Cat Score is Valid for How Many Years?

Common Admission Test (CAT)

Exam Date
30th November, 2025

Ridhima Jindal
Ridhima Jindal

Table of Content

Nearly the most common question asked by the CAT aspirants is: "How long is the CAT score valid?" The answer is very straightforward, the CAT score is valid for one year. Let's be more precise, though: the score of a particular year's CAT exam is valid for admissions in the subsequent academic session. For instance, CAT 2025 score will be valid for admissions only for the 2026-27 academic session.

Read more → CAT exam Details

Common Admission Test, or CAT, is a very competitive MBA entrance exam in India conducted every year by Indian Institutes of Management, or IIMs. Two lakh students appear for the CAT exam each year in hopes of getting into the best B-schools, like the high-stakes IIMs, FMS, SPJIMR, MDI, etc.

Then the score expires, and the candidate has to appear for the CAT test once more in case they make future applications. Compared to usual tests like the GMAT or GRE, whose validity lasts for several years, that of the CAT score lasts only up to the current admission year, so the urgency to apply is the need of the hour. Aspirants are requested to plan their MBA admissions in advance to achieve the best CAT mark prior to the validity period.

Recommended: How Many Attempts Can I Give for CAT Exam?

CAT Exam Score Validity Highlights

  • CAT score is valid for 1 year only
  • Valid for the academic session immediately after the exam year
  • Example: CAT 2025 score is valid for 2026–27 admissions
  • Applicable to all IIMs and CAT-accepting institutes
  • Cannot be used for admissions in future years
  • Candidates must reappear for CAT if applying again next year
  • CAT is not valid like GMAT/GRE, which have multi-year validity

CAT Score Validity for Top IIMs and Non IIMs

The following table includes all the popular colleges accepting CAT and college-wise CAT exam score validity as well.

CAT Colleges

CAT Score Validity

IIM Ahmedabad

1 year

IIM Bangalore

1 year

IIM Calcutta

1 year

IIM Lucknow

1 year

IIM Indore

1 year

IIM Kozhikode

1 year

IIM Amritsar

1 year

IIM Nagpur

1 year

IIM Sambalpur

1 year

IIM Trichy

1 year

IIM Raipur

1 year

IIM Ranchi

1 year

IIM Vizag

1 year

IIM Udaipur

1 year

IIM Bodh Gaya

1 year

IIM Shillong

1 year

IIM Sirmaur

1 year

IIM Rohtak

1 year

IIM Mumbai

1 year

FMS (Faculty of Management Studies)

1 year

BITSOM

1 year

DMS, IIT Delhi

1 year

Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA), Chennai

1 year

SJMSOM, IIT Bombay

1 year

Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziabad

1 year

MDI Gurgaon

1 year

National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE), Mumbai

1 year

SPJIMR

1 year

XIMB (Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar)

1 year

Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras

1 year

T.A. Pai Management Institute (TAPMI), Manipal

1 year

CAT Validity Comparison With Other Management Entrance Exams

Students can check out the following table to know other management entrance exams validity along with CAT’s.

Exam Name

Conducting Body

Score Validity

CAT (Common Admission Test)

IIMs

1 year

XAT (Xavier Aptitude Test)

XLRI

1 year

GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test)

GMAC

5 years

GRE (Graduate Record Examination)

ETS

5 years

NMAT by GMAC

GMAC

1 year

MAT (Management Aptitude Test)

AIMA

1 year

CMAT (Common Management Admission Test)

NTA

1 year

IIFT MBA Entrance Test

NTA (on behalf of IIFT)

1 year

SNAP (Symbiosis National Aptitude Test)

Symbiosis International (SIU)

1 year

ATMA (AIMS Test for Management Admissions)

AIMS

1 year

TISSNET (Tata Institute of Social Sciences)

TISS (now discontinued)

1 year (when conducted)

Why CAT Score Validity Matters?

The CAT score validity matters for various reasons mentioned below. Students can get a better idea about the importance of their CAT exam attempt through the following.

1. Application Timing & Strategy

The expiration of your exam score determines when to apply for admission. These exams have a one-year expiration, so if you take a test like CAT, XAT, and SNAP and don't act, the only option is to take that exam again.

2. Flexibility for Gap-Year or Working Candidates

Tests like GMAT (5 years) and GRE (5 years) are more flexible because they have a multi-year validity. This is particularly true for those students not applying immediately, for example, because of a personal or professional situation, the delaying of admissions means future action still includes the score.

3. Financial Costs

The financial costs of retaking an exam is substantial. In fact, with one-year validity, there are CAT registration fees, coaching, and preparation all to be included in the total cost of admission, if you are not successful in your first attempt.

4. Mental Health & Performance Pressure

One-year validity means the time-limited pressure of your scholarship can impose that you have to do things correctly the first time. Multi-year exams reduce time-based performance pressure to allow candidates to take the exam again with better preparation if required.

5. International vs. Domestic Aims

For students focused on global business schools, they prefer international tests like GMAT and GRE, because they have longer validity internationally. Students targeting Indian institutions exclusively prefer a one-year window, because of their longer validity internationally. Students focused solely on Indian institutes often find a one-year window aligns with domestic admission cycles.

Recommended: CAT Exam Success Rate: How Many Students Clear CAT Exam Every Year?

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