Search for “CAT syllabus” and you will find long, confident topic lists. None of them is official. Here is how to read those lists sensibly and decide what to study first. This guide to the CAT syllabus 2026 walks through each section, shows a short worked example of the kind of thinking each one rewards, and ends with a study order you can follow.
First, understand what “syllabus” means
CAT does not publish a fixed, chapter-by-chapter official syllabus. Topic lists circulating online are reconstructions from past papers. Treat them as preparation maps, not guarantees of what the next paper must contain.
That has a practical consequence. You are not trying to tick off every chapter in a list; you are trying to build the skills that recent papers have rewarded: reading closely, organising information, and reasoning with numbers.
The exam pattern in recent years
The syllabus makes more sense once you know the container it fits into. In the 2024 and 2025 papers, CAT followed this broad pattern:
| Section | Order | Time | Approximate questions | What dominates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VARC | First | 40 minutes | About 24 | Reading comprehension passages |
| DILR | Second | 40 minutes | About 22 | Sets of 4–6 questions on a shared scenario |
| QA | Third | 40 minutes | About 22 | Arithmetic and algebra, with geometry and number systems |
MCQs carry +3 for a correct answer and −1 for a wrong one; TITA (type-in-the-answer) questions carry no negative marking. Patterns can change from year to year, so confirm the latest details on the official website, iimcat.ac.in. Our CAT exam guide summarises the format section by section.
VARC: comprehension before vocabulary lists
Prepare for reading comprehension through central idea, inference, author attitude, argument structure and detail questions. Verbal ability practice can include paragraph summaries, sentence ordering and identifying an out-of-place sentence. Read varied subjects: economics, philosophy, science and social issues.
Topics at a glance
| Area | Question types to practise |
|---|---|
| Reading comprehension | Main idea, inference, author's tone, function of a paragraph, strengthen/weaken, specific detail |
| Para jumbles | Ordering four or five sentences into a coherent paragraph (often TITA) |
| Paragraph summary | Choosing the option that captures the core point without distortion |
| Odd sentence out | Finding the sentence that does not belong in an otherwise coherent set |
A short example
Read this original paragraph:
Cities have long been praised as engines of innovation, and the usual explanation is density: put enough people close together and ideas collide. Yet density alone is a poor predictor. Some of the most crowded cities in history produced little lasting invention, while modest towns with dense networks of guilds, libraries and coffee houses produced a great deal. What seems to matter is not how many people share a street but how many institutions allow strangers to exchange knowledge on trusted terms. Density supplies the opportunity; institutions decide whether it is used.
The author would most likely agree that:
- Increasing a city's population will reliably increase its rate of innovation.
- Since innovation depends on institutions, population density is irrelevant.
- A crowded city with few forums for trusted exchange may innovate less than its size suggests.
- Coffee houses were the main source of innovation in modest towns.
The answer is 3. Option 1 contradicts the passage. Option 2 is too extreme: the author says density "supplies the opportunity", so it is not irrelevant. Option 4 distorts a single example into a general claim. Recognising these trap types (contradiction, extreme language, distortion) is a large part of RC accuracy. For more, see our reading comprehension strategy, and try a full RC passage, a para jumble and a summary question.
DILR: learn to represent information
Practise arrangements, scheduling, grouping, distribution, rankings, games, tables, charts and caselets. The deeper skill is converting a long paragraph into a compact diagram, table or set of constraints. Different-looking puzzles often share the same underlying logic.
Common set families
| Family | Typical representation |
|---|---|
| Linear and circular arrangements | A row or circle of slots |
| Scheduling and selection | A grid of people against days or roles |
| Distribution and grouping | A table of items against groups, with row and column totals |
| Tournaments and games | A results matrix or bracket |
| Data tables and charts | Derived columns: differences, ratios, totals |
A small example
Four people, P, Q, R and S, sit in seats 1 to 4, numbered from the left. Q is not at either end. R sits immediately to the right of Q. P is not in seat 1. Who must be in seat 1?
Q can only be in seat 2 or 3.
- If Q is in seat 3, R is in seat 4. P and S fill seats 1 and 2; P cannot be in seat 1, so the order is S, P, Q, R.
- If Q is in seat 2, R is in seat 3. P and S fill seats 1 and 4; again P cannot be in seat 1, so the order is S, Q, R, P.
Two arrangements survive, and S is in seat 1 in both. The question is answerable even though the full arrangement is not fixed. Branching on the most restricted person and asking what is common to all cases are habits that transfer to much harder sets. Practise with a linear arrangement set, a circular arrangement set and a data table set.
QA: build from arithmetic outward
Arithmetic topics include ratios, percentages, averages, profit and loss, mixtures, time and work, and speed-distance. Add algebra, number systems, geometry and selected counting/probability concepts. Focus on relationships and shortcuts that you can justify, not formula memorisation alone.
Topic map
| Area | Topics |
|---|---|
| Arithmetic | Percentages, profit and loss, ratio and proportion, averages, mixtures, interest, time and work, time-speed-distance |
| Algebra | Linear equations, quadratics, inequalities, functions, logarithms and indices, progressions |
| Number systems | Divisibility, remainders, factors, HCF and LCM |
| Geometry and mensuration | Triangles, circles and polygons, coordinate geometry, areas and volumes |
| Modern maths | Permutations and combinations, probability, sets and Venn diagrams |
A worked example
A can finish a job in 10 days and B in 15 days. How long do they take together?
Choose a total amount of work that both numbers divide: the LCM of 10 and 15 is 30 units. A does 30 ÷ 10 = 3 units a day; B does 30 ÷ 15 = 2 units a day. Together they do 5 units a day, so the job takes 30 ÷ 5 = 6 days. The same result comes from 1/10 + 1/15 = 5/30 = 1/6, but the units method extends cleanly to harder variants, such as one worker leaving midway. That is what "a shortcut you can justify" looks like. For more practice, try an arithmetic question set and read how to improve your CAT Quant score.
How to prioritise
Start with foundational concepts that support many later questions. Track accuracy and solving time by topic, then revisit areas with high error rates. Use previous-year papers to calibrate difficulty, and check the official mock for interface and question formats.
A sensible order for most aspirants:
- Start in parallel: daily reading for VARC, arithmetic for QA and basic arrangements for DILR.
- Next: algebra and number systems in QA; distribution, scheduling and table-based sets in DILR; para jumbles and summaries in VARC.
- Then: geometry and modern maths in QA; games, tournaments and mixed caselets in DILR.
- Throughout: sectional tests, so that every topic is eventually practised under the 40-minute timer.
Adjust this to your own diagnostic. If geometry is already a strength, move it later and spend the time where you lose marks. Our CAT 2026 preparation roadmap shows how to turn this order into a weekly plan.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an official CAT syllabus for 2026?
No. The conducting IIM publishes the exam format and section names, but not a chapter-wise syllabus. The topic lists you see online, including this one, are drawn from past papers. Check iimcat.ac.in for official notices.
What level of maths does CAT Quant need?
Most Quant questions build on school mathematics, with arithmetic and algebra forming the core. A few topics, such as progressions, logarithms and permutations and combinations, go a little beyond the basics. The difficulty comes from combining ideas under time pressure rather than from advanced theory.
Does CAT test vocabulary or grammar directly?
In recent papers, verbal ability has centred on para jumbles, summaries and odd-sentence-out questions rather than standalone vocabulary or grammar questions. A good vocabulary still helps you read faster and more accurately, so build it through reading rather than word lists.
Which section should I start with?
Start all three together, in small daily doses. Because each section has its own fixed 40-minute timer, you cannot compensate for a weak section with a strong one, so neglecting any section early tends to cost you later.
Try this on Pareto Academy
Browse free VARC, DILR and Quant questions with full solutions, and keep the CAT formula sheet open while you work through arithmetic.