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    CLAT Last 3 years Question Papers with New Pattern

    CLAT Last 3 years Question Papers with New Pattern

    #CLAT
    Isha GargUpdated on 03 Dec 2025, 05:04 PM IST

    CLAT has primarily become a comprehension-based, critical thinking exam since 2020. The total number of questions was reduced from 200 to 150 in 2020. The number of questions was further reduced to 120 in the CLAT 2024 exam to make it student-friendly and to ease exam stress. While the exam remains moderate to difficult, sections like English, legal reasoning, and logical reasoning mainly test inference and reasoning skills. Solving CLAT past year question (PYQ) papers is crucial for cracking the CLAT because it helps understand the comprehension-based format and improves speed and accuracy.

    CLAT Last 3 years Question Papers with New Pattern
    CLAT 2026 Last 3 years Question Papers with New Pattern

    The English Language section of the CLAT exam evaluates reading comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary through passage-based questions. The general knowledge and current affairs still require prior knowledge of national and international events. Legal reasoning applies legal principles to factual situations, and logical reasoning is often the toughest, involving puzzles and patterns. Quantitative techniques cover basic arithmetic, percentages, ratios, and data interpretation. Even though the questions are fewer in number, but require accuracy and speed.

    Previous Year's Question Papers with Detailed Solutions

    Comparison of Exam Patterns (2020 vs 2024-2026)

    Exam period

    Total questions

    Sections

    Duration

    Marking scheme

    Pre-2020

    200

    English, GK, Legal Aptitude, LR, QA

    2 hours

    +1 mark for correct answer and -0.25 for incorrect answer

    2020-2023


    150

    English Language, Current Affairs (including General Knowledge), Legal Reasoning, Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Techniques

    2 hours

    +1 mark for correct answer and -0.25 for incorrect answer

    2024 onwards


    120

    Same as 2020-2023 (passage-based format)

    2 hours

    +1 mark for correct answer and -0.25 for incorrect answer

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    CLAT UG Exam Section-wise Question Distribution (2024-2026)

    The CLAT UG exam features 120 multiple-choice questions to be completed in 2 hours. Each correct answer awards 1 mark, with a negative marking of 0.25 marks for every incorrect response, and no penalty for unanswered questions. Questions are passage-based across five sections, testing comprehension, reasoning, and awareness skills at a 12th-grade level.

    CLAT 2026 - Section-wise Distribution of Questions

    Section

    Number of questions

    Weightage (%)

    English Language

    22-26

    20

    Current Affairs including GK

    28-32

    25

    Legal Reasoning

    28-32

    25

    Logical Reasoning

    22-26

    20

    Quantitative Techniques

    10-14

    10

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    CLAT Exam Analysis - Last 3 Years (2023, 2024, 2025)

    In 2023, the English section was easy, with 28-30 good attempts out of 30 questions. General knowledge was also easy to moderate with 30-35 good attempts, while quantitative aptitude was more challenging, with only 8-9 good attempts. Logical reasoning and legal reasoning were moderate to difficult, with good attempts ranging from 25-27 and 32-34, respectively. Overall, the exam was moderate to difficult.

    In 2024, the CLAT exam pattern changed to 120 questions. English and general knowledge were easier, with good attempts above 20 and 25+, respectively. Quantitative aptitude and logical reasoning ranged between easy and moderate difficulty. Legal reasoning was easier compared to previous years. Overall, the exam was easy to moderate with about 105+ good attempts.

    In 2025, English and general knowledge remained easy to moderate. Quantitative aptitude got relatively tougher, with good attempts rising to 24-25 from fewer questions. Legal reasoning stayed moderately difficult, while logical reasoning was considered easier compared to earlier. The total good attempts were about 90-95, indicating moderate difficulty overall.

    Section-wise Difficulty and Attempts for 2023-2025

    Year

    Section

    Good attempts

    Difficulty level

    Total questions

    2023

    English Language

    28 - 30

    Easy

    30

    General Knowledge

    30 - 35

    Easy to moderate

    35

    Quantitative Aptitude

    8 - 9

    Moderate to difficult

    15

    Logical Reasoning

    25 - 27

    Moderate to difficult

    30

    Legal Reasoning

    32 - 34

    Tough but easy

    40

    Overall

    110+

    Moderate to difficult

    150

    2024

    English

    20+

    Easy

    24

    General Knowledge & Current Affairs

    25+

    Easy

    28

    Quantitative Aptitude

    7+

    Easy to moderate

    12

    Legal Reasoning

    25+

    Easy

    32

    Logical Reasoning

    20+

    Easy to moderate

    24

    Overall

    105+

    Easy to moderate

    120

    2025

    English

    18 - 19

    Easy to moderate

    22-26

    General Knowledge

    21 - 22

    Easy to moderate

    28-32

    Quantitative Aptitude

    24 - 25

    Moderate

    10-14

    Legal Reasoning

    17 - 18

    Moderate

    28-32

    Logical Reasoning

    8 - 9

    Easy to moderate

    22-26

    Overall

    90 - 95

    Moderate

    120

    Category-wise Expected Good Score in CLAT 2026 in Top NLUs

    NLU name

    General

    EWS

    OBC

    SC

    ST

    NLSIU Bengaluru

    100+

    95+

    90+

    83+

    78+

    NALSAR Hyderabad

    100+

    95+

    90+

    82+

    78+

    WBNUJS Kolkata

    98+

    -

    56+*

    80+

    74+

    NLU Jodhpur

    95+

    -

    88+

    79+

    74+

    GNLU Gandhinagar

    95+

    90+

    87+

    77+

    70+

    MNLU Mumbai

    93+

    81+

    77+*

    71+*

    41+*

    RMLNLU Lucknow

    91+

    85+

    82+*

    53+*

    41+*

    *state category reservation

    Based on past year data and expected trends for CLAT 2026, for general category candidates, a score between 90 and 100+ marks out of 120 is considered competitive for top NLUs. EWS candidates should aim for 85-95+ marks to secure good chances. For OBC candidates, a score of around 80-90+ marks is advisable. SC and ST candidates can secure admissions with scores in the range of 75-85 marks. Generally, to rank among the top candidates, scoring above 90 marks is highly recommended. Reserve categories have slightly lower cut-offs, but high scores always increase the chances of securing the preferred NLU seat.

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    If you're sure that you want to pursue law, then CLAT is generally the better option. It is the gateway to most National Law Universities (NLUs), which are among the top law colleges in India.

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    With a CLAT PG rank of 4649 and CUET PG score of 106 , getting top NLUs or central universities may be difficult. However, you still have good options for pursuing an LLM in Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) at private and state-affiliated universities.

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