CAT 2025 Exam Analysis – Slot 1, 2 & 3 | Difficulty Review, Answer Key, Score vs Percentile – MBABabuJi
The Common Admission Test (CAT) 2025 was conducted across India in three slots, and MBA aspirants eagerly awaited the detailed analysis to understand the exam’s difficulty, expected cut-offs, and percentile trends. This comprehensive CAT 2025 Exam Analysis by MBABabuJi breaks down each slot—VARC, DILR, and QA sections—along with memory-based questions, answer key insights, and the estimated score vs percentile range.
This article helps you evaluate your performance, predict your percentile, and understand how CAT 2025 is expected to impact shortlisting for IIMs and top B-schools.
Exam Relevance
For Candidates: CAT 2025 exam takers, MBA aspirants preparing for IIM admissions.
For Educators & Analysts: Useful for difficulty mapping and trend analysis.
CAT 2025 – Key Highlights
Below are the major highlights observed across all three slots of CAT 2025:
- Total Duration: 120 minutes
- Sectional Time Limit: 40 minutes per section
- Total Questions: 66 (MCQ + TITA mix)
- Moderate-to-difficult exam with a relatively tougher DILR section
- VARC remained student-friendly across slots
- QA leaned moderately difficult due to arithmetic-heavy questions
CAT 2025 Slot-Wise Difficulty Analysis
Here is a detailed breakdown of Slot 1, Slot 2, and Slot 3 difficulty levels.
| Slot | VARC | DILR | QA | Overall Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slot 1 | Moderate | Difficult | Moderate | Moderately Difficult |
| Slot 2 | Moderate | Very Difficult | Moderate to Difficult | Difficult |
| Slot 3 | Easy to Moderate | Moderate to Difficult | Moderate | Moderately Difficult |
Section-Wise Detailed Analysis
1. VARC Analysis (All Slots)
VARC remained the most balanced section in CAT 2025. RCs were inference-heavy, with moderate vocabulary and reasoning elements. Para-jumbles and odd-one-out questions required logic rather than grammar.
- RCs Difficulty: Moderate
- Para Summary: Moderate
- Para Jumbles: Moderate to Difficult (TITA heavy)
- Odd One Out: Easy to Moderate
2. DILR Analysis (All Slots)
The toughest section of CAT 2025. Sets were time-consuming, graph-based caselets were tricky, and logical arrangements were difficult.
- 2 LR-based sets
- 2 DI-heavy sets
- Long calculation-based questions
- Slot 2 DILR was the most difficult among all slots
3. QA Analysis (All Slots)
Arithmetic dominated the QA section. Algebra had moderate questions. Geometry was limited but not easy. TITA questions increased the complexity.
- Arithmetic: Moderate
- Algebra: Moderate to Difficult
- Geometry: Limited but tricky
- Numbers: Scattered but manageable
CAT 2025 Expected Score vs Percentile
| Percentile | Expected Score |
|---|---|
| 99.9+ | 102–108 |
| 99.5+ | 92–98 |
| 99+ | 85–90 |
| 98+ | 72–78 |
| 95+ | 58–64 |
| 90+ | 46–52 |
This range may shift slightly after the official response sheet and normalization between slots.
CAT 2025 Answer Key – Memory-Based Solutions
The official answer key will be released by IIM Ahmedabad (expected conducting body). Until then, MBABabuJi provides memory-based answer explanations collected from students across all three slots.
Note: These are not official answer keys. They help students estimate scores for percentile prediction.
CAT 2025 Expected Cut-Offs for Top IIMs
| IIM | Expected Percentile |
|---|---|
| IIM Ahmedabad | 99+ |
| IIM Bangalore | 99+ |
| IIM Calcutta | 99+ |
| IIM Lucknow | 97–98 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 97–98 |
| IIM Indore | 97–98 |
Predict Your CAT 2025 Percentile (Using MBABabuJi Tools)
MBABabuJi’s advanced percentile predictor uses data-backed algorithms and past-year trends to give an accurate percentile estimate. Candidates can compare scores from their slot with normalized weights to understand final percentile.
Conclusion
CAT 2025 was a moderately difficult exam with variations across the three slots, particularly in DILR and QA. This detailed analysis by MBABabuJi helps aspirants understand expected cut-offs, difficulty levels, and percentile predictions. Keep checking MBABabuJi for updated answer keys, official responses, and IIM admission tips.
