CFA pass rates in 2026, window by window

The official pass rates for every 2026 window and all three levels, with the publisher, date and method behind each figure, and what they can and cannot tell you about your own chances.

Last updated: 2 November 2026

Pass rates are the most quoted CFA statistic and one of the most misread. A single percentage gets passed around without its window, its level or its source, and quickly turns into a rule of thumb that nobody can check. This page does the opposite: every figure below names who published it, when, and how it was calculated. Where CFA Institute does not publish a number, we do not publish one either, and we say so rather than fill the gap with an estimate.

Confirmed The 2026 series

WindowLevel ILevel IILevel IIIOverall
February 202645%50%—46%
May 202639%43%—40%
August 202643%45%47%44%
November 2026Exam this month — no results yet

Source and method. All figures are published by CFA Institute. The February and May 2026 figures come from its official historical results table, “1963–current candidate examination results” (a PDF with no revision date, consulted on 2 November 2026). The August 2026 figures come from the sources listed in the next section. In every case the method is the one the publisher uses: the percentage of candidates examined in that window who passed. Level III is only examined in the August window in 2026, which is why its column is empty for February and May.

August 2026: the newest results

August is the only 2026 window that tested all three levels, and its results were released in stages, one level at a time.

Method for all four: the percentage of candidates examined in the August 2026 window who passed, as reported by CFA Institute.

For Level I candidates, the useful reading is the direction rather than the decimal. The August result recovered from May’s 39% and came in close to February’s 45%. That is a normal amount of movement between windows, not a sign that the exam became easier or harder in any structural sense.

Comparing the three levels

In August 2026 the three levels landed within four points of each other: 43% for Level I, 45% for Level II and 47% for Level III. It is tempting to conclude that the later levels are easier. They are not directly comparable. Each level is a different exam, sat by a different group of candidates, and everyone sitting Level II or Level III has already passed the level before it. A higher pass rate further up the program says more about who is sitting than about how hard the exam is. For a Level I candidate, the Level I figure is the only one that describes the exam you are preparing for.

November 2026: when to expect results

The November 2026 window runs from 11 to 17 November 2026, so there are no results to report yet. CFA Institute publishes results between five and nine weeks after the window closes.

Estimate Applying that range to a window that closes on 17 November gives a release some time between late December 2026 and the second half of January 2027. This is our own arithmetic on CFA Institute’s stated range and the window dates we track, not an announced date. CFA Institute emails candidates when results are available, and we will add the November figures here once they are published.

What a pass rate actually measures

The figure is simple: of the candidates who sat the exam in a given window, the share who passed. A few consequences follow that are worth keeping in mind before you use it to plan.

It describes a group, not you

A 43% pass rate does not mean you have a 43% chance of passing. The candidates in any window differ widely in preparation, background and hours studied. The rate is an average across all of them, and your own outcome depends far more on how you prepare than on which side of the average a particular window landed.

It moves between windows

Level I ranged from 39% to 45% across the three 2026 windows so far. Movements of that size are normal. Each window has a different mix of candidates, and the result depends on that mix as well as on the exam itself. Reading a single window as a trend is a mistake; reading the range across several windows is more informative.

The passing score is not published

CFA Institute does not disclose the minimum score needed to pass, and it is not a fixed percentage of correct answers. Anything you read that names a precise passing score is a guess. The practical response is to aim well above any figure you have seen quoted, because there is no reliable way to aim exactly at the line.

Only official figures belong in a comparison

Some candidates try to break pass rates down further, for example by how many times someone has attempted the exam or whether they moved from an earlier window. CFA Institute does not publish those breakdowns, so any figure you see for them is not official. We do not report them.

How to use these numbers when planning

Pass rates are useful as a reminder of scale, not as a forecast. More than half of the candidates in each 2026 window did not pass, and almost all of them had studied. That is the honest case for preparing with a margin rather than to a target.

Our rule for this page. Every percentage here carries its publisher, its date and its method. If CFA Institute describes a figure without stating its value, as it did with the Level I ten-year average in September 2026, we report the description and leave the number out.

Frequently asked questions

What was the CFA Level I pass rate in August 2026?

43%, according to CFA Institute’s press release of 24 September 2026. The figure is the percentage of candidates examined in the August 2026 window who passed.

What were the Level II and Level III pass rates in August 2026?

Level II was 45% (CFA Institute, press release of 30 September 2026) and Level III was 47% (CFA Institute, press release of 20 October 2026). CFA Institute gives a ten-year Level III average of 50%.

When will the November 2026 results be released?

CFA Institute publishes results between five and nine weeks after a window closes. The November 2026 window closes on 17 November, so results are likely between late December 2026 and the second half of January 2027. That is our estimate, not an announced date.

Is one exam window easier to pass than another?

Not in any reliable way. Level I pass rates varied between 39% and 45% across the 2026 windows so far, which reflects normal variation in the candidates sitting each window.

Sources

Keep reading

Exam dates and deadlinesWindows, fees and the new deferral rules. Practice questionsExam format and how to practise so it counts. Building a study planHow to work backwards from your window.
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