CMAT Previous Year Question Papers for 2027 Preparation

CMAT previous year papers bring together calculation, reasoning, reading and business-awareness questions in one test. Start with a recent paper to see how the five sections share the total marks, then use older papers for extra questions in the subjects you find difficult.

The downloads below are organised by year and shift. Question paper opens the questions; Solutions opens the matching answers. For a paper with several sets, keep the set name or question text with your answer record. Option numbers can change when the same question is reordered.

For 2027 preparation, the latest confirmed exam structure is the 2026 pattern: 100 questions, 400 marks and 180 minutes. The paper is in English. The CMAT syllabus explains the five sections in more detail.

CMAT 2025 Question Papers: Shift 1 and Shift 2

The 25 January 2025 papers are available for both shifts. In Shift 1, the Quantitative Techniques questions include data interpretation, fractional ratios, profit and loss, and comparisons of numerical expressions. These tasks test different skills: reading the correct base in a chart is not the same as choosing an algebraic shortcut.

For example, a placement chart may give one distribution for all students and another for placed students. A percentage for one specialisation needs the number placed in that specialisation divided by its total students, not the overall placement percentage. Work out the two counts before dividing.

The two shifts give you separate sets of questions. Solve one without opening its solutions, and keep the other for a fresh attempt. In review, separate a wrong concept from a wrong calculation: repeatedly applying the wrong percentage base needs a different fix from a single arithmetic slip.

In Shift 2's opening data-interpretation set, use the quantities and store names printed in the question. Changing a chart value or replacing one store with another to fit an option is not a valid solution.

General Awareness questions refer to their original exam year. An answer about an office-holder, award or recent event must be read in that context rather than treated as current affairs for 2027.

CMAT 2024 Question Papers: May 15 Shifts

The 2024 downloads cover the morning and afternoon shifts on 15 May. The morning paper is labelled Shift 1, Set 2; the afternoon paper is Shift 2, Set 3. Use those identities when matching a question with its solution.

The papers contain five sections. In a computer-generated paper, a shared passage or chart can appear as one parent item with several numbered questions below it. Count the questions you must answer, not just the parent headings. A section header showing fewer parent items does not automatically mean fewer marked questions.

The 2024 sets are useful for checking whether a method transfers to a different question. After reviewing a ratio or reasoning problem in one shift, attempt a related problem from the other shift without looking at the answer. The CMAT preparation guide covers section-wise practice alongside full papers.

CMAT 2023 Memory-Based Question Papers

The 4 May 2023 collection includes memory-based questions from Shift 1 and Shift 2. Shift 1 includes number properties, averages and selection-based problems. Shift 2 includes coding, business terms and General Awareness questions.

Treat a recalled question with missing information as incomplete. For example, an award question needs the event and year to have a definite answer. Use the fully stated questions for practice and keep the original exam year with current-affairs answers.

Older CMAT Papers: What to Keep in Mind

Older papers add questions for Quantitative Techniques, Logical Reasoning, Language Comprehension and General Awareness. The 2018 collection is divided by subject and session, so a single subject download is a sectional exercise rather than a complete exam.

Use the older questions for the skill being tested, but use the latest confirmed section structure for a full-length practice attempt. In particular, the current five-section structure gives Innovation and Entrepreneurship the same 80 marks as every other section. Do not leave that section out because an older paper has a different arrangement.

For an older General Awareness question, distinguish a lasting fact from a dated one. A geography concept can remain useful; a question about that year's award winner is a historical question. Build current-affairs revision separately.

CMAT Paper Pattern and Marking Scheme

The 2026 paper followed this structure. These figures provide the reference for practice until the 2027 pattern is announced.

Each correct answer earned 4 marks, each incorrect answer lost 1 mark, and an unanswered question earned zero. For ordinary questions, raw score = 4 × correct answers − incorrect answers.

For example, 68 correct answers, 22 wrong answers and 10 unanswered questions give 250 out of 400: 272 minus 22. That is 62.5% of the maximum marks, not a 62.5 percentile. Percentile depends on the scores of other candidates.

Final-key decisions can change the calculation. Under the 2026 rules, a question dropped for a technical error carried full marks for every candidate, whether attempted or not. Where more than one option was accepted after revision, credit followed the revised correct options.

How to Review a CMAT Paper

Review the five sections separately before comparing total scores. Two attempts can both score 250 while exposing very different gaps: one may have too many wrong reasoning answers, while the other may leave most Quant questions unanswered.

For a fresh full-length paper, use a single 180-minute sitting. For a subject-only collection, record accuracy within that subject instead of converting its score into a full-exam percentile. If you have already seen the answers, keep that attempt as revision rather than comparing it directly with an unseen paper.

The original practice sets below let you attempt a few of these skills and review the explanation after submission. They report accuracy for that set; the paper downloads remain separate.