The National Testing Agency (NTA) successfully conducted the Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) 2026 on January 25, 2026, for admission to management programmes in the Academic Session 2026–27. CMAT is a national-level entrance examination that evaluates candidates across key sections such as Quantitative Techniques, Logical Reasoning, Language Comprehension, and General Awareness. Scores obtained in CMAT 2026 will be accepted by participating institutes across India for MBA and PGDM admissions.
Based on the overall difficulty level of the exam and previous years’ trends, the expected CMAT 2026 cutoff has been released to help candidates assess their chances of progressing to the next stage of the admission process. Candidates scoring below the prescribed cutoff may not be shortlisted for further rounds, such as group discussion or personal interview.
Expected cutoff
As per expectations aligned with the 2023 cutoff trends, the category-wise cutoff percentile is likely to remain as follows: Unreserved (UR): 95 percentile; OBC/SC/ST: 75 percentile; and PwD: 75 percentile.
Out of a total of 400 marks, candidates scoring between 251 and 340 are expected to fall within the 95 to 99 percentile range. A 99 percentile may correspond to approximately 300 marks, while a 95 percentile may require around 270 marks.
Factors determining cutoff
Several factors influence CMAT cutoff marks, including the number of test-takers, the difficulty level of the exam, the number of available seats, and the overall performance of candidates. A higher number of applicants or better overall performance generally results in a higher cutoff, whereas increased difficulty or more vacancies may lower it.