CAT 2026 Expected Score vs Percentile & Target Marks
Projected raw marks required for 99.5, 99.0, 95.0, and 90.0 percentiles in CAT 2026, calibrated against 2020 to 2024 paper difficulty, with sectional safe targets.
Reviewed by Team ThinkCAT on
Executive Briefing & Key Takeaways
Official Benchmark & Strategic Decision Snapshot
To score 99 percentile, you do not need 50+ questions. Solving 28 questions with 90% accuracy reliably reaches 80+ raw marks.
TITA questions carry zero negative penalty. Attempt every TITA question in QA and VARC.
Top IIMs (Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta) require 80–85 percentile per section. Ensure at least 6–7 correct answers per section.
Key Facts & Action Items
Explore CAT 2026 Intelligence Guides & Tools
ThinkCAT HubFrequently Asked Questions
How many marks will be needed for 99 percentile in CAT 2026?
Based on CAT 2021 to 2024 trends in the 66-question format, an overall raw score between 78 and 82 marks out of 198 (approx. 40% net marks) is expected to yield a 99.0+ percentile.
What is the safe score to get interview calls from IIM Ahmedabad or Bangalore?
For General male engineering candidates, a raw score of 88 to 92+ marks (99.5+ percentile) with balanced sectional scores (all above 85 percentile) is typically required for calls.
How many questions do I need to attempt in CAT 2026 to get 95 percentile?
At 85% accuracy, attempting approximately 24 questions (yielding 20 correct, 4 incorrect = 56 marks) will place you right around the 95th percentile benchmark.
Does CAT normalize scores across slots if one slot is harder?
Yes. IIMs use a mean-and-standard-deviation normalization formula across all three slots. If Slot 3 is tougher than Slot 1, candidates in Slot 3 receive a scaled upward adjustment.
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