CAT is one of the highly competitive entrance tests in the country. It attracts lakhs of participants who aim to secure admission to the MBA course in IIM and other top business schools in India. Candidates preparing for this test often ask about the CAT exam difficulty level, i.e. “Will CAT 2025 be tough?” or “Is CAT Getting Tougher Every Year?”. Going by the past trends and analysis, it is found that the CAT exam is moderately difficult in nature. Thus, candidates must plan an effective strategy that helps cover the entire CAT syllabus with unlimited practice and focused revision. To ease candidates’ preparation, we have compiled below the past year trends of the CAT difficulty level and other essential details.
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CAT Exam Difficulty Level- Past Year Trends Overview (2020-24)
Before understanding the CAT exam difficulty level over the years, aspirants must check the exam structure and format. Typically, the CAT question paper is divided into three sections, i.e. Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR), and Quantitative Ability (QA). The exam duration shall be 120 minutes (40 minutes for each section). There shall also be negative marking in MCQs for every incorrect answer. Here is the overview of the overall CAT exam difficulty level from 2020-24 for the reference of the candidates:
CAT Exam Difficulty Level
| Year | Overall Difficulty Level |
| 2024 | Moderate |
| 2023 | Difficult |
| 2022 | Moderate |
| 2021 | Difficult |
| 2020 | Moderate to Difficult |
CAT Exam Difficult Level- Past Trends
The difficulty level of the CAT exam varies every year due to various factors. This makes the CAT question paper challenging and unpredictable for the aspirants. Familiarity with the difficult level enables candidates to set realistic goals and prepare efficiently for the upcoming exam. We have shared below the section-wise CAT exam difficulty level from 2020 to 2024 to provide insights into the fluctuation in recent years.
CAT Exam Difficulty Level 2024
Here is the overall and section-wise CAT Exam Difficulty Level for 2024, along with expert insights shared below for candidates’ reference:
- Overall Difficulty Level: Moderate
- VARC: Moderate to Difficult
- DILR: Moderate
- QA: Moderate
Insight: The overall difficulty level of CAT 2024 was moderate. There were also changes in the exam pattern, with the number of questions increased from 66 to 68. The difficulty level was different for every slot. Slot 1 was the easiest, whereas Slot 3 was the toughest.
CAT Exam Difficulty Level 2023
Let’s discuss the overall and section-wise CAT Exam Difficulty Level for 2023, along with expert insights for the clarity of the aspirants.
- Overall Difficulty Level: Difficult
- VARC: Difficult
- DILR: Moderate to Difficult
- QA: Moderate to Difficult
Insight: The CAT 2023 exam was difficult in nature, with VARC being the toughest of all three sections in Slot 1. Moreover, the QA section was also moderately tough and majorily comprises arithmetic questions.
CAT Exam Difficulty Level 2022
Here is the overall and section-wise CAT Exam Difficulty Level for 2022, along with expert insights shared below for candidates’ reference:
- Overall Difficulty Level: Moderate
- VARC: Moderate
- DILR: Difficult
- QA: Easy to Moderate
Insight: The overall exam difficulty level of CAT 2022 was moderate, with no questions on DI sets asked in the DILR section in Slot 1 and the QA section consists of numerous average and ratio questions.
CAT Exam Difficulty Level 2021
Let’s discuss the overall and section-wise CAT Exam Difficulty Level for 2021 and expert insights to help aspirants understand the exam requirements.
- Overall Difficulty Level: Difficult
- VARC: Moderate
- DILR: Difficult
- QA: Moderate to Difficult
Insight: The questions asked in CAT 2021 were difficult in nature, and there were also changes in the exam pattern in terms of the number of questions, which was reduced from 76 to 66.
CAT Exam Difficulty Level 2020
Here is the overall and section-wise CAT Exam Difficulty Level for 2020, along with expert insights shared below for candidates’ reference:
- Overall Difficulty Level: Moderate to Difficult
- VARC: Moderate
- DILR: Difficult
- QA: Moderate to Difficult
Insight: The overall CAT exam difficulty level for 2020 was moderate to tough and was similar to the previous CAT exams, with fluctuation in section-wise difficulty level.
Will CAT 2025 Be Tough?
While it is tough to predict the difficulty level of CAT 2025, we can analyse the past trends and patterns to get an idea of the nature of the exam. Some reasons why CAT 2025 can be tough are tricky DILR sets and variation in the weightage of topics. However, the reasons the CAT 2025 might be manageable are a balanced test structure and more focus on accuracy. Typically, the CAT exam difficulty level also depends on your exam preparation and subject expertise. Candidates must attempt unlimited CAT-level mocks and join the best coaching to improve their exam readiness.
Expert Tips to Tackle Any CAT Exam Difficulty Level
With less than 6 months left for CAT 2025, aspirants must build a smart strategy to stay ahead of the competition. They should start attempting mocks after completing half of the curriculum. This will help them determine where their preparation stands. Some of the expert tips to handle any CAT exam difficult level are discussed below to guide the candidates in the right direction:
- Aspirants must build strong basics across all the sections. This helps them understand advanced topics and solve any type of question in the exam.
- They must build a smart question selection strategy to know which questions to attempt and which to skip. They must focus more on accuracy rather than attempting maximum questions with guesswork.
- They can also join iQuanta’s CAT coaching to strengthen their preparation. It offers live conceptual+advanced classes, customised modules, CAT-level mocks, 24X7 doubt-solving support, performance analytics, and many other features.
- Practice CAT-level mock tests under real test conditions to determine strengths and weak areas. For this, aspirants can join iQuanta’s CAT mock test series. The mock platform comprises 35 full mocks and 45 sectional tests. Out of 35 full-length mocks, 20 are proctored mocks and 15 are unproctored mocks. It aims to improve aspirants’ time management and problem-solving ability. Students will also be provided with AI mock analysis and video solutions.
- Aspirants must also solve the CAT previous year question papers to improve their familiarity with the test format and trends.
- Regularly revise all the concepts, core topics, formulas, etc, to retain the key information for a longer period.
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CAT Exam Difficulty Level FAQs
As per the past trends and analysis, the CAT exam has been moderately difficult in nature over the years. Check the past trends of the overall and sectional CAT exam difficulty levels in the above article.
Yes. The CAT exam is usually moderate to difficult level. However, you can ace it with a smart strategy, CAT-level resources, and unlimited practice.
It is tough to predict the difficulty level of the CAT 2025 exam. However, candidates can check past trends to get a rough idea of the exam pattern and the level of preparation required.