XAT 2026 Analysis

XAT 2026 Analysis

XAT 2026, conducted by XLRI Jamshedpur, was held on 4 January 2026 as a computer-based test for admission to its Business Management (BM) and Human Resource Management (HRM) programmes. The examination was conducted smoothly across centres, with no major technical issues reported. Nearly 1.42 lakh candidates registered for XAT 2026, making it the highest-registration XAT to date.

Structure of the Exam

There were no major changes in the structure of XAT 2026 compared to XAT 2025.

The examination was conducted in two parts (Part I and Part II), with 75 questions in Part I and 20 questions in Part II.

Part I comprised three sections:

  • Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation – 28 questions
  • Decision Making – 21 questions
  • Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning – 26 questions

Part II consisted of:

  • General Knowledge – 20 questions

Duration

  • 170 minutes for Part I
  • 10 minutes for Part II

Marking Scheme

  • All questions carried equal weightage of 1 mark each.
  • An incorrect answer attracted a negative marking of 0.25 marks.
  • A penalty of 0.10 marks per question was imposed for unattempted questions in Part I, beyond the first eight unattempted questions.

The General Knowledge section did not carry any negative marking, and the marks obtained in this section were not considered for shortlisting candidates for the GWPI stage. These scores will be used only at the final selection stage, after the initial screening.

Quantitative Aptitude and Data Interpretation

The section had 28 questions (19 from Quant, 9 from DI). This section’s difficulty level ranged from moderate to difficult, with several questions requiring careful interpretation and multiple concepts, making question selection critical. The distribution of questions was as below.

Topic No. of Qs Difficulty Level
Equations, Ratio, Proportion and Variation 1 Moderate
Special Equations 2 Moderate to Difficult
Profit and Loss 1 Moderate to Difficult
Time and Distance 3 Moderate to Difficult
Numbers 4 Moderate to Difficult
Geometry, Mensuration, Trigonometry 4 Moderate to Difficult
Progressions 1 Moderate to Difficult
Probability 1 Difficult
Functions 1 Difficult
Venn Diagram 1 Moderate to Difficult

Within Geometry, two questions stood out as particularly challenging. One question, based on the construction of pandals, proved difficult for a majority of test-takers, primarily due to the non-intuitive interpretation required to visualise the diagram correctly. Another question involving a combination of circles and a square was also very difficult. These questions acted as clear time traps for candidates who attempted to solve them.

Other topics such as Special Equations, Profit and Loss, Progressions, and Venn Diagrams appeared in limited numbers but were far from straightforward. Probability and Functions, with one question each, were difficult.

Overall, the Quant section rewarded candidates who could identify solvable questions quickly and avoid getting stuck on deceptively complex problems.

Data Interpretation Sets

There were three Data Interpretation sets of three questions each, all of which required sustained concentration and careful handling of data.

  • DI Set 1 (Brijbhushan – microfinancier): This was a caselet-based set involving incomplete information. While it was not easy by itself, it emerged as the most approachable DI set of the three for many candidates.
  • DI Set 2 (Trading firm – traders on probation): This was the toughest set in the section. It involved a table with multiple variables and interlinked conditions, making it dense and time-consuming. In terms of complexity and mental drain, this set was comparable to some of the tougher Data Interpretation sets seen in CAT’s DILR section.
  • DI Set 3 (Light Chemicals – employees across cities and departments): Featured a sunburst chart, a representation format that has appeared in CAT few years ago. Students familiar with T.I.M.E.’s material would have encountered such sets as part of their preparation. However, this set was significantly tougher than the CAT counterpart, involving six variables, incomplete information, and repetitive calculations. Solving the questions required working through multiple layers without knowing all variable values upfront, making it highly time-intensive.
Type Description No. of Qs Difficulty Level
Caselet Brijbushan the microfinancier 3 Moderate to Difficult
Reasoning-based DI + Table Trading firm, traders on probation 3 Difficult to Very Difficult
Sunburst Chart Light Chemicals – Employees across cities and departments 3 Moderate to Difficult

The QA–DI section demanded disciplined question selection, and the ability to abandon high-effort questions at the right time.

Decision Making

The Decision Making (DM) section consisted of 21 questions, spread across seven caselets with three questions each, in line with the established XAT pattern. Overall, the section was easy to moderate and more straightforward than some of the recent XAT papers, making it a potentially high-scoring section for well-prepared candidates. The caselets were drawn from familiar managerial and ethical contexts, many of which candidates are typically exposed to during XAT preparation.

Most caselets were clearly worded, with limited ambiguity in the core issue. While a few options were closely spaced, extreme or impulsive choices were generally easy to eliminate. Unlike some earlier XAT papers, there were fewer traps based on moral absolutism or hidden information, and the questions did not demand excessive rereading of the caselets.

Description of sets No. of Qs
Case Study Competition - B-School group dynamics 3
Fintech Firm – New Recruit – Cryptocurrency aspirations 3
FMCG family business – Gen Z vs. seniors 3
B-School committees – B. Com Graduate troubles 3
Investment Banker Screwvala turns author 3
Selvam Tutorials – HR Issues 3
Fine Elements – Candidate Hiring – Head of Talent Acquisition vs line manager 3

Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning

The Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning (VA&LR) section consisted of 26 questions, with a strong emphasis on Reading Comprehension, which accounted for 15 questions. The remaining questions were drawn from a mix of verbal ability and critical reasoning areas, in line with XAT’s traditional design.

Question Composition

The section included:

  • Reading Comprehension – 15 questions (across 5 passages)
  • Fill in the Blanks (4 blanks) – 1 question
  • Cartoon-based question – 1 question
  • Para Jumbles – 2 questions
  • Grammar (Correct/Incorrect) – 2 questions
  • Conclusions – 2 questions
  • Poem-based questions – 2 questions
  • Critical Reasoning (Best contradicts) – 1 question

This composition required candidates to demonstrate reading depth, interpretative ability, and logical consistency, rather than surface-level verbal skills.

RC Passages Analysis

Topic Word Count (Approx.) Readability
Discovery of Nuclear Fission 430 Easy-Moderate
Self-esteem’s role in experiencing comparison 530 Moderate
Troll’s practices – exploitability, anonymity 330 Moderate
Post-WW2 generation of liberal democratic leaders 410 Moderate-Difficult
Mutual understanding, negotiation of meaning 360 Difficult

While most passages were readable, the questions often required careful inference and sensitivity to nuance. The passage on mutual understanding and negotiation of meaning stood out as the most challenging, owing to its abstract argumentation and closely worded options.

The poem-based questions, drawn from Old Newspapers by Arun Kolatkar, were among the most difficult non-RC questions in the section. The poem’s understated tone required careful interpretation, and the questions tested subtle shifts in perspective rather than surface meaning, making them particularly challenging for many candidates.

The cartoon-based question, “He tells it like it is” by Paul Noth, was comparatively more straightforward, provided candidates correctly identified the central irony and avoided over-interpretation.

Other non-RC questions were largely standard in nature.

Part 2: General Knowledge

The GK section had a mix of questions from various areas including Science & Technology, Sports, business, etc., from both current events (predominantly) and static GK. The split of the questions in this section was as below:

Topic Current affairs Static GK
Science and Technology 4 1
Business Terminology 2 0
Sports 2 0
Geography 1 0
Culture 1 1
Awards and Prizes 1 0
Persons In News 2 0
Indian Economy 1 0
Miscellaneous 2 1

This section is not used for shortlisting for the 2nd phase. It is used during final selection. Hence, there would be no cutoff requirement.

XAT 2025 Cutoffs

The official data announced for last year's XAT is as below:

Category Gender BM (Percentile) HRM (Percentile)
VA DM QA TOTAL VA DM QA TOTAL
Engineer/Tech Male 84 84 88 96 90 87 83 95
Engineer/Tech Female 80 80 82 91 85 80 73 90
Non-Engineer Male 84 84 88 96 90 87 76 93
Non-Engineer Female 80 80 82 91 85 80 68 87

Final Verdict

As this year’s paper is more difficult compared to that of the last year, the cut-offs are expected to come down slightly. The expected percentage score would be as below at 90, 95 and 99 percentile ranges.

Percentile Expected Score
90 percentile 25-27
95 percentile 28-30
99 percentile 34-38