The 2027 CFA curriculum has some changes across the levels:
- Level 1: Quantitative Methods, Equities & Ethics has major updates.
- Level 2: Only Ethics has major updates.
- Level 3: Major update in Ethics only, other Core topics and Specialized Pathways unchanged vs 2026.
- Topic weights remain identical to 2026 for all levels.
Overall, there has been some CFA curriculum changes 2027 across all CFA levels. For all Levels, Ethics Standards have been split into separate Learning Modules (LMs), which increased the total number of LMs. Other than Ethics, there are no further changes for Level 2 and Level 3 vs 2026.
There are significantly more changes in CFA Level 1 2027, with Quantitative Methods and Equities receiving major updates.
What does this mean? 2027 CFA Level 2 and 3 candidates can safely reuse 2026 study materials, with the exception of Ethics. Given Quant is the first and foundational topic for CFA Level 1, it’s best for 2027 CFA L1 candidates to use the updated versions in their studies. 2027 topic weights remain identical to 2026 for all levels, so your study plan allocation doesn’t need adjustment.
Why curriculum changes matter: Understanding year-over-year changes helps candidates determine if previous-year materials are usable, whether to purchase new prep materials, and how to adjust study plans if retaking an exam. With 2027’s moderate changes, feel free to reuse 2026 books for topics that are unchanged, and no study plan adjustments are needed. ☕
Why are CFA curriculum changes and topic weights important?
Topic weights are key to CFA study plans, as it guides candidates on the importance of each topic for the exams. Needless to say, higher weighted topics deserve more study time, focus and practice.
With the recent major changes in CFA curriculum, knowing the nuanced changes in advance are useful in certain circumstances, for example:
- Candidates who have yet to register for the 2027 exam, yet want to get a head start on reading existing 2026 study materials. They need to make sure that what they are studying now will be part of the updated curriculum;
- Candidates who are interested in getting second hand, previous year versions of third party study materials for the next exam; or
- Candidates who (unfortunately) failed a current year exam, and are planning to retake in 6-12 months time. Existing third party study materials may be re-used if the curriculum changes are minor between these 2 years.
Here are the quick summaries of the topic weights and curriculum changes that you need to know for your exam.
For each level, there is also a free 1 pager summary PDF you can download at the end of each section.
What are the CFA Level 1 topic weights for 2027?
CFA Level 1’s topic weights tends to be a range rather than an absolute %.
There are no changes to 2027’s CFA level 1 topic weights compared to 2026’s, which has been stable since 2024’s changes.
| CFA Level 1 Topic Weights | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethics | 15-20% | 15-20% | 15-20% | 15-20% | 15-20% |
| Quant Methods | 8-12% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% |
| Economics | 8-12% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% |
| Financial Statement Analysis | 13-17% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% |
| Corp. Finance | 8-12% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% | 6-9% |
| Equities | 10-12% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% |
| Fixed Income | 10-12% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% | 11-14% |
| Derivatives | 5-8% | 5-8% | 5-8% | 5-8% | 5-8% |
| Alt. Investments | 5-8% | 7-10% | 7-10% | 7-10% | 7-10% |
| Portfolio Mgmt. | 5-8% | 8-12% | 8-12% | 8-12% | 8-12% |
Since 2024’s CFA Level 1 topic weights changes, there has been more practical focus on Equities, Fixed Income, Alternative Investments and Portfolio Management, at the expense perhaps more theoretical topics such as Quantitative Methods, Economics, Financial Statement Analysis and Corporate Finance.
These changes are done to sharpen the focus of the curriculum to ensure that candidates can apply their skills on-the-job earlier whilst preparing for CFA Level 1.
What changed in the CFA Level 1 curriculum for 2027?
This year, there are major changes to 3 topics in 2027 CFA Level 1 curriculum vs 2026:
- Quantitative Methods and Equities has a full topic update, with most old LMs removed and new ones added.
- The 7 Ethics Standards are split into individual LMs and updated.
Overall, there are 102 Learning Modules in 2027’s Level 1 Curriculum, up from 93 in 2026. There are also 3 minor topic title changes, e.g. Corporate Issuers to Corporate Finance, Equity Investments to Equities, and Portfolio Management to Portfolio Construction.
More details of the changes are shown in the table below, as well as a 1 pager summary PDF you can download.
What are the CFA Level 2 topic weights for 2027?
Similar to CFA Level 1, there are no changes to 2027’s CFA level 2 topic weights compared to 2026’s.
This is as expected given historical trends of reducing the variability in topic weight across the 10 topics, with a maximum range difference of 5% per topic.
These changes may have been done to discourage candidates from purely just focusing on the (previously) big 5 topics of Level 2 (FSA, Corporate Finance, Equities, Fixed Income and Derivatives).
Based on 2027’s topic weighting, it is possible for the 10 topics to be tested evenly at 10% weighting each for CFA Level 2.
This is where the discussion on optimal Level 2 study order gets interesting!
| CFA Level 2 Topic Weights | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quant Methods | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Economics | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Financial Statement Analysis | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Corp Finance | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Equities | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Fixed Income | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Derivatives | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Alt. Investments | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Portfolio Construction | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Ethics | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
What changed in the CFA Level 2 curriculum for 2027?
Some good news: there’s only a small update to Level 2 Ethics in 2027 vs 2026. Other topics remain the same as 2026’s.
What this means for you: The 2027 Level 2 curriculum is nearly identical to 2026’s except Ethics, whereby the Guidance for Standards I-VII have been split into individual LMs, just like Level 1 and Level 3.
As a result, there are 51 LMs in 2027’s CFA Level 2 Curriculum, 6 more than 2026’s.
More details of the changes are shown in the table below, as well as a 1 pager summary PDF you can download.
What are the CFA Level 3 topic weights for 2027?
To recap, there has been a large change in structure for CFA Level 3 exams from 2025 with the introduction of a “core” curriculum and an elective part, a.k.a. Specialized Pathways:
- The core Level 3 curriculum is studied by all candidates and takes up 65-70% of the exam weight. It consists of a more focused range of topics such as Asset Allocation, Portfolio Construction, Performance Measurement, Derivatives and Risk Management, and Ethics.
- Candidates can then choose one of three Specialized Pathways (30-35% exam weight): Porfolio Management, Private Wealth or Private Markets.
There has been no changes in CFA Level 3 topic weights since 2025.
| CFA Level 3 Topic Weights | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Topics (65-70% total exam weight) | |||
| Asset Allocation | 15-20% | 15-20% | 15-20% |
| Derivatives | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Portfolio Management / Construction | 15-20% | 15-20% | 15-20% |
| Performance Measurement | 5-10% | 5-10% | 5-10% |
| Ethics | 10-15% | 10-15% | 10-15% |
| Specialized Pathways (30-35% exam weight, choose 1) | |||
| Pathway A: Portfolio Management | 30-35% | 30–35% | 30–35% |
| Pathway B: Private Markets | 30-35% | 30–35% | 30–35% |
| Pathway C: Private Wealth | 30-35% | 30–35% | 30–35% |
What changed in the CFA Level 3 curriculum for 2027?
More good news: other than Ethics, there are no significant changes to CFA Level 3 curriculum this year vs 2026. Yay!
What this means for you: The 2027 Level 3 curriculum is nearly identical to 2026 except Ethics. CFA Institute is giving candidates stability to adapt to the new Pathway format without the added complexity of annual curriculum changes. All 2026 Core readings (excluding Ethics) and all three Pathway curricula (Portfolio Management, Private Markets, Private Wealth) are unchanged for 2027.
More details of the changes are shown in the table below, as well as a 1 pager summary PDF you can download, if preferred.
For CFA Level 1, it’s probably best to use 2027’s curriculum to study, as there are 3 topics that have major updates. For CFA Level 2 and 3, it seems pretty safe to reuse 2026’s books (except Ethics) to study for now. I hope you’ve found the above useful in your next CFA exam study preparations!
Not for CFA Level 2 and 3, moderate changes for CFA Level 1 in 2027.
In Level 3, Quantitative Methods, Ethics and Equities have significant updates, whilst Level 3 is largely unchanged, except for Ethics topic.
For CFA Level 1, about 7 out of the 10 topics have no significant changes, so it’s quite safe to start with that. That said Quantitative Methods, Equities and Ethics have major updates and it’s worth switching to the latest materials if budget / time allows.
For CFA Level 2 and 3, there are no significant changes between 2026 and 2027 curriculum, except Ethics. So it’s quite safe to reuse most of 2026’s study materials for 2027.
No. Topic weight ranges remain identical to 2026 for all three levels.
Level 1: Ethics 15-20%, FSA/Equity/Fixed Income 11-14% each, Portfolio Management 8-12%, and so on.
Level 2: All topics remain 5-15% with no changes.
Level 3: Core topics 65-70% total, Specialized Pathways 30-35%, all unchanged.
Your study time allocation based on 2026 weights remains accurate for 2027.
CFA Institute has signaled a commitment to multi-year curriculum stability after major restructuring from 2021-2025. Recent changes included: computer-based testing (2021), elimination of constructed response in Levels 1-2 (2021), Ethics moved to end of Level 1 (2023), and introduction of Specialized Pathways in Level 3 (2025). After these transformations, stability allows candidates to focus on mastery rather than adapting to new structures.
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