CFA Level 1

What Is CFA Level 1

CFA Level 1 is the first of three exams you must pass to earn the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter, awarded by CFA Institute. It tests the tools and concepts of investment analysis: ethics, quantitative methods, economics, financial reporting, asset classes and portfolio management.

The benefits of passing the CFA Level 1 exam go beyond the next level. It shows employers in asset management, equity research, banking and corporate finance that you have a solid grounding in investment analysis. After Level 1, candidates move on to Level II and Level III, and also need qualifying work experience to earn the charter.

CFA Level 1 Exam Eligibility

To register for CFA Level 1, you generally need to meet one of CFA Institute’s education or experience routes:

• Hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent.
• Be enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program, with a Level I exam window that is 23 months or less before your graduation month.
• Have 4,000 hours of work experience and/or higher education, acquired over at least three sequential years by the time you register; each year of higher education counts as 1,000 hours.

You also need a valid international passport and must agree to CFA Institute’s professional conduct requirements. These rules come from CFA Institute’s program policies, which can change, so check them before you register.

CFA Level 1 Exam Format

The CFA Level 1 exam is a computer-based test of standalone multiple-choice questions, delivered in two sessions. Each question has three answer choices, carries equal weight and has no penalty for wrong answers.

Exam Questions and Time

The exam has 180 questions and 4.5 hours of testing time, divided into two 135-minute sessions of about 90 questions each. That gives you an average of 90 seconds per question. An optional break is offered between the sessions.

CFA Level 1 Exam Topics

The exam covers ten topic areas. Ethics is tested in the first session and is weighted heavily, while the rest build a toolkit for analyzing investments:

• Ethical and Professional Standards: the Code of Ethics, Standards of Professional Conduct and GIPS.
• Quantitative Methods: time value of money, statistics, probability, hypothesis testing and regression.
• Economics: micro- and macroeconomics, business cycles, monetary and fiscal policy and currencies.
• Financial Statement Analysis: the three financial statements, ratios, inventories, long-lived assets and taxes.
• Corporate Issuers: governance, capital structure, capital investments and working capital.
• Equity Investments: market organization, indexes, market efficiency and equity valuation.
• Fixed Income: bond features, pricing, yields, term structure, credit risk and securitization.
• Derivatives: forwards, futures, swaps, options and basic pricing.
• Alternative Investments: private equity and debt, real estate, infrastructure, hedge funds and commodities.
• Portfolio Management: risk and return, CAPM, planning and construction and behavioral finance.

Topic Weights

CFA Institute publishes a weight range for each topic. These are the CFA Level 1 exam topic weights for 2026 and the new 2027 curriculum, which give you the exam breakdown for planning your study time:

Ethics, financial statement analysis, equity and fixed income together make up roughly half the 2026 exam. For 2027 windows, Ethics drops to 10–15% and Quantitative Methods rises to 11–14%, so check which curriculum applies to your window.

Calculator Rules

Only two calculator models are allowed in the CFA Level 1 exam: the Texas Instruments BA II Plus (including the BA II Plus Professional) and the Hewlett Packard 12C (including its approved variants). Learn your calculator’s time value of money, cash flow and statistics functions early, because using it quickly saves minutes on exam day.

Practical Skills Module Requirement

You must complete one Practical Skills Module (PSM) at each level to receive your CFA Level 1 exam result, according to CFA Institute. The PSM is completed separately from the 180-question exam, so plan time for it in your study schedule and finish it before your result is due.

CFA Level 1 Scoring

CFA Institute does not publish a minimum passing score for CFA Level 1. After each exam window, its Board of Governors sets the minimum passing score, taking into account the difficulty of that exam. That means there is no official answer to how many questions you need to answer correctly to pass.

Your result is reported as pass or fail, with a breakdown showing your performance in each topic. Because every question carries equal weight and wrong answers are not penalized, your raw score is simply the number of questions you answer correctly. Candidates often aim for at least 70% on mock exams as a readiness target, but this is a rule of thumb, not an official cutoff.

Registration and Fees

You register for CFA Level 1 through your CFA Institute account, where you choose an exam window and then schedule an appointment at a Prometric test center. The exam and registration fees depend on when you register.

CFA Level 1 Exam Dates 2026

The CFA Level 1 exam is offered in several testing windows a year, including February, May and August 2026, the windows for which CFA Institute has already reported results. Each window has its own registration deadlines and scheduling period. Check the CFA Institute dates and fees page for the next available window and its deadlines.

Exam and Registration Fees

For 2026 exam windows, the CFA Level 1 exam cost starts from USD 1,140 per exam with early registration. Standard registration is USD 1,490, according to CFA Institute’s 2026 pricing announcement. CFA Institute also eliminated the one-time enrollment fee for exams from February 2026, so new candidates no longer pay a separate program fee.

CFA Level 1 Pass Rates

CFA Institute publishes official pass rates for each exam window. The CFA Level 1 pass rate for the August 2026 window was 43%, out of 28,145 candidates. Earlier 2026 windows recorded 45% in February and 39% in May.

These figures show that well over half of candidates fail in a typical window. There is no fixed CFA Level 1 exam cutoff to aim for, so the safest strategy is to build a comfortable margin across every topic.

How to Prepare for CFA Level 1

The most effective way to practice for CFA Level 1 is to study the curriculum topic by topic, then switch to practice questions and mock exams for the final month. A typical plan of about 300 hours looks like this:

1. Months 1–3: read each topic, starting with ethics, financial statement analysis and quantitative methods, and do end-of-chapter questions.
2. Month 4: finish the remaining topics and start mixed-topic practice sets.
3. Month 5: take full mock exams under timed conditions and review every answer.
4. Final two weeks: revisit weak topics and reread the ethics standards.

Schedule your months with the study planner for exams and keep your exam date in view with the exam countdown.

Practice Questions by Chapter

Chapter-wise practice questions help you lock in each topic before moving on. After finishing a reading, answer a short set on that topic and review the explanations. Formulas and definitions stick best with spaced repetition, so make flashcards online for ratios, bond math and ethics standards.

Take a CFA Level 1 Mock Exam

Mock exams are where you build pacing and stamina for two 135-minute sessions. Our free CFA Level 1 practice questions cover all ten topics, with a timed mode at the real exam’s pace of 90 seconds per question and a score by topic area. CFA Institute also provides practice resources to registered candidates. For pacing and elimination techniques, see our test taking strategies.

Test Day Checklist

Use this CFA Level 1 exam checklist the week before your appointment:

• Bring your valid international passport; the name must match your CFA Institute registration.
• Bring an approved calculator, ideally with a spare battery or a second approved calculator.
• Arrive early at the Prometric test center to allow time for check-in and security.
• Leave phones, watches and notes in the locker. Scratch material is provided.
• Pace yourself at about 90 seconds per question and answer every item, since there is no penalty for wrong answers.
• Use the optional break between sessions to eat, drink and reset.

CFA Level 1 vs Level 2

CFA Level 1 tests knowledge and basic application across a broad range of topics, while Level II focuses on applying that knowledge to valuation and analysis in more depth. The format changes too.

Most candidates find Level II harder because each vignette requires reading and analysis before you can answer. A strong grounding in financial statement analysis and fixed income from Level 1 pays off directly at Level II.

If you are deciding between finance credentials, compare the CPA exam for accounting careers and try our CPA practice exam, or browse all finance certifications.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Many Questions Are on the CFA Level 1 Exam?

The CFA Level 1 exam has 180 multiple-choice questions, split into two sessions of about 90 questions each. All questions carry equal weight, and there is no penalty for a wrong answer, so you should answer every question even when you have to make an educated guess.

How Long Is the CFA Level 1 Exam?

The CFA Level 1 exam lasts 4.5 hours of testing time, split into two 135-minute sessions with an optional break between them. With about 90 questions per session, you have roughly 90 seconds per question. Plan for extra time at the test center for check-in and the break.

How Much Should You Study for CFA Level 1?

Most successful candidates study for around 300 hours for CFA Level 1, usually over four to six months. Candidates with a finance or accounting degree may need less, while career changers often need more. Spread the hours evenly and leave the final month for practice questions and mock exams.

How Many Practice Questions Should I Do for CFA Level 1?

Many candidates who pass CFA Level 1 complete 1,500 to 3,000 practice questions plus at least two full mock exams. Aim to cover every topic, with more questions in heavily weighted areas such as ethics, financial statement analysis, equity and fixed income. Review every explanation, not just the questions you miss.