CLAT 2026 Exam Pattern: The Consortium of National Law Universities (NLU) prescribed the CLAT 2026 exam pattern for UG and PG programmes on its official website - consortiumofnlus.ac.in. Candidates must be thoroughly aware of the CLAT paper pattern 2026. The CLAT exam pattern 2026 provides important details about the exam, such as the type of questions, total number of questions, CLAT exam marks distribution, mode of exam, duration, etc. In the CLAT paper pattern 2026, there will be a total of 120 multiple-choice questions spread over five sections. The CLAT subjects weightage will not be spread uniformly across the five sections. The CLAT PG exam comprises 120 objective-type questions. Until the authority announces any changes in the CLAT 2026 pattern, it will remain consistent with the previous year's CLAT format.
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The Common Law Admission Test is conducted for admissions at 26 participating NLUs and 60+ affiliated law schools into the 5-year LLB programme. CLAT 2026 will be conducted on December 7, 2025 in offline mode, pen and paper-based mode. Read the complete article to get complete details of the exam pattern of CLAT 2026, CLAT section-wise marks, CLAT exam format, and other important details.
Here are some important points related to the CLAT paper pattern:
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| Category | Details |
|---|---|
Time duration | 2 hours |
Mode | Offline mode (pen and paper-based mode) |
Conducting Body | Consortium of National Law Universities (CNLU) |
Type of questions | Objective-type questions |
Number of questions | CLAT UG - 120 questions CLAT PG - 120 questions |
Total marks in CLAT | 120 marks (Both CLAT UG and CLAT PG) |
CLAT UG marking scheme | Correct answer - 1 mark Incorrect answer - 0.25 marks deduction Unattempted questions - No negative marking |
Language | English |
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The CLAT section-wise marks will vary as per the weightage of subjects in the exam. The current affairs and legal reasoning section carries the maximum weight in the CLAT paper pattern. Candidates are given two hours to complete the CLAT 2026 exam. As per the CLAT 2026 pattern, all the questions in the entrance exam will be objective-type questions. The section-wise CLAT weightage is given below.
Section | Number of Questions | CLAT Section-wise Marks | Weightage |
|---|---|---|---|
English Language | 22-26 | 22-26 | 20% |
Current Affairs including General Knowledge | 28-32 | 28-32 | 25% |
28-32 | 28-32 | 25% | |
22-26 | 22-26 | 20% | |
Quantitative Techniques | 10-14 | 10-14 | 10% |
Total | 120 | 120 | 100% |
Check topic-wise CLAT Syllabus:
As per the CLAT marks distribution, each question in CLAT 2026 will carry one mark. There is also a provision of negative marking of 0.25 marks for each incorrect response. The maximum mark in CLAT 2026 is 120. No marks will be deducted for unanswered questions.
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
Correct response | 1 mark |
Incorrect response | -0.25 mark |
Unanswered question | 0 mark |
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Along with the exam pattern, candidates must be well-versed in the syllabus of CLAT UG 2026. The syllabus of CLAT will comprise important topics and subjects that will be covered in the exam. The detailed CLAT 2026 syllabus is mentioned in the table below:
| Subjects | Topics |
|---|---|
English Language | Grammatical errors and sentence correction, Synonyms & Antonyms, Tenses, Fill in the Blanks, Active & Passive Voice |
Current Affairs, including General Knowledge | National & international events, Govt. schemes, Science & Technology, Sports, Awards & Honors, Arts & Culture, Historical events of current relevant |
Legal Reasoning | Indian Constitution - Fundamental Rights, Duties, Judiciary, Parliament, Directive Principles of State Policy, Local governments, Significant amendments and provisions, Landmark judgments, Current legal affairs, Law of Torts, Laws of Contract, IPR Law, Family Laws |
Logical Reasoning | Analogies, Series, logical sequences and matching, Seating arrangement, Syllogisms, Blood relations |
Quantitative Techniques | Ratios and proportions, Basic algebra, Mensuration, Statistical estimation, Algebra |
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Candidates can check the CLAT paper pattern for each section below:
CLAT English Language: This English section of CLAT 2026 comprises 22 to 26 questions, and it is given a weight of 20% in the exam. The CLAT English Language section will comprise passages of around 450 words derived from historically significant non-fiction and fiction writing. The difficulty level of this section is as per class 12. According to students who appeared for the previous sessions of the exam, this section of CLAT is usually easy but tricky.
CLAT Current Affairs including General Knowledge: The GK and current affairs section of the exam contains a total of 28 to 32 questions, and it is given 25% weightage in the entrance test. The CLAT Current Affairs, including the General Knowledge section also comprises passage-based questions on current affairs. The questions are asked about topics like static general knowledge, national and international news, and other related topics. According to past year candidates, this section is the easiest section of the CLAT exam.
CLAT Quantitative Techniques: The maths section carries the minimum weight in the CLAT exam. There are a total of 10-14 questions in the CLAT Quantitative Techniques section of CLAT. The questions in this section are based on elementary mathematics from topics like ratio and proportions, basic algebra, mensuration, and statistical estimation.
CLAT Legal Reasoning: The CLAT Legal Reasoning section of CLAT 2026 will consist of 28 to 32 questions. The questions will comprise 450-word passages on topics such as public policy-making, legal matters, or moral philosophical inquiries. As per the previous year's analysis, this section was easy, and the passages were short.
CLAT Logical Reasoning: This section has a total of 22 to 26 questions and carries 20% weightage in the exam. The CLAT Logical Reasoning section will also comprise 450-word passages followed by multiple-choice questions based on the passage. Questions in this section are of an easy to moderate difficulty level.
Here are some preparation tips to ace the CLAT exam:
Aspirants must consider various factors such as the experience and credentials of the author, the reputation of the publication, price, syllabus, and the inclusion of enough practice questions and sample papers. Given below are books for each section of the CLAT 2026 exam pattern. The list is not exhaustive, and candidates can research for the CLAT books based on the parameters listed above.
Subject | Author |
|---|---|
General Awareness, Current affairs |
|
Logical Reasoning |
|
| Legal Reasoning | Legal Aptitude for CLAT and other Law Exams: Workbook by A. P Bhardwaj. Legal news websites such as Live Law and Bar & Bench |
English |
|
| Quantitative Techniques | Class 10 NCERT textbook Quantitative Aptitude by RS Aggarwal |
Previous Year Papers | Previous Year Papers by A.P. Bhardwaj |
Additional Resources | Newspaper - The Hindu or The Indian Express, legal journals, articles, editorials, explanations |
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The most difficult section of CLAT 2025 was considered to be the "Legal Reasoning" section.
A total of 120 questions will be asked in the CLAT UG exam.
The duration of CLAT 2026 will be two hours.
According to the CLAT exam pattern 2026, the exam will be conducted offline through pen and paper based test mode. CLAT 2026 will have objective-type questions based on passages.
CLAT will be conducted in offline mode.
CLAT 2026 will be conducted for UG and PG programmes. The CLAT UG exam will be conducted for admissions to five-year integrated law programmes at NLUs, while CLAT PG exam will be conducted for admission to LLM courses.
Yes, candidates can attempt the CLAT exam again if have failed to do so in the previous attempt.
Multiple Choice based questions are asked in the CLAT exam in each section.
Yes, CLAT exam has negative marking of 0.25 mark for every wrong answer.
Candidates can obtain maximum 120 marks in the CLAT exam.
On Question asked by student community
Hello,
For CLAT PG 2026 application :
Photograph: JPEG/JPG, 200x230 pixels, 20–50 KB, white/light background, recent passport-size photo.
Signature: JPEG/JPG, 140x60 pixels, 10–20 KB, sign on white paper with black ink, must match exam documents.
Hope it helps !
Hi dear candidate,
On our official website, you can find various study material EBooks and Sample Papers that can help you prepare better that you can download for free.
Kindly refer to the link attached below:
CLAT E-books and Sample Papers
CLAT Study Material 2026 PDF - Books, Mock Test, Question Papers
BEST REGARDS
Hello,
While NLUs are costly, you can still pursue government-funded law education through state-funded universities and their affiliated colleges that accept CLAT scores, such as institutes like Banaras Hindu University and Aligarh Muslim University.
I hope it will clear your query!!
It is always better to take the CLAT exam right after Class 12 if your goal is to build a career in law, because CLAT UG is specifically designed for admission into integrated five-year law programs like BA LLB, BCom LLB, or BBA LLB. Appearing after Class 12 saves you time, as you complete both graduation and law together in a single course. On the other hand, if you first complete graduation and then plan for law, you will not be eligible for CLAT UG but instead for CLAT PG, which is meant for admission into LLM programs. This path takes longer, because you first spend three or four years on graduation and then add another three years in an LLB program if you choose not to go for an integrated course. So, if you are already sure about pursuing law as your career, writing CLAT right after Class 12 is the smarter and time-saving option, while writing it after graduation makes sense only if you are considering higher studies in law or a shift in career later.
For CLAT, the most important topics are from Legal Reasoning, Current Affairs & GK, the Indian Constitution, English Language, Quantitative Techniques and Logical Reasoning. For a brief detail you can go through the following link: https://law.careers360.com/articles/clat-important-topics
Thank You.
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