Level I results · checked Sep 19, 2026
Every Level I pass rate CFA Institute has published since 2019, what the minimum passing score actually is, and the mock-exam target that puts you on the right side of it.
Roughly 4 in 10 candidates pass. The rest mostly ran out of hours, not ability.
Based on CFA Master registered accounts and sign-in countries, September 2026.
Quick answer
The most recent CFA Level 1 pass rate CFA Institute has published is 45% for the May 2025 window. Across the last four published windows it averaged 44%, and across every window since 2019 it averaged 37%, with a low of 22% in July 2021 and a high of 46% in May 2024. CFA Institute does not publish a pass mark: the minimum passing score is set by its Board after each window, and candidates commonly estimate it at 65–70%.
Across 20 published windows since 2019, including the pandemic-era lows.
CFA Institute sets a minimum passing score per window after the exam. Estimates cluster around 65–70%.
Questions you would need at the estimated pass mark. Score above that on mocks and the average stops mattering.
Whole-number percentages as CFA Institute reports them. Newest year first.
| 2019 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 42%1 window | 29%5 windows | 37%4 windows | 37%4 windows | 44%4 windows | 45%2 windows |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2025 | 45% | Above average | — |
| May 2025Latest | 45% | Above average | — |
| 2025 average | 45% | 2 windows published | |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2024 | 44% | Above average | First window on the slimmer 2024 curriculum |
| May 2024 | 46% | Above average | — |
| August 2024 | 44% | Above average | — |
| November 2024 | 43% | Above average | — |
| 2024 average | 44% | 4 windows published | |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2023 | 38% | Above average | — |
| May 2023 | 39% | Above average | — |
| August 2023 | 37% | On average | — |
| November 2023 | 35% | Below average | — |
| 2023 average | 37% | 4 windows published | |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2022 | 36% | Below average | — |
| May 2022 | 38% | Above average | — |
| August 2022 | 37% | On average | — |
| November 2022 | 36% | Below average | — |
| 2022 average | 37% | 4 windows published | |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2021 | 44% | Above average | First computer-based window |
| May 2021 | 25% | Below average | Pandemic-deferral cohort; record low |
| July 2021 | 22% | Below average | One-off window; all-time low |
| August 2021 | 26% | Below average | — |
| November 2021 | 27% | Below average | — |
| 2021 average | 29% | 5 windows published | |
| Exam window | Pass rate | vs long-run average (37%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 2019 | 42% | Above average | Last paper-based December sitting |
| 2019 average | 42% | 1 window published | |
There is no fixed percentage. Here is how the minimum passing score (MPS) actually works.
CFA Institute's Board of Governors sets the minimum passing score using a standard-setting process (a modified Angoff method) in which charterholders judge how a minimally qualified candidate would perform on each question. It is set after the window, so it can absorb differences in difficulty between exam forms.
CFA Institute has never disclosed an MPS. The widely repeated 65–70% band is an estimate from candidate score reports, not an official figure, and the true value moves from window to window.
Results show whether you were above or below the MPS overall and, for each topic, whether you scored under 50%, between 50% and 70%, or above 70%, with a 90% confidence interval. Failing candidates also get a score band relative to the MPS.
Candidates with a score close to the MPS have their Ethics performance weighed in the decision. A strong Ethics score can lift a borderline result; a weak one can sink it.
Official figures live with CFA Institute
CFA Master is an independent revision tool and is not affiliated with CFA Institute. Pass rates above were last checked on September 19, 2026; newer windows may have been published since. Confirm any figure you rely on in the official CFA Institute pass-rate page .
A 44% pass rate means the median candidate walks in under-prepared. Four habits separate the candidates who pass first time.
The pass mark is not published, but candidates who consistently score above 70% on realistic, timed 180-question mocks are comfortably clear of every estimate. Mock scores in the 65s are a coin flip.
Take the 180-question mock examEthics, FSA, Equity and Fixed Income are more than half the marks. A weak Derivatives score costs a handful of questions; a weak Ethics score costs a dozen and loses the tiebreak.
See the topic weightsCandidates who fail narrowly usually recognised the topic and could not recall the rule. Logging each miss in your own words, by module, is what closes that gap by exam week.
Drill the question bankSuccessful candidates report about 300 hours. If your window leaves fewer than twelve weeks and you have not started, the next window is the higher-probability choice.
Check the exam windowsScore history saves to your free account.
Study from your curriculum or provider, capture every rule you keep missing in editable cheat sheets, and revise from your own repository until your mock scores sit above 70%.
The 2025 Level I windows published so far: February 45% and May 45%. CFA Institute releases each window's rate with its results, roughly six to eight weeks after the window closes.
CFA Institute has never published the minimum passing score. It is set after each window by the Board of Governors using a standard-setting process, so it moves with exam difficulty. Candidate estimates cluster around 65–70% — about 117–126 of 180 questions — and consistently scoring above 70% on timed mocks is the practical target.
The 2021 windows (February 44%, May 25%, July 22%, August 26% and November 27%) followed the pandemic cancellations: many candidates had deferred repeatedly, studied a curriculum that had since changed, and sat the first computer-based exams with less practice. Rates recovered through 2022 and 2023 and returned to the mid-40s from 2024.
Yes, relative to 2021–2023. The last four published windows average 44%, against a long-run average of 37%. Most observers link the recovery to the streamlined 2024 curriculum and to candidates registering with more preparation time.
Through a modified Angoff standard-setting process: panels of charterholders judge, question by question, how a minimally competent candidate would perform, and the Board of Governors sets the MPS from that judgement after reviewing the window's results. Ethics performance is then used as a tiebreaker for candidates close to the line.
Pass or fail, your overall score relative to the MPS, and a per-topic band (below 50%, 50–70%, above 70%) with a 90% confidence interval. Failing candidates also receive a band from 1 to 10 showing how close they were to the minimum passing score.