Home | XAT 2026 Exam Date, Application, Eligibility, Pattern

XAT 2026 Exam Date, Application, Eligibility, Pattern

XAT 2026 Exam Update

The XAT 2026 exam is set to take place on January 4, 2026. The registrations for the exam are ongoing, which started on July 10, 2025, and candidates can apply online by visiting https://xatonline.in/.
 
The deadline to register for the XAT 2026 exam is December 5, 2025. The exam will take place in 70+ cities in India in a computer-based mode. In the XAT 2026 application form, candidates can choose the city in which they would like to take the test.
 
There are two correction windows for the XAT exam in 2026: The first one took place from October 14–16, 2025, and the second one is currently taking place from November 25–27, 2025. The second window is the last chance.
 
Candidates who have already registered may examine and make changes in their forms between November 25, 2025, and November 27, 2025, at 9 A.M., which ends today. Candidates can modify their academic and personal information, papers, employment experience, statement, and test city choices.
 
This year, the XAT test has been shortened to 180 minutes, which is divided into two sections (170 minutes for the primary section and 10 minutes for the GK section), and the Analytical Essay Writing section has been eliminated from the main exam to be conducted later during the GD/PI stage.
 
In addition, there are now 20 questions instead of 25 in the GK section (12 Current Affairs and 8 Static GK). The total number of questions in the exam will be 95, which was reduced from 101 in 2025.
 
Section-wise breakdown:
 
 
The exam will be supervised by XLRI Jamshedpur for admission to over 800 colleges on a pan-India basis. The official mock tests for exam preparation were released on multiple occasions from September 27-28, from October 29 to November 1, and from November 19 to 20, 2025. The last date to register for the mock tests was November 16, 2025.
 
The formal XAT 2026 notification was released on July 10, 2025, marking the commencement of the registration process. The XAT 2026 admit cards will be released on December 20, 2025, tentatively. Along with additional information, such as the registration procedure, application cost, and required documents, candidates can apply for admission to MBA programs on the official website at xatonline.com.
 

XAT 2026 Notification

The official XAT 2026 notification, which contained all the pertinent details, including the XAT 2026 registration dates, XAT eligibility criteria, XAT 2026 exam dates, XAT 2026 syllabus, exam cost, and more, was published on July 10, 2025.
 
The XAT 2026 registration period began on July 10, 2025, and is scheduled to end on December 5, 2025 with the option to extend it is highly unexpected, according to the XAT 2026 notification.
 
The XAT 2026 exam date is January 4, 2026. This test is essential for admission to XLRI and other 800+ Indian MBA colleges that accept XAT scores
 

XAT 2026 Notification: Crucial Exam Dates

On its official website, XLRI announced the dates for XAT 2026. For your reference, the following table lists the schedule and significant dates of XAT 2026 in accordance with the official notification issued by XLRI:
 
XAT 2026 Events XAT 2026 Dates
XAT 2026 registration starts July 10, 2025
Official XAT Mock Test 2026
27-Sep-2025 to 28-Sep-2025
29-Oct-2025 to 01-Nov-2025
19-Nov-2025 to 20-Nov-2025
Mock Test Registration Deadline November, 16, 2025
XAT Form Correction 2026
Oct-14-2025 to Oct-16-2025
25-Nov-2025 to 27-Nov-2025
XAT 2026 Registration Last Date December 05, 2025
Release of XAT admit card 2026 December 20, 2025
XAT exam 2026 January 04, 2026
XAT 2026 answer key release and challenge Second week of January 2026
XAT 2026 result announcement Third week of January, 2026
 
 

XAT Eligibility Criteria

To make an informed decision about your ability to take the XAT 2026 Exam, see the XAT Eligibility Criteria 2026.
 
 
The deadline for completing the XAT 2026 application form is December 5, 2025, thus candidates who meet all of the aforementioned eligibility requirements should do so as soon as possible.
 

XAT 2026 Registration Process

The XAT 2026 exam is scheduled on January 4, 2026, and typically takes place during a single time slot during the day. The detailed XAT 2026 Registration Process is provided below; to prevent any last-minute trouble, all serious XAT applicants must act quickly and complete the XAT registration form:
 
XAT Registration Steps
XAT 2026 Registration Procedure
Visit the official website of XAT 2026
All new applicants for XAT 2026 are required to click on the 'Registration' button on the official website (https://www.xatonline.in/).
Register and enter your Personal Details.
To continue with the XAT 2026 application form, enter your information and supply the relevant requirements to create a user ID and password.
After completing the process, XLRI will send you a verification email.
You will be taken to the XAT application form 2026 after clicking on the link.
Verify Your Email ID
To log in and complete the XAT application form, candidates need to confirm their email address and obtain their XAT ID.
Provide your information and scan the documents
You need to fill in the following details:
Personal information
Educational qualifications
Work experience after graduation
Choice of XLRI PGDM programs
Preferred test cities
Before beginning the scanning process, make sure you have all of your documents close at hand and thoroughly read the instructions.
Remit the application fee online and register successfully
Online payment methods for registration include credit/debit cards, UPI, and net banking.
You can successfully register for the exam after making the payment.
Download the application form and print it out for future reference
Make sure you print and save the application.
Your XAT admission card will be downloaded using the enrolment ID you provided on the form.
 
Candidates can select up to 6 cities while filling out the XAT 2026 application form.
 

XAT 2026 Registration Fee

The basic XAT 2026 registration fee is INR 2200, which is the same as in 2025. Indian candidates must pay an extra INR 200 for each XLRI program they apply to. Indian candidates must pay INR 2500 for the PGDM (GM) program through GMAT/GRE, whereas NRI/Foreign/PIO/OCI candidates must pay INR 5000.
 
 

XAT Exam Pattern 2026

The XAT exam pattern was changed back in the 2025 exam. There will be no essay writing in accordance with the most recent XAT exam format. Check out the highlights of XLRI's 2026 XAT exam format below:
 
XAT Exam Structure
Details
Exam mode
Computer-Based Test
Exam sections
Part 1: Decision Making, Verbal & Logical Ability and Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation (170 minutes)
Part 2: General Knowledge (10 minutes)
Duration of exam
180 minutes
Number of questions
95
Total marks
95
Question Type
MCQ
Number of answer choices
Five
XAT marking scheme
+1 mark for correct answer
- 0.25 marks for incorrect answer
- 0.10 marks for more than 8 un-attempted questions
No negative marking in the GK section
 

The XAT syllabus 2026

Quantitative ability, data interpretation, verbal and logical ability, and general knowledge are all included in the XAT syllabus 2026. Decision-making is a special area of XAT. The primary subjects of the XAT syllabus 2026 are listed below:
 
XAT Sections
XAT Topics
Verbal and Logical Ability
Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, Analogy, Para Jumble, Grammar, Critical Reasoning, Fill in the Blanks
Decision Making
Seating Arrangement, Logical Sequencing, Assumptions, Premises, Conclusions, etc.
Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation
Tables and Caselets, Percentage, Surds and Indices, Algebra, Mensuration, Bar Diagrams, Pie Charts, etc.
General Knowledge
Science, Economy, Business, Politics, Static GK, Sports, Prize and Award, World, Government, Constitution of India, etc.
 

XAT Admit Card 2026

You can obtain the XAT 2026 admit card from the official XAT website starting from December 20, 2025, tentatively. The instructions for downloading the admission card are listed below:
 

XAT Answer Key 2026

After the test, XLRI will make the XAT response sheet and answer keys available, probably in the second week of January 2026, so that applicants can review their successful and unsuccessful attempts. You can download the XAT answer key for 2026. Here's how to get the official XAT answer key:
Candidates will have access to the answer key challenge option from the institute. Candidates may use an online form to object if they believe that the official response to any question is inaccurate. The official answer key will be updated if any of the objections are determined to be genuine.
 

XAT Result 2026

The XAT 2026 result/scorecard is expected to be released in the third week of January 2026, while the answer key release and challenge are expected to take place in the second week of January 2026. After its release, students can download their scorecards from the official website. Candidates can check their XAT 2026 result by following the steps mentioned below:
 

Previous Year's XAT Cut-Offs

The XAT cut-offs for XLRI will be made public a week following the announcement of the results. For reference, see the XAT 2025 cut-offs listed below.
 
 
XAT 2025 Cut-Offs: MBA BM
Category
QA
VALR
DM
Overall
Engineer/Tech Male
88
84
84
96
Engineer/Tech Female
82
80
80
91
Non-Engineer Male
88
84
84
96
Non-Engineer Female
82
80
80
91
 
XAT 2025 Cut-Offs: MBA HR
Category
QA
VALR
DM
Overall
Engineer/Tech Male
83
90
87
95
Engineer/Tech Female
73
85
80
90
Non-Engineer Male
76
90
87
93
Non-Engineer Female
78
85
80
87
 

Top Colleges That Take XAT Scores

The list of some of the well-known B-Schools that accept XAT scores is shown below. Approximately 800 MBA colleges in India accept XAT scores for MBA/PGDM admission: