CFA Level 1 - STUDY PLAN 2026

  • Overview

  • Instructor’s Notes

  • Video Explanation

The study plan has been structured after careful analysis to sequence topics logically for CFA Level 1. Follow the weeks in order for a balanced mix of quantitative and conceptual learning.

KEY used to represent CFA Level 1 topics:

QM

Quantitative Methods

ECO

Economics

CI

Corporate Issuers

AI

Alternative Investments

EI

Equity

FI

Fixed Income

FSA

Financial Statement Analysis

DT

Derivatives

PM

Portfolio Management

ETH

Ethics

Schedule

WEEK

01

QM
  • QM 1 PreInterest Rates, Present Value & Future Value- (60 minutes)
  • QM 1 CoreRates and Returns- (150 minutes)
  • QM 2 CoreTime Value of Money in Finance- (150 minutes)

WEEK

02

QM
  • QM 2 PreOrganizing, Visualizing & Describing Data- (100 minutes)
  • QM 3 CoreStatistical Measures of Asset Returns- (150 minutes)
  • QM 5 CorePortfolio Mathematics- (60 minutes)

WEEK

03

QM
  • QM 3 PreProbability Concepts- (150 minutes)
  • QM 4 CoreProbability Trees and Conditional Expectations- (90 minutes)
  • QM 4 PreCommon Probability Distributions- (90 minutes)
  • QM 6 CoreSimulation Methods- (60 minutes)

WEEK

04

QM
  • QM 5 PreSampling and Estimation- (60 minutes)
  • QM 7 CoreEstimation and Inference- (60 minutes)
  • QM 6 PreBasics of Hypothesis Testing- (120 minutes)
  • QM 8 CoreHypothesis Testing- (30 minutes)
  • QM 9 CoreParametric and Non-Parametric Tests of Independence- (30 minutes)

How to use the plan

Turn the schedule into a working study system

A weekly calendar is useful only when you know how to execute it under real-life constraints. Use the rules below to decide how to place study blocks, how to revise each week, and when to adjust the plan without losing the syllabus.

Protect your weekly rhythm

A plan only works when the study slots are fixed before the week starts. Decide where your weekday reading blocks, weekend problem-solving blocks, and revision buffer will sit so the schedule survives work and family interruptions.

Treat reading and retention separately

Do not confuse finishing a reading with owning it. Each week should include three layers: first exposure, quick recall from memory, and then question practice to see whether the concept survives under exam pressure.

Carry ethics throughout the plan

Ethics is easier to retain when it stays in rotation. Instead of leaving it for the last month, keep short ethics review sessions active from the start and connect standards to the rest of the curriculum.

Use checkpoints before you move on

At the end of every major block, stop and test whether you can explain formulas, interpret answer choices, and solve medium-difficulty questions without notes. If not, repair that gap before stacking more content on top of it.

How to adjust the Level 1 plan without breaking it

Most candidates need some customization. The key is to compress or extend the calendar intelligently instead of dropping entire revision stages.

If you are working full time

Keep weekday sessions lighter and use weekends for longer problem-solving blocks. In practice, that usually means reading during the week and doing questions, review sheets, and weak-area repair on Saturday or Sunday.

If your exam window is closer than planned

Compress the plan by protecting high-weight modules first: ethics, financial statement analysis, fixed income, equity, and portfolio management. Low-yield perfection on smaller topics is less useful than broad competence across the core.

If you fall behind for two or more weeks

Do not restart from week one. Rebuild from your current position, merge smaller readings into combined sessions, and schedule a catch-up review week after every major cluster rather than pretending the missed time never happened.

What a strong Level 1 study week looks like

The schedule works best when each week follows the same pattern: coverage, recall, questions, and then planning for the next block.

Start each week with a coverage target

Before the week starts, define which readings, question sets, and review tasks must be completed by the weekend. That turns the calendar into a measurable commitment and makes it easier to catch slippage before it snowballs.

Use midweek recall to test understanding

By the middle of the week, stop passively reading and ask whether you can explain the topic from memory. If recall is weak, fix it immediately instead of pushing the confusion into the next block of the plan.

Close the week with questions

A strong study week should end with problem-solving, not rereading. Questions expose timing issues, formula gaps, and false confidence much faster than another pass through the notes.

Plan the next week before Sunday ends

Reserve a short planning block to decide what carries over, what gets reviewed again, and what starts next. That small habit keeps the schedule realistic and prevents backlog from building unnoticed.

CFA Level 1 study plan FAQs

How many hours per week should this Level 1 study plan assume?

For most candidates, the plan works best with consistent weekly study rather than occasional marathon days. A practical target is enough time to finish the assigned readings, review notes, and complete questions without skipping revision. Working professionals usually need to protect weekends more aggressively than students.

When should I start mock tests in a Level 1 plan?

Start lighter mixed-topic tests once you have covered most of the high-weight modules and leave full-length mocks for the final revision phase. The goal is not just scoring, but learning how fatigue and timing affect your accuracy.

What should I revise most in the final month?

In the last month, focus on formulas that are easy to forget, ethics application, financial statement analysis, fixed income, and question sets from your weakest topics. Final revision is usually about tightening recall and decision speed, not reading new material from scratch.