CMAT 2026: Exam Date (25 Jan), Admit Card (20 Jan), Eligibility, Syllabus, and More

The registration of CMAT 2026 has closed. Applicants will be able to download the admit card from 20th January 2026. The CMAT 2026 exam is scheduled to be held on 25th January 2026 in 2 shifts.

The Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) is a National level entrance test. It is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) once a year for admissions in the Management programs to the qualifying students.

This article comprises information about NTA CMAT 2026 exam, its eligibility criteria, the details about registration / application, the exam syllabus, paper pattern, exam centres, and other important aspects.

The CMAT 2026 exam is an online Computer-based Test for the students aspiring to take admissions in Management courses like MBA & PGDM in the top Institutes / Universities. The conducting body of the exam is NTA i.e., National Testing Agency.

The CMAT exam 2026 will be conducted in two sessions. The exam scores are recognised by many top Business Schools, Institutions, and Universities in India. Different subjects and sections included in the CMAT syllabus & exam pattern evaluate the candidates on the basis of General Knowledge & Awareness, Language & Communication, Logical Reasoning & Quantitative Techniques, Entrepreneurship, etc.

Below-given table consists of the CMAT Exam 2026 highlights:

The final dates related to the exam are yet to be released by the authorities. Refer to the below-given table to know the important tentative dates regarding the CMAT exam:

The eligibility criteria of the CMAT states which candidates can appear for the exam including their required academic qualification, age, nationality, etc.

Students can check the CMAT 2026 Eligibility Criteria listed below:

• Educational Qualification: Candidates must hold a Bachelor’s degree in any discipline.
• Nationality: To register for CMAT 2026, the candidate must be an Indian National.
• Age Limit: There is no minimum or maximum age limit to apply for the exam.

* Candidates appearing for their final year of UG degrees and whose results will be announced before the academic year 2026-27 are also eligible to apply for CMAT exam 2026.

* No criteria for minimum achieved marks in the educational qualification required.

Check: CMAT Eligibility Criteria 2026

The candidates must complete the exam registration / application before proceeding to start the preparation of CMAT 2026. First, the students must be aware of the important dates of the CMAT 2026 Registration along with the exam related events. The CMAT registration / application forms were released on 17th October 2025.

The steps to register / apply for CMAT exam 2026 are listed below:

• Visit the official website of CMAT.
• Look for the option ‘Registration link for CMAT 2026’ and click on the same.
• To create a login ID by entering personal details & password, select the ‘New Registration’ option.
• The credentials will be shared on your mail. Login on the official ID with the received ID & password.
• Fill the Registration Form with required details and upload necessary documents.
• Make the applicable payment through Debit card / Net Banking / Credit card.

* During the registration process, the candidates need to choose four exam centres while filling the form. Later on, they will be allotted with one appropriate centre from the preferred options.

Check: CMAT Registration 2026

CMAT Syllabus 2026 comprises topics from different areas. There are five sections / subjects in the syllabus which include various sub-topics to judge the abilities of the candidate.

Students are required to go through the detailed syllabus to enhance their chances of passing CMAT exam 2026. Refer to the below-given table to understand what topics are included in the CMAT 2026 Syllabus:

Check: CMAT Syllabus 2026

The CMAT Exam Pattern 2026 comprises all MCQs for 5 sections included in the exam. There will be a total of 100 questions for which the candidates will get 180 minutes i.e., 3 hours to complete. Candidates must note that 4 marks will be awarded for each correct answer and there will be negative marking of -1 for each incorrect answer. Moreover, there will be no negative marking for unattempted questions.

The following table contains information about the exam pattern of CMAT 2026 including the sections, number of questions, weightage, etc.

Check: CMAT Exam Pattern 2026

The CMAT Admit Card 2026 will likely be available on the official website for download from 20^th January 2026. It is compulsory for the appearing candidates to carry the admit card on the actual exam day that contains crucial information like student’s name, test centre, exam timings, guidelines to follow, etc.

* In case of any discrepancy in the information mentioned in the admit card, students can get in touch with the concerned authorities.

The candidates are required to choose 4 exam centres during the registration process. Considering the availability of exam centres and other relevant factors, the authorities will allot one centre from the listed preferences.

The state-wise list of CMAT Exam Centre 2026 is given in the table below:

Students who desire to obtain excellent results in the entrance test are suggested to start practicing the CMAT Previous Year Question Papers. By regularly solving the previously asked questions, candidates can get an idea about the type of questions asked, important topics, marking pattern, and so on.

Furthermore, relying on the last year papers will assist the aspirants in gaining confidence in attempting the test and in increasing their speed of answering the questions.

The exam conducting authority will release the CMAT Answer Key 2026 on its official website i.e., ‘exams.nta.ac.in/CMAT’ for 2-3 days. Candidates can cross check their recorded responses along with the question papers by logging in using their Application Number & Password / Date of Birth.

If there is any discrepancy, candidates can submit their challenges to the answer key. For each question, Rs. 200/- has to be paid by the students via Credit Card / Debit Card / Net Banking / UPI. Additionally, the authorities will not accept the challenge without the receipt of the processing fee.

* If a challenge made by the students is correct then in such a case, the Answer Key of the CMAT 2026 will be revised for all the candidates & the result will be prepared accordingly.

The CMAT Results 2026 will probably be announced on the official website of NTA (conducting authority) around 3 weeks after the entrance test. Students will be able to download their respective results in the form of scorecards.

Candidates must know that the results will be based on the final answer keys and will comprise the raw (actual) marks secured by them.

CMAT Cut Off 2026 is the minimum percentile / score that is required for admission in the respective Management programs. The cut-off marks are released individually by the participating Institutions & the students must have secured the minimum qualifying marks or above in order to get admission in the desired course.

The exam conducting authority i.e., NTA does not conduct the counselling for admission in the Management courses. The CMAT Counselling 2026 will be done individually by the participating Institutes. The selection process will involve considering the CMAT 2026 scores of the candidates & their performance in the Group Discussion (GD) & Personal Interview (PI), depending on the educational Institutions.

There are various Institutes / Universities which accept CMAT scores and take admissions on its basis for their Management programmes. Candidates must note that every Institute has its own criteria of admission and the cut-off list released by the different Institutes can vary. As per the separate cut-off lists of colleges, their CMAT accepting score / percentile can be different.

To explore some of the top CMAT Accepting Colleges 2026, refer to the list given-below:

• Xavier Business School (XBS), Kolkata
• Goa Institute of Management (GIM), North Goa
• NL Dalmia Institute of Management Studies & Research (NLDIMSR), Mumbai
• SDM Institute for Management Development (SDMIMD), Mysore
• Great Lakes Institute of Management (GLIM), Gurgaon
• Jaipuria Institute of Management (JIM), Noida
• Acharya Bangalore B-School (ABBS), Bangalore
• K J Somaiya Institute of Management, Mumbai
• SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST), Chennai
• Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS), Mumbai
• Prin. L. N. Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research (We School), Mumbai

Check: Colleges Accepting CMAT