The typical CAT cutoff for admission to IIMs is between the 95th and 100th percentile for all categories. This year, the top IIMs’ CAT cutoff percentile for students in the General category was between 98 and 100 percent.
The IIMs and top MBA schools, including FMS, MDI, SPJIMR, IMT, and MICA, release the preliminary CAT cut offs for WAT-PI shortlisting well in advance of the publication of the test results, but they don’t disclose the final CAT cut offs until after the release of the exam results and/or at the time of PI shortlisting.
Factors Determining CAT Cut Offs
Several elements that have an impact on the admissions process were taken into consideration when determining the CAT cut-off percentile for each institute. Following are some of the important elements that affect IIM cut-offs by category:
- Level of difficulty of the CAT exam
- Number of candidates who took the exam
- Number of candidates that passed the test
- Seats available at a specific institute
- Institutional ranking across all of India
CAT Cut Offs 2023
| IIM | Qualifying CAT cut offs |
|---|---|
| IIM Ahmedabad | 85 |
| IIM Bangalore | 85 |
| IIM Calcutta | 85 |
| IIM Lucknow | 90 |
| IIM Indore | 90 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 85 |
| IIM Amritsar | 90 |
| IIM Nagpur | 85 |
| IIM Sambalpur | 93 |
| IIM Trichy | 93 |
| IIM Raipur | 93 |
| IIM Ranchi | 90 |
| IIM Kashipur | 94 |
| IIM Vizag | 80 |
| IIM Udaipur | 93 |
| IIM Bodhgaya | 93 |
| IIM Shillong | 75 |
| IIM Sirmaur | 92 |
| IIM Rohtak | 95 |
| IIM Nagpur | 85 |
| IIM Jammu | 93 |
Final CAT Cut Off vs. Qualifying CAT Cut Off
| Qualifying CAT cut offs | Final CAT cut offs |
|---|---|
| Also referred to as IIM eligibility cut off or IIM shortlist cut off, it is the minimum marks a candidate must score so that he/she is eligible for interview call (for WAT/GD-PI round) from the IIMs. | Also referred to as IIM call cut offs, it is the minimum percentile score fixed by the IIMs for selection of candidates for WAT/GD-PI round. |
| Meeting the qualifying cut off does not mean that the candidate will be selected for the WAT/GD-PI round. | Meeting the final CAT cut off does not mean that the candidate will be selected for admission. |
| The qualifying CAT cut off is fixed before the announcement of CAT result. | The final cut off is fixed after the declaration of CAT result. |
| The qualifying CAT cut off percentiles are announced by each campus in their notification of admission criteria and selection process for that academic year. | The final CAT cut offs are not announced officially by any IIM or even other top MBA institutes. |
| The qualifying CAT cut offs remain above 90 percentile for all IIMs, exception being IIM Ahmedabad whose qualifying cut off has been 85 percentile in the past few years. | The final CAT cut offs remain as high as 99+ percentile for all top IIMs and 95+ percentile for new IIMs. |
| The qualifying CAT cut offs include sectional and overall cut offs. | The final CAT cut offs include sectional and overall cut offs. |
| The qualifying CAT cut off is fixed category wise. The cut off for General category students is high (90), while for reserved category students, it is low (70 and below). | The final CAT cut off is fixed category wise. For General category male students with engineering background, the final cut off is high as compared to reserved category students, female students and those with non-engineering background. |
CAT Cut Offs 2023 for IIM Admission
| College | CAT Cut Offs (Percentile) |
|---|---|
| FMS, Delhi | 98-99 |
| SPJIMR, Mumbai | 95-99 |
| IMT, Ghaziabad | 95-97 |
| JBIMS, Mumbai | 96 |
| MDI, Gurgaon | 97-99 |
| IMI, New Delhi | 90 |
| XIM, Bhubaneshwar | 91 |
| GIM Goa | 85 |
| K J Somaiya, Mumbai | 86 |
| TAPMI, Manipal | 80 |
| FORE, New Delhi | 85 |
| IFMR, Chennai | 80 |
| IRMA, Anand | 80 |
| MICA, Ahmedabad | 80 |
| LIBA, Chennai | 70 |
| XIME, Bangalore | 70 |
Difference between CAT score and CAT percentile?
A candidate’s overall exam score, or CAT score, is calculated by adding up all of their correct, incomplete, and unsolved questions. Because IIMs and all MBA institutes in India pick applicants based on their CAT percentile and not score, it is critical to comprehend the distinction between CAT score and CAT percentile. The CAT percentile is sometimes referred to as a candidate’s ranking in comparison to other test-takers. The percentile represents the overall percentage of applicants that received a CAT score that was lower than or equal to the applicant in question. A candidate performed better than 97% of all CAT test takers that year, for instance, if their CAT percentile was 97. To comprehend it
CAT Cut Off for Top MBA Colleges (Non-IIM)
All applicants seeking admission to IIMs must take the CAT. However, several other prestigious B-schools in India accept applicants based on their CAT results. Candidates who want to take the CAT in 2023 may also apply for admission to MBA programs at numerous MBA universities nationwide.
In addition to the IIMs, here are the cutoffs for other prestigious MBA programs for the upcoming academic year, including the IMT Ghaziabad CAT cutoff, SP Jain CAT cutoff, TAPMI CAT cutoff, IIM Shillong CAT cutoff, MICA CAT cutoff, IIT Bombay CAT cutoff, IPU MBA CAT cutoff, etc. See additional information below.
| Business School | CAT Cutoff (Percentile) |
|---|---|
| FMS, Delhi | 98.20 Percentile |
| DMS, IIT Delhi | 98+ Percentile |
| Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA) Chennai | 90+ Percentile |
| SJMSOM, IIT Bombay | 99+ Percentile |
| Institute of Management Technology (IMT) Ghaziabad | 90+ Percentile |
| MDI Gurgaon | 95+ Percentile |
| National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE) Mumbai | 95+ Percentile |
| SPJIMR | 85+ Percentile |
| XIMB | 90+ Percentile |
| Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras | 95+ Percentile |
| T A Pai Management Institute (TAPMI) Manipal | 85+ Percentile |
CAT Cut off Marks vs Percentile
| CAT Percentile | VARC Score | DILR Score | QA Score | Total CAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99.5+ | 37-38 | 30-32 | 37-39 | 104-108 |
| 99+ | 34-35 | 28-30 | 36-37 | 98-102 |
| 99 | 33-34 | 29-30 | 34-35 | 98-98.5 |
| 98+ | 32-33 | 27-28 | 30-32 | 90-93 |
| 95+ | 32-34 | 20-21 | 28-30 | 80-82 |
| 90+ | 29-30 | 17-19 | 26-27 | 72-75 |
| 85+ | 24-25 | 14-15 | 20-22 | 59-61 |
| 80+ | 20-22 | 11-13 | 15-16 | 46-48 |
CAT Cut off for IIM for General
| IIM | CAT 2022 Cut off for General | CAT 2021 Cut off for General |
|---|---|---|
| IIM Ahmedabad | 80 | 80 |
| IIM Bangalore | 85 | 85 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 85 | 85 |
| IIM Calcutta | 85 | 85 |
| IIM Lucknow | 90 | 90 |
| IIM Indore | 90 | 90 |
| IIM Raipur | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Rohtak | 95 | 95 |
| IIM Udaipur | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Kashipur | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Trichy | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Ranchi | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Shillong | 75 | 75 |
| IIM Visakhapatnam | 80 | 80 |
| IIM Jammu | Male- 90, Female- 87 | 92 |
| IIM Nagpur | 85 | 85 |
| IIM Amritsar | 85 | 85 |
| IIM Bodh Gaya | 92 | 92 |
| IIM Sambalpur | Male- 92, Female- 80 | 92 |
| IIM Sirmaur | 92 | 92 |
FAQ's
CAT Cut off is determined after taking into account various factors like the number of candidates who registered and appeared for the exam, number of seats available, difficulty level of the exam, and past admission trends. Also, CAT percentile is calculated based on the score normalization process to ensure that all candidates are on the same level.
Yes, every IIM releases its own sectional and overall CAT cut offs. For newer IIMs, the cut off is usually in the range of 90-95 percentile. CAT Cut off for top IIMs like IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Calcutta, IIM Bangalore, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Lucknow is above 99 percentile.
CAT Cut off for IIMs is generally above 90 percentile. So, the chances of getting into IIMs with 80-85 percentile are minimal. However, there are other top MBA colleges that accept 80-85 CAT percentile. Some of these colleges are SPJIMR, XIME Bangalore, Prin. L N Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research, Delhi School of Management, etc.
IIMs and other non-IIM B-Schools accepting CAT scores for admissions release their category-wise cut-offs for admissions. If candidates meet CAT 2023 cut off criteria, they need to participate in the further rounds of selection like Group Discussion, Personal interviews, etc.
