PUBLISHED: in 2019
LAST UPDATED: Jan 14, 2021
Level 1 CFA® Exam:
What Is It About?
CFA exam, level 1, tests you on 10 topics. It includes two 135-minute exam sessions with 90 multiple-choice questions each. In 2021, the level 1 CFA exam will be computer-based and it’ll be held 6 times: in February, March, May, July, August, and November.
Unfortunately, the Feb 2021 level 1 exam can be canceled in some locations due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Level 1 exam is the first of the 3 levels of the CFA exam – a prestigious financial certification introduced and held worldwide by CFA Institute. The exam is quite costly and rather hard but rewarding.
CFA exam | consists of 3 levels: level 1, level 2, level 3 |
2021 level 1 CFA exam windows | upcoming: 16 Feb – 1 March |
NEW 2021 level 1 exams | 21-23 March, July (exact dates not yet given) |
Basic level 1 exam cost | USD 700 for early birds or USD 1000 of standard fee |
Recommended study hours | 300 study hours/exam level |
Level 1 exam pass rates | official: around 43%, real: even lower! (read below) |
Level 1 CFA exam study plan | 10 topics scheduled into 300 hours of study and review week by week! 3 basic game-changers: weekly control, maintained motivation, knowledge retention. |
Your goal? | CFA® Charter – global gold standard in finance |
Welcome to the LEVEL 1 CFA EXAM INFO CENTER – a place where you’ll find all you need to know about your level 1 exam. Read on and learn about:
- CFA Program Entrance Requirements
- Level 1 Exam Dates
- Registration Deadlines
- All CFA Exam Costs, incl. Scholarships
- Level 1 Pass Rates
- Level 1 Topics, incl. Exam Weights
- Exam Day Details
- CFA Exam Study Guide for Level 1 Candidates
- Your Level 1 CFA Exam Study Plan
- Free Study Materials
- CFA Program Policies
- Level 1 Exam Results
First Things First: 5 CFA Program Requirements
To be able to sit for your level 1 exam, you must meet CFA Program entrance requirements. There are 5 and they include your education/work experience, knowledge of English, fee payments, place of residence + valid international passport, as well as your professional conduct.
CFA Program requirements you need to meet before you can register for your level 1 exam:
- EDUCATION: have a bachelor’s (or equivalent) degree or be a final-year student (complete the degree before registering for level 2 exam).
OR
WORK EXPERIENCE (investment related or not): have 48 months of professional full-time work experience or a combination of professional full-time work experience and education totaling 48 months (dates of education and professional work experience cannot overlap!). - KNOWLEDGE OF ENGLISH: CFA exam is held in English + CFA Program curriculum you get after registration is in English, so you should know English quite well to take the exam.
- CFA EXAM FEE PAYMENT: you can register for your level 1 exam only when you make due payments as presented below in more detail. If it’s your first registration ever – apart from the exam fee – you’ll also need to pay a one-time program enrollment fee.
- PLACE OF RESIDENCE AND INTERNATIONAL PASSPORT: you need to live in a participating country (currently, most of countries are in, while a few are excluded by the US OFAC policy) and have a valid international passport to register for your exam.
- PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT: as a candidate, you are obliged to follow CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct and to confirm your commitment to the code and standards you need to submit – upon registering for your exam – a Professional Conduct Statement disclosing relevant reprimands, investigations, litigations, etc.
Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA®) is a graduate-level program developed and run by CFA Institute, an association of investment professionals originating in the USA and spreading all over the world. As a candidate and then CFA charterholder, you can enhance your analytical skills, gain your investment expertise, and improve your chances of career advancement. If there is one expression that can describe what you’re up for after signing up for the CFA exam, it’s disciplined self-study. As of 2021, CFA Institute is introducing computer-based testing for level 1 exams. More on the CFA exam day and structure below.
Nearest Level 1 CFA Exam Dates
* The dates indicate the exam window when you can self-schedule your level 1 exam. You can read here about computer-based exams.
NOTE: The March 2021 exam window will be open for select deferred Dec 2020/Feb 2021 candidates only.
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All 2021 Level 1 CFA Exam Windows
In 2021, there are 6 different level 1 CFA exam windows. The exam window may be even up to 10 days long (in fact, it's been extended for the Feb level 1 exam!). However, when choosing your CFA exam date, you must know that both the length of exam window and seating availablility may vary for different test centers and geografic regions.
- FEBRUARY 2021 level 1 exam window from 16 Feb to 1 March
- *MARCH 2021 level 1 exam window from 21 to 23 March
- MAY 2021 level 1 exam window from 18 to 24 May
- JULY 2021 level 1 exam window not yet given
- AUGUST 2021 level 1 exam window from 24 to 30 Aug
- NOVEMBER 2021 level 1 exam window from 16 to 22 Nov
* The March 2021 exam window will be open for select deferred Dec 2020/Feb 2021 candidates only.
Can I Still Register?
LEVEL 1 REGISTRATION | ||
---|---|---|
CFA EXAM | STARTS | ENDS |
FEBRUARY 2021 | 17 June 2020 | 28 Oct 2020 |
MARCH 2021 | not yet given | not yet given |
MAY 2021 | 20 Aug 2020 | 23 Feb 2021 |
JULY 2021 | not yet given | not yet given |
AUGUST 2021 | 20 Aug 2020 | 4 May 2021 |
NOVEMBER 2021 | 20 Aug 2020 | 10 Aug 2021 |
Remember: Registering for the exam means you need to pay the fee. Before you register, however, see if you are eligible for a scholarship. If you apply, wait for your scholarship before you register for the exam or you’ll lose it. Mind the final registration deadline, though! Check right below.
CFA Exam Costs & Registration Deadlines
NEWCOMERS ONLY: $450 one-time program enrollment fee
ALL CANDIDATES: Each time you register to take or retake your level 1 exam (and later your level 2 and 3 exams), you'll have to pay a registration fee. Your basic exam cost will depend on when you register for your exam:
February 2021 FEES | ||
---|---|---|
$700 early fee begins: 17 June | ends: 13 AUGUST 2020 |
$1,000 standard fee begins: 14 Aug | ends: 28 OCTOBER 2020 |
May 2021 FEES | ||
---|---|---|
$700 early fee begins: 20 Aug | ends: 3 NOVEMBER 2020 |
$1,000 standard fee begins: 4 Nov | ends: 23 FEBRUARY 2021 |
August 2021 FEES | ||
---|---|---|
$700 early fee begins: 20 Aug | ends: 2 FEBRUARY 2021 |
$1,000 standard fee begins: 3 Feb | ends: 4 MAY 2021 |
November 2021 FEES | ||
---|---|---|
$700 early fee begins: 20 Aug | ends: 4 MAY 2021 |
$1,000 standard fee begins: 5 May | ends: 10 AUGUST 2021 |
Note: All the deadlines end at 11:59 p.m. ET.
2021 EXAMS: new rescheduling fee of $25 allows exam re-appointment
CFA INSTITUTE SCHOLARSHIPS
ACCESS SCHOLARSHIP
Access Scholarship application window for 2021 CFA exams is already closed. The scholarship reduces the exam registration fee to USD 250 and the deadline always passes in mid-September. It’s not a mistake. If you want to apply for Access Scholarship, the deadline expires in September of the year before the exam you wish to take.
Access Scholarship Window for 2021 EXAMS:
mid-May 2020 – 15 September 2020
Access Scholarship is for all those who may find the CFA exam cost challenging. To apply you must NOT be registered for the exam yet and you need to meet all the CFA Program entrance requirements.
OTHER SCHOLARSHIPS
Other CFA Institute scholarships are subject to limitations, e.g. not all students can apply for Student Scholarships (ask your alma mater) and women need to hurry because Women's Scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. As of 1 September 2020, the application window for 2021 CFA exams is open. Log into your CFA Institute account to find out more.
NOT ELIGIBLE FOR A SCHOLARSHIP?
It’s not a rare thing that employers financially help their employees taking part in the CFA Program by reimbursing or paying for their CFA exams, either fully or partially. So, don’t hesitate to ask your employer for support.
How High Is Level 1 CFA Exam Pass Rate?
Until 2020, CFA exams were held 2 times a year, in June and December. Some former level 1 pass rates are given below:
PREVIOUS LEVEL 1 PASS RATES | ||
---|---|---|
JUNE EXAMS | DECEMBER EXAMS | |
41% | 2019 | 42% |
43% | 2018 | 45% |
43% | 2017 | 43% |
CAREFUL! This 40+ percent is the pass rate for those level 1 candidates who actually sat for their exam. However, many register to take their level 1 exam but don’t even turn up on the exam day, which means that the "real" pass rate for all registered level 1 candidates is even lower!
Why so low? See below
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Level 1 Topics In a Nutshell
Level 1 candidates are tested in 10 topic areas, each with its defined exam topic weight given as a range. Below, we present all 10 level 1 CFA exam topics ordered from the highest to the lowest weight range:
Here is the recommended Soleadea topic sequence with all topics shortly described:
3 LEVEL 1 TOPICS CATEGORIZATIONS
While the most important level 1 topics are Ethics, FRA, and Quantitative Methods, the hardest trio is FRA, Fixed Income, and Derivatives. Also, 3 topics may be regarded as relatively easy. However, topic difficulty is always a subjective criterion.
3 most important L1 topics | 3 hardest L1 topics | 3 easiest L1 topics |
---|---|---|
Financial Reporting and Analysis (FRA) | Fixed Income (FI) | Portfolio Management (PM) |
Ethical and Professional Standards (Ethics) | Derivative Investments (DI) | Corporate Finance (CF) |
Quantitative Methods (QM) | Financial Reporting and Analysis (FRA) | Equity Investments (EI) |
The 10 topics are all covered in 6 books of the level 1 curriculum. The topics content is further divided into smaller portions: topics study sessions readings. Overall, level 1 curriculum is roughly 3000 pages long. That’s why candidates often look for more digestible study materials like videos, tests, or e-books. As a rule, the CFA exam curriculum changes from year to year. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and unprecedented exam postponements, the 2020 curriculum will also apply to all level 1 exams held in 2021. Thus, no significant change in topic weights is expected.
To organize your long and tough exam prep, you'll want to have a study plan with deadlines for topics and – ideally – also for readings, best if arranged weekly. This way you get a controllable and manageable study plan you can systematically follow. We explain more below .
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CFA Exam Day: What to Expect?
In 2021, level 1 CFA exam will consist of two sessions taken the same day with an optional break meanwhile. Each session will include 90 multiple-choice (a-b-c) questions. What is important here is that you'll have 1.5 minute per question on average. Moreover, there is no penalty for giving a wrong answer (so go ahead and guess if you don’t know ). Also, we distinguish 3 types of level 1 questions: theory, computing, and reasoning questions.
2021 Level 1 CFA Exam Day Schedule |
---|
30 minutes allotted to pledge, tutorial, and survey |
SESSION 1: 135 min (90 questions) |
BREAK (optional): 30 min |
SESSION 2: 135 min (90 questions) |
TOTAL TESTING TIME: 4.5 hrs |
WHOLE EXAM DAY: 5.5 hrs |
3 TYPES OF L1 QUESTIONS: |
---|
Theory questions |
Computing questions |
Reasoning questions |
QUESTIONS TOTAL: |
2021 exams: 180 questions |
1.5 min per question |
Theory questions mean you'll need to show your knowledge of different financial concepts and their definitions, as well as models, theorems, or principles.
Computing questions will require competence in using your financial calculator and doing the math.
Reasoning questions demand the ability to see relations between concepts, associate things, and think logically.
SESSION 1 of your level 1 CFA exam will cover Ethics, Quantitative Methods, Economics, and Financial Reporting and Analysis.
SESSION 2 of your level 1 CFA exam will cover Corporate Finance, Portfolio Management, Equity, Fixed Income, Derivatives, and Alternative Investments.
On the exam day, you must bring your valid international passport, admission ticket, and approved calculator (only different versions of TIBA II Plus or Hewlett Packard 12C are allowed). You will be provided with writing tools such as an erasable writing tablet.
Best Way to Prepare for Level 1 CFA Exam
Keeping in mind the 3000 pages of curriculum and the low level 1 pass rates, you’ll need a sure-fire study strategy for your CFA exam prep. It’s best if it’s based on these 3 pillars:
FULL
CONTROL
MAINTAINED
MOTIVATION
KNOWLEDGE
RETENTION
WHY?
ca. 300 hrs
& procrastination
25%
no-shows
ca. 30%
of the "real" pass rate!
It is common knowledge that you need approximately 300 study hours to get prepared for your level 1 CFA exam. That’s a lot. Take 5 months of prep, for example. It gives you an average of 60 hours per month, i.e. around 15 study hours every week.
It is hard to control 300 hours or even 60 hours. But 15 hours a week? That you can control! So, break down those 300 hours to smaller study times you can easily control and manage from week to week of your exam prep.
Otherwise, procrastination may seriously endanger your CFA exam preparation. It is too easy to postpone, especially if the consequences are delayed into the future. Many people choose to overlook these consequences in favor of immediate gains such as a night with a movie instead of curriculum. But, in the end, they end up with too many readings piled up and impossible to cover before their exam.
That is why you need to constantly maintain your motivation to study week by week. To better understand why it’s so important, consider this: as many as 25% of level 1 candidates do not show up for their exam because they feel they didn’t learn enough to take it. What it means is that the effective pass rate is even lower! If out of 100 candidates registered for the CFA exam, only 75 actually take it, then – with the pass rate of 40+ percent – only a bit over 30 out of 75 exam-takers pass, which gives us the "real" pass rate for all registered level 1 candidates of ca. 30% instead of 43% or 45%.
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Procrastination and lack of motivation are also a problem when it comes to revision. The majority of candidates put off reviewing the study material until last weeks before the exam, which is a huge mistake. It makes your forgetting curve even steeper (after one day only, we forget up to 65% of what we studied the previous day!) and leaves your learning curve totally unattended.


To be sure you’ll really learn all 10 topics just in time for your exam, it’s best you have your study plan scheduled weekly and revise regularly. Benchmark study times for weeks and readings and a proper review system in place make it is easier to stay motivated and hold tight to the benchmarks and recommendations, and then to pass the exam. If you also feel this is the way to go, you can find all this and more inside our CFA Exam Study Planner.
Your Level 1 CFA Exam Study Plan
IT IS STILL ROUGHLY:
Get CFA Exam Study Schedule:
& see how to make the most of your study time!
Free CFA Exam Study Materials
If you're looking for some free CFA exam study materials to help you understand your CFA Program curriculum, here's a bunch of blog posts explaining some issues. Apart from theory, you'll also find there some exam-type questions. That’s how you should study: combine theory with practice!
Also, we've got some free videos for you. We suggest you use them twice. First – to get familiar with the most important concepts before you dive into your books. Then, after you study your level 1 curriculum – to revise & make sure you finally know everything there is to know for each topic:
What Calculator to Get and Other Policies
As a level 1 candidate, you also need to know all CFA exam rules and regulations. There are many but your failure to be in compliance may result in your inability to take the exam, voiding your level 1 CFA exam result or even suspension in the CFA Program.
CFA Program Policies include (but are not limited to):
- Calculator Policy
- CFA Program Refund Policy
- Identification Policy
- Withdrawal Option
- Qualified Deferral
- Admission And Departure Policy
- Answer Sheet And Exam Book Policy
- Personal Belongings Policy
We've prepared a selective summary of CFA exam policies, which – due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic – differ in many aspects from what CFA candidates are used to. For most important CFA exam rules, go here
When Will I Get My CFA Exam Results?
DECEMBER 2020
26* January 2021
FEB/MARCH/MAY 2021
* This is our educated guess based on how CFA Institute released exam results in the past. The usual pattern: your exam date + 7.5 weeks + it’s almost always been Tuesday.
For computer-based exams – results could be available sooner than 7.5 weeks post-exam. Still, the exact date is not yet known even to CFA Institute emphasizing that the same MPS procedure will still be in place.
You’ll get your results to your e-mail. Detailed results are also available on the CFA Institute website from the level of your account. Apart from the PASSED or FAILED information, you will also learn about your performance for given topics relative to other exam takers. The CFA exam results are presented visually with the thick blue line illustrating how you scored, both in the exam and for different topic areas. No exact scores are given, though.
IMPORTANT! Only after you receive your level 1 CFA exam result may you register for the next exam.

MPS, Ethics Adjustment,
CFA Exam GradingCFA Exam Passing Score: What is MPS?
Every CFA exam has its MPS individually set when it’s over. Minimum passing score (MPS) is the threshold value determining who passes and who fails the CFA exam. Both the MPS and individual candidate score are never released. However, in all likelihood, MPS is usually slightly below 70%.
What is Ethics adjustment?
CFA Program aims at promoting ethical culture in the investment industry. That’s why the Ethics topic is said to be particularly important in the CFA exam and there’s the so-called ethics adjustment. Your Ethics result can help you pass or fail if you are a borderline candidate, i.e. if your total exam score borders the MPS. According to the Ethics adjustment:
- Good Ethics result for a borderline candidate means a Passed Exam.
- Poor Ethics result for a borderline candidate means a Failed Exam.
What is CFA exam grading like?
To pass, you must score higher than the MPS set for your exam or your Ethics result must be good enough to pull you through if you are on the border. You don’t need to pass all the topics. It is the overall exam score that counts!