Note: this cheat sheet is updated for the latest 2026 curriculum. If you’re following our recommended Level 1 topic study order: after going through Quant, FSA and Fixed Income, CFA Level 1 Equity Investments would be a lovely topic in comparison. Since Equity is a relatively gentle section of the curriculum, it provides an opportunity …
Ethics represents 15-20% of CFA Level 1 (27-36 questions) and uses identical content across all three levels, making it highly efficient to master. This CFA Level 1 Ethics cheat sheet covers the 6 Code of Ethics components, all 7 Standards of Professional Conduct with 22 sub-standards, GIPS basics, and exam strategies. Key insight: Ethics can …
The Ethical and Professional Standards section is challenging for most CFA candidates given the more subjective nature of the topic and questions (vs. the rest of the curriculum), and the sheer amount of readings to go through. Regardless whether you’re new to CFA exams or a seasoned CFA Level 3 candidate, CFA Ethics section plays …
If you have an inkling of which finance career you’re interested in pursuing, it is definitely worth studying for a specialized, globally recognized finance certification to help you secure that desired career path. CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and CFP (Certified Financial Planner) certifications definitely fit the criteria: highly specialized in their respective field yet still …
This free CFA Level 1 mock exam contains 90 practice questions weighted to match the official CFA Institute exam format. Complete it in 2 hours 15 minutes and receive instant results via email, including your score, detailed answer explanations, topic-by-topic performance breakdown, and percentile ranking. Available both online and as a downloadable PDF—no registration required. …
This article compares 2026 CFA curriculum vs 2025. For the latest curriculum, see 2027 CFA curriculum comparison. There has been minimal CFA curriculum changes 2026 across all three levels, marking a period of welcome stability after several years of major revisions. Level 1 has zero changes (93 Learning Modules unchanged), Level 2 has one minor …
If you’re studying for the CFA without finance background, would that put you at a disadvantage when it comes to passing the exams? Since 2012, we have built up a robust, 14 years worth of data from our awesome readers to answer that very question. Each time when CFA results are announced, our readers shared …
Finance certifications such as CFA and FRM are a cost effective way (compared to an MBA) to give your finance career a boost. We do receive a lot of questions from our readers trying to understand the core differences between them in deciding whether to pursue CFA or FRM. Hence, for those still on the …
Hi, I’m Alexander Law, a CFA Charterholder. Back in 2017, I managed to pass the CFA Level 1 exam with just five days of study. My scores were over 70% in all subjects except Alternative Investments and Financial Statement Analysis (those were in the 51-70% range). Luck definitely had some role to play in this, but …
CFA and CAIA designations can appear very similar at first sight, especially since the introduction of the CFA Level 3 Specialized Pathways, as they both target investment and financial professionals. However, there are differences in global recognition, breadth and depth of topics studied, career focus and exam difficulty. They could even be a complementary set …