some colleges grant direct admission, meaning MBA without entrance exam |
Which is better, CAT or CMAT? | CAT and CMAT are national-level MBA entrance exams whose scores are widely accepted. Both are conducted annually to assess verbal, quantitative and reasoning skills of management aspirants |
How do I login to the CMAT portal? | Using CMAT login credentials (application number and date of birth/password), candidates can visit their dashboard. |
Browse Top MBA Colleges Accepting CMAT Score: Location-Wise
| Full Exam Name | Common Management Admission Test |
| Short Exam Name | CMAT |
| Conducting Body | National Testing Agency |
| Frequency Of Conduct | Once a year |
| Exam Level | National Level Exam |
| Languages | English |
| Mode Of Application | online |
| Application Fee | Online : 2500 |
| Mode Of Exam | online |
| Mode Of Counselling | offline |
| Participating Colleges | 1071 |
| Exam Duration | 3 Hours |
CMAT Common Management Admission Test (session 2026)
The National Testing Agency (NTA) will release the CMAT eligibility criteria in the official CMAT notification. Over the years, there has been no change in CMAT exam eligibility. So, expect the same eligibility this year too. It is important for MBA aspirants planning to appear for CMAT exam 2026 to go through the CMAT criteria and apply only after meeting the same. Ineligible candidates will be disqualified at later stages of MBA admission.
CMAT Exam 2026: Eligibility Criteria
CMAT eligibility criteria 2026 will define the basic requirements in terms of nationality, age, qualification, etc. Check the CMAT entrance exam eligibility criteria below.
CMAT 2026 Eligibility Criteria: Course Wise
CMAT colleges can have their own MBA course eligibility criteria, which can differ from CMAT exam eligibility criteria. Candidates applying to the MBA courses based on CMAT test score 2026 are suggested to check the respective course eligibility criteria before applying.
CMAT exam 2026 application form window has opened on October 17, 2025 and will close on November 24, 2025. Students interested in pursuing an MBA or PGDM from top CMAT colleges applied for the CMAT exam 2026 at the CMAT NTA website, exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/ probably till the last week of December 2025. Before applying for this MBA entrance, candidates are advised to check their eligibility and proceed only after ensuring they are eligible to avoid disqualification at a later stage.
CMAT Exam Registration 2026: Step-by-step guide
CMAT exam 2026 registration is a two-step process, as detailed below.
Step 1: Create CMAT 2026 login
Applicants will have to fill in the following basic information and note down the system generated CMAT application number 2026:
Step 2: Fill in the complete CMAT 2026 application form
Using the CMAT exam 2026 login details, candidates can proceed further with filling out the CMAT application form.
Candidates whose CMAT exam 2026 application form is successfully submitted will only be issued the CMAT admit card.
CMAT Exam Fees 2026
Check out the CMAT exam fee for registration, detailed in the table below. This fees must be paid using Credit Card /Debit Card (except Master/Visa Card) / Net-Banking/UPI.
Categories | Male | Female |
General (UR) | Rs. 2500 | Rs. 1250 |
Gen-EWS/ SC/ST/PwD /OBC-(NCL) | Rs. 1250 | Rs. 1250 |
Third gender | Rs. 1250 | |
This eBook also includes Idioms and Phrases, Phrasal Verbs, Permutation & Combination, Geometry and Mensuration, Most important English words to boost their exam preparation.
Download Now| State | City |
| Bihar | Gaya Muzaffarpur Patna |
| Jharkhand | Dhanbad Jamshedpur Ranchi |
| Odisha | Berhampur Bhubaneswar Sambalpur |
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Port Blair |
| Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar |
| Assam | Dibrugarh Guwahati |
| Manipur | Imphal |
| Meghalaya | Shillong |
| Nagaland | Kohima |
| Tripura | Agartala |
| West Bengal | Kolkata Siliguri |
| Delhi | New Delhi |
| Haryana | Faridabad Gurugram Ambala |
| Uttar Pradesh | Meerut Agra Allahabad Bareilly Gorakhpur Kanpur Lucknow Moradabad Varanasi |
| Uttarakhand | Dehradun Haldwani Roorkee |
| Rajasthan | Jaipur Jodhpur Kota Udaipur Bhatinda |
| Chandigarh | Chandigarh |
| Himachal Pradesh | Hamirpur Shimla |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Jammu Srinagar |
| Ladakh | Leh |
| Punjab | Amritsar Jalandhar Patiala |
| Andhra Pradesh | Guntur Kurnool Nellore Rajahmundry Tirupati Vijayawada Visakhapatnam(Vizag) |
| Karnataka | Bangalore Dharwad Gulbarga Mangaluru Mysuru |
| Telangana | Hyderabad Karimnagar Warangal |
| Kerala | Alappuzha Ernakulam Kannur Kottayam Kozhikode Thiruvananthapuram Thrissur |
| Tamil Nadu | Chennai Coimbatore Madurai Tiruchirappalli |
| Goa | Panaji |
| Gujarat | Ahmedabad Anand Bardoli Bhuj Jamnagar Mehsana Rajkot Surat Vadodara Valsad |
| Maharashtra | Ahmednagar Amravati Aurangabad Jalgaon Kolhapur Mumbai Nagpur Nanded Nashik Pune Solapur Thane Yavatmal |
| Chhattisgarh | Bhilai Nagar Raipur |
| Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal Gwalior Indore Jabalpur Sagar Ujjain |
The NTA will soon release the CMAT 2026 exam pattern on its official website. As per last year's official CMAT exam pattern, the question paper for the CMAT exam will have 5 sections with 100 questions in MCQ format. Each section of the CMAT exam 2026 pattern will have 20 questions.
CMAT Exam Pattern 2026
Check the expected CMAT 2026 exam pattern from the table below,
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
Mode of exam | Computer Based Test (CBT) |
Duration of the CMAT exam | 180 minutes (3 hours) Shift 1: 9 am to 12 noon Shift 2: 3 pm to 6 pm |
Total Number of Questions | 100 questions |
Section-wise Questions | 20 questions |
Total Marks | 400 marks |
NTA CMAT Exam Marking Scheme |
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Section-wise CMAT 2026 Exam Pattern
Below are the sections that the CMAT question paper will have, along with details on the number of questions and total marks.
Sections in CMAT Paper | Number of Questions | Total marks |
Quantitative Techniques & Data Interpretation | 20 | 80 |
General Awareness | 20 | 80 |
Logical Reasoning | 20 | 80 |
Language Comprehension | 20 | 80 |
Innovation & Entrepreneurship | 20 | 80 |
Total | 100 | 400 |
The candidates must follow a proper strategy to prepare for CMAT exam 2026. They should know about important books, and topics that can improve the study preparation of CMAT 2026 test. Before starting the exam preparation, it is important to go through the CMAT exam syllabus and exam pattern thoroughly.
Proper CMAT 2026 planning and regular preparation needed to crack the Common Management Admission Test. Candidates who are appearing for the exam can also check the best books to prepare for CMAT exam 2026.
Also Read:
Best books for Comprehension, Vocabulary, and Grammar
Name of the book | Name of the author |
Word Power Made Easy | Norman Lewis |
English Grammar | Wren & Martin |
30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary | Norman Lewis |
Business English and Communication | John O E Clark |
A Communicative Grammar of English | Geoffrey Leech and Jan Svartvik |
The Students Companion | Wilfred D Best |
The Pearson Guide to Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning for the CAT | Nishit K Sinha |
How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT | Arun Sharma (McGraw Hill Education |
Trishna’s Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning for the CAT and other MBA Examinations | TIME |
A Modern Approach to Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning | Dr. R S Aggarwal |
Books on Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning
Book Name | Author/ Publisher Name |
Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT | Nishit K Sinha (Pearson) |
How to Prepare for Logical Reasoning for the CAT | Arun Sharma (McGraw Hill Education) |
Best books for Quantitative Ability
Book Name | Author/ Publisher Name |
Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT Common Admission Tests for Admission into IIMs | Sarvesh K Verma (Arihant) |
How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for CAT | Arun Sharma (McGraw Hill Education) |
NCERT Mathematics Books for class 8th, 9th and 10th | NCERT |
Quantitative Aptitude | Dr. R S Aggarwal |
Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations | Abhijit Guha (McGraw Hill Education) |
The National Testing Agency (NTA) will issue the CMAT exam 2026 admit card online mode at the official website, exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/. Applicants can download the NTA CMAT entrance exam hall ticket by entering their CMAT login credentials, such as their application number and date of birth. Candidates must keep the NTA CMAT exam 2026 admit card safe until admissions are completed, as a duplicate one will not be issued.
Also read: Know how to prepare for CMAT?
Step 1: Go to the CMAT official website, exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/
Step 2: Click on the download link of the CMAT exam hall ticket 2026
Step 3: Enter the CMAT exam 2026 application number and password/date of Birth.
Step 4: Click on the "Download CMAT exam Admit Card" button on the page.
Step 5: Check details, save the admit card in PDF format and take a printout of the same.
CMAT Exam 2026 Admit Card: How to Retrieve the CMAT 2026 application number?
Aspirants who have forgotten their CMAT 2026 application number can retrieve it using the facility provided by the NTA authorities on its official CMAT website. To do so, students can use the "Find Application Number" link here. Steps to follow
CMAT Exam Admit Card: Details mentioned
Candidate Related | CMAT exam-related |
Candidate' Name | CMAT 2026 Roll number |
Father's Name | CMAT exam centre address |
Date of birth | CMAT 2026 date and time |
Category | Signature and Photograph of the candidate |
Gender | Instructions for CMAT exam |
Might be interested in- How to prepare for CMAT exam in one month
Documents to carry with the CMAT exam admit card:
The following documents must be carried by all candidates on the CMAT exam day and shown on demand else they will not be allowed to appear for the exam.
Note: If the name of the candidate has changed due to events such as marriage etc, such candidates must show the relevant documents at the time of the exam like Marriage Certificate / Divorce / Decree / Legal Name Change Document.
Unable to download the CMAT exam 2026 Admit Card?
Steps to take in case of discrepancy in CMAT 2026 exam admit card
Quick link- CMAT exam day guidelines
The National Testing Agency will release the final answer key for the CMAT exam 2026 in online mode. Candidates can download the answer key for the CMAT exam by entering their login credentials, which will be created at the time of CMAT exam registration.
How to download CMAT exam answer key?
Steps to Challenge CMAT 2026 Answer Key
The final answer key for CMAT 2026 will be released after consideration of the objections received.
CMAT exam is generally of moderate difficulty level. Candidates can check previous year exam analysis to get an idea about the difficulty level of CMAT exam 2026.
CMAT Previous Years Exam Analysis
The previous year's exam analysis of the CMAT exam has been given below:
CMAT Exam Analysis: Section-wise Difficulty Level
Section | Number of Questions | Marks per Question | Maximum Marks | Overall LOD |
Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation | 20 | 4 | 80 | Easy to moderate (QA-15 and DI-5) |
Logical Reasoning | 20 | 4 | 80 | Easy (14 questions and VL 6 questions) |
Language Comprehension | 20 | 4 | 80 | Easy |
General Awareness | 20 | 4 | 80 | Easy |
Innovation and Entrepreneurship | 20 | 4 | 80 | Easy |
Total | 100 | 4 | 400 | Easy to Moderate |
CMAT Exam Score | CMAT Exam Percentile |
300+ | 99.95+ |
265-270 | 99 |
220-225 | 95 |
190-195 | 90 |
The National Testing Agency (NTA) will announce the CMAT 2026 result in online mode at the NTA CMAT official website, exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/. To check the CMAT 2026 result and download the scorecard, candidates must enter their application number, date of birth, and security pin.
How to check CMAT 2026 exam result?
The CMAT 2026 result can be checked by following the steps below:
Details mentioned in CMAT 2026 scorecard
Also Read:
As per the trends of last year, the National Testing Agency (NTA) will not release the CMAT cutoff to shortlist candidates for the selection procedure; however, the affiliated institutes will declare their respective CMAT cutoff after the result gets officially announced.
The cutoff of the CMAT exam is the minimum score or percentile candidates need to obtain for attaining admission into MBA and PGDM courses offered by management institutes across India. The factors that will determine the CMAT 2026 cutoff are-
CMAT Colleges with their cut off (Expected)
Institute Name | Expected Cut off Percentile |
99.99 | |
99.8 | |
99.20 | |
99.06 | |
Pune University Department of Management Sciences (PUMBA DMS) | 96.42 |
95 | |
97.27 | |
90 | |
85 | |
82 | |
85 | |
Prin. LN Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research, Mumbai | 85 |
75 | |
75 | |
Prin. LN Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research, Bangalore | 85 |
200 marks | |
300 marks | |
Amrut Mody School of Management, Ahmedabad University, Ahmedabad | 70 |
75 | |
60 | |
75 | |
Kirloskar Institute of Advanced Management Studies, Harihar & Pune | 60 |
60 | |
60 | |
60 | |
84 | |
60 | |
200 marks | |
80 | |
50 | |
213 | |
Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Nagpur & Hyderabad | 70 |
60 | |
280 | |
232 | |
180 | |
60 | |
50 | |
50 percentile | |
60 percentile | |
75 percentile | |
45.5 percentile | |
100+ score |
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) approved institutes will conduct the CMAT 2026 selection process after the declaration of the result/merit list. As per the officials, the CMAT exam participating institutes will conduct their respective selection procedures for the candidates who obtain the cutoff scores. The CMAT exam 2026 selection procedure varies within institutes. The selection procedure of the CMAT exam is mostly comprised of
CMAT 2026 Selection Process
The CMAT Selection Process will include four main stages,
Taking CMAT exam 2026: The first part of the CMAT 2026 exam is based on the candidate's performance in the CMAT exam, which can be measured by the overall score, percentage score, and section score in the CMAT.
Declaration of CMAT exam result: The CMAT 2026 result will be available in online mode. The CMAT scorecard includes the overall raw score, sectional score, overall percentile, and sectional percentile. CMAT 2026 selection process depends on your place on the National Merit List. The candidate must also submit their CMAT 2026 exam score to the respective B-School where they have already applied or plan to apply now.
Shortlisting by B-Schools: The next stage of the NTA CMAT selection process is a shortlist for the final admission round based on the CMAT exam score of the B-School where you applied for MBA Admission. Each participating institute will publish its respective CMAT cutoff 2026, which candidates must meet to qualify to join the particular institute. Upon qualification, the candidates must appear for the selection procedure of CMAT 2026 of the particular institution, including Group Discussion (GD) and Personal Interview (PI).
Participate in GD and PI: Many MBA colleges conduct their own GD and PI process for selecting candidates through the CMAT selection procedure for MBA admission. NTA CMAT 2026 selection procedure for final counselling based on entrance exam score, academic performance, work experience, and GD & PI round performance.
CMAT Exam 2026 Participating Institutes
The NTA CMAT 2026 score will be used by more than 1000 MBA colleges that accept the CMAT score for MBA admission 2026. The admission process will be made on the basis of the CMAT exam score/ percentile for the MBA 2026-28 batch at many top MBA and PGDM colleges. Here, we provide a list of CMAT colleges accepting CMAT score in India.
Contact Number:
0120-6895200
Relevant Links:
Official Website Link Click HereRanked among top 10 B-Schools in India by multiple publications | Top Recruiters-Google, MicKinsey, Amazon, BCG & many more.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
CMAT exam 2026 registration fee will be Rs. 2500/- for Male candidates and Rs. 1250/- for female candidates.
CMAT 2026 will be conducted by NTA probably in the last week of Janaury 2026. The CMAT entrance exam 2026 is conducted in online (CBT) mode.
No, candidates have to appear for the CMAT exam at the scheduled test venue. The CMAT exam pattern 2026 suggests it will be a 3-hour CBT exam with 100 questions asked from five different sections.
Yes, one mark will get reduced for each incorrect answer.
Category | Reservation (Percentage) |
Other Backward Class (OBC- Non Creamy layer) | 27% |
Scheduled Tribe (ST) | 7.5% |
Scheduled Caste (SC) | 15% |
The documents required at the NTA CMAT 2026 exam centre are:
Candidates who have completed their graduation degree in any discipline can appear for CMAT exam 2026.
Yes, NTA provides the facility to retrieve the forgotten CMAT exam application number at exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT/
There are a number of top colleges/institutions that accept CMAT exam 2026 scores. Candidates can check the complete list of B-schools accepting CMAT exam score here.
Candidates are not allowed to carry few items such as a wristwatch, mobile, calculator, etc to the CMAT exam centre.
Application Date
01 Dec, 2025 - 10 Feb, 2026
Admit Card Date
20 Dec, 2025 - 04 Jan, 2026
Result Date
09 Jan, 2026 - 09 Jan, 2026
On Question asked by student community
Yes, DSM DTU (Delhi Technological University, Department of Management Studies) does accept CMAT score for admission to its MBA programme. Many management institutes in India use CMAT as one of the valid entrance exams along with CAT, MAT, or GMAT, and DTU’s management department is among those that consider CMAT
With a CMAT percentile of around 92, you do have a reasonably competitive entrance score. However, the main challenge in your case is the 50% marks in graduation, as most government MBA institutes, including SVNIT Surat, have strict minimum eligibility criteria for academic performance.
SVNIT Surat (through its Department of
Hello,
The link to the website of careers360, where the preferred colleges and percentiles are mentioned, is attached herewith. You can also get the details of colleges.
https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/mba-colleges-accepting-80-90-percentile-in-cmat-exam
Thank you.
Ranked among top 10 B-Schools in India by multiple publications | Top Recruiters-Google, MicKinsey, Amazon, BCG & many more.
Globally Recognized by AACSB (US) & AMBA (UK) | 17.8 LPA Avg. CTC for PGPM 2025
Highest Package 27.25 LPA | Top 100 Average package 16.65 LPA | AACSB Accredited | Ranked 52 by QS International
Phase 02 Applications Window Closing on 23rd January 2026 | 100% Placement Record | Average CTC 12.75 LPA | Highest CTC 40.31 LPA | Median CTC 12.49 LPA
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Application Deadline 15th Jan’26 | UGC Approved Programs | Near 100% Placement Record | Up to 100% Scholarships | Highest CTC 21.32 LPA
College Available: 647
College Available: 353
College Available: 60
College Available: 46
College Available: 40
