🇺🇸 United States · Accounting

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Syllabus

Premier US accounting license issued by state boards via the AICPA Uniform CPA Examination for public accountants and auditors.. The complete Certified Public Accountant (CPA) outline — 5 subjects, 24 chapters and 142 topics — laid out so you can see exactly what has to be covered and tick each item off as you go.

5Subjects

24Chapters

142Topics

84Sub-topics

279Flashcards

~125hEst. first pass

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) subjects

Each subject below has its own page with the full chapter → topic → sub-topic tree and a set of real exam-style flashcards.

Auditing and Attestation (AUD) — Core

5 chapters · 33 topics · 30 sub-topics

~30h first pass · 51 flashcards Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) — Core

5 chapters · 33 topics · 20 sub-topics

~30h first pass · 51 flashcards Taxation and Regulation (REG) — Core

5 chapters · 31 topics · 17 sub-topics

~25h first pass · 51 flashcards Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR) — Discipline

5 chapters · 26 topics · 8 sub-topics

~20h first pass · 56 flashcards Information Systems and Controls (ISC) — Discipline

4 chapters · 19 topics · 9 sub-topics

~15h first pass · 70 flashcards

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) flashcard decks

279 question-and-answer cards across 5 decks, written against this syllabus. Preview any deck free.

How to work through the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus

The outline on this page is arranged the way the syllabus itself is: subject, then chapter, then topic, then sub-topic. That last level is what most study plans skip, and it is where coverage actually goes wrong — a chapter marked "done" often has three sub-topics inside it that were never touched.

Weight your plan accordingly: Auditing and Attestation (AUD) — Core carries 33 topics while Information Systems and Controls (ISC) — Discipline carries 19. Giving both the same number of weeks is the most common planning mistake for Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

The ~125 hour estimate above is a first pass only: roughly 45 minutes per topic plus 12 minutes per sub-topic. Revision cycles, past papers and mocks sit on top of that number.

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus FAQ

What subjects are in the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus?

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) covers 5 subjects: Auditing and Attestation (AUD) — Core, Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) — Core, Taxation and Regulation (REG) — Core, Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR) — Discipline and Information Systems and Controls (ISC) — Discipline. Together they contain 24 chapters and 142 named topics.

How big is the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus?

The full Certified Public Accountant (CPA) outline breaks down into 24 chapters, 142 topics and 84 sub-topics. Auditing and Attestation (AUD) — Core is the largest single subject with 33 topics across 5 chapters.

How long does it take to cover the whole Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus?

Roughly 125 hours for one full pass. That estimate allows about 45 minutes per topic plus 12 minutes per sub-topic, so it is first-pass coverage — revision, past papers and mock tests sit on top of it. At 3 hours a day that is about 6 weeks.

Are there Certified Public Accountant (CPA) flashcards?

Yes — 279 question-and-answer flashcards across 5 decks, one per subject, written against this syllabus. A sample of every deck is readable on this site for free, and the complete decks are in the Examius app.

Is this Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus free to use?

Yes. Every page here is free to read, and importing the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) syllabus into the Examius app to tick off topics as you finish them is free too, in United States and everywhere else. No account is needed to start.

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