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CFA Syllabus
Chartered Financial Analyst. The complete CFA outline — 10 subjects, 28 chapters and 68 topics — laid out so you can see exactly what has to be covered and tick each item off as you go.
CFA subjects
Each subject below has its own page with the full chapter → topic → sub-topic tree and a set of real exam-style flashcards.
2 chapters · 9 topics
Quantitative Methods3 chapters · 8 topics
Economics2 chapters · 6 topics
Financial Reporting and Analysis3 chapters · 7 topics
Corporate Finance3 chapters · 7 topics
Equity Investments3 chapters · 6 topics
Fixed Income3 chapters · 6 topics
Derivatives3 chapters · 6 topics
Alternative Investments3 chapters · 7 topics
Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning3 chapters · 6 topics
CFA flashcard decks
514 question-and-answer cards across 10 decks, written against this syllabus. Preview any deck free.
- Ethical and Professional Standards — 60 cards
- Quantitative Methods — 51 cards
- Economics — 50 cards
- Financial Reporting and Analysis — 50 cards
- Corporate Finance — 50 cards
- Equity Investments — 51 cards
- Fixed Income — 51 cards
- Derivatives — 51 cards
- Alternative Investments — 49 cards
- Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning — 51 cards
How to work through the CFA 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: Ethical and Professional Standards carries 9 topics while Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning carries 6. Giving both the same number of weeks is the most common planning mistake for CFA.
The ~50 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.
CFA syllabus FAQ
What subjects are in the CFA syllabus?
CFA covers 10 subjects: Ethical and Professional Standards, Quantitative Methods, Economics, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Corporate Finance, Equity Investments, Fixed Income and Derivatives, and 2 more. Together they contain 28 chapters and 68 named topics.
How big is the CFA syllabus?
The full CFA outline breaks down into 28 chapters, 68 topics and 0 sub-topics. Ethical and Professional Standards is the largest single subject with 9 topics across 2 chapters.
How long does it take to cover the whole CFA syllabus?
Roughly 50 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 2 weeks.
Are there CFA flashcards?
Yes — 514 question-and-answer flashcards across 10 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 CFA syllabus free to use?
Yes. Every page here is free to read, and importing the CFA syllabus into the Examius app to tick off topics as you finish them is free too. No account is needed to start.
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