How many people fail the CPA exam?
Asked by: Trever Gislason DVM | Last update: August 30, 2025Score: 4.4/5 (60 votes)
About half of the individuals who take the CPA Exam don't pass on their first attempt. According to the AICPA, the national average pass rate is 45-55%. Cumulative pass rates reported by the AICPA for the calendar year 2021 show that FAR had the lowest pass rate at 44.54% and BEC had the highest pass rate at 61.94%.
How common is it to fail a CPA Exam?
The overall pass rate of the CPA Exam hovers around 50%, but how many people manage to pass all four sections—including three core and one discipline—on the first try? About 20%. Around 1 in 2 people will pass a specific section of the exam, and about 1 in 5 people will pass each section on their first try.
Is a 75% on the CPA Exam passing?
CPA Exam Scoring Process: The CPA exam is scored using a weighted combination of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and task-based simulations (TBSs). Minimum Passing Score: You need a scaled score of 75 to pass, which doesn't necessarily mean answering 75% of questions correctly.
Is the CPA the hardest test to pass?
Is the CPA exam the hardest professional exam? The CPA Exam is considered one of the hardest professional exams because of the amount of information it covers and how long it is (16 hours divided between 4 exam sections).
Is CPA harder than MCAT?
The CPA exam is widely regarded as the most challenging professional examination for a few reasons. Its length, number of topics, and technical details covered typically rank it harder than the BAR and MCAT.
why failing the cpa exam multiple times doesn't have to be a bad thing
How many pass CPA on first try?
About half of the individuals who take the CPA Exam don't pass on their first attempt. According to the AICPA, the national average pass rate is 45-55%. Cumulative pass rates reported by the AICPA for the calendar year 2021 show that FAR had the lowest pass rate at 44.54% and BEC had the highest pass rate at 61.94%.
Has anyone gotten a 100 on the CPA Exam?
Any score of 75 or above on the scaled score of 0 to 99 is considered passing. Has anyone gotten a 100 on the CPA exam? It is highly unlikely for anyone to score a 100 on the CPA exam.
How many times can I fail the CPA?
Unlimited Retakes: You can retake the CPA exam sections as many times as needed. However, you must pass all sections within 18 to 30 months after passing the first section.
Which is the toughest exam in the world?
The most difficult exam in the world is Gaokao Exam in China. Gaokao is an annual standardised test in China that is mandatory for admission to all of the country's Higher Educational Institutes. This article will be helpful for you, if you are exploring information about the hardest exam in the world.
What is the CPA passing rate in Canada?
The 70.5%, 71.3% and 73.6% pass rates are the combined averages of the first-time writers in both the May and September CFEs. Overall, there is a decrease of 1-2% year-over-year, with 2023 CFE pass rate of 70.5%.
Is the CPA harder than the bar?
Yes, the CPA Exam is harder than the Bar Exam.
Both the CPA Exam and the Bar exam are notoriously difficult exams that require months of rigorous study and cover very different material. However, if you look at just the exam pass rate for first-time takers, then the CPA exam is harder, with only a 14 - 20% pass rate.
Which university has the highest CPA pass rate?
- University of Pennsylvania: 90.9%
- Rice University: 90.8%
- University of Texas – Austin: 89.5%
- Brigham Young University: 89.4%
- Wake Forest University: 88.8%
Do I have to pay again if I fail CPA Exam?
All re-examination candidates are required to pay the CPA Exam retake fees, which include both the re-application and examination fee.
Can you be an accountant without a CPA?
While all CPAs are accountants, not all accountants are CPAs. In fact, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and CPA licensure data, only about 50% of accountants in the United States are actively licensed CPAs.
Is PMP harder than CPA?
The CPA exam is considered more difficult due to its broader scope, multiple exam sections, and higher failure rates. The PMP exam, while challenging, is more focused on project management principles and typically requires less study time compared to the CPA exam.
What is the most failed CPA Exam?
Financial Accounting & Reporting (FAR)
Candidates we've surveyed say that FAR is the most difficult section of the CPA Exam. It consistently has the lowest passing rate likely due to the large volume of information in the section and the need to fully understand concepts rather than simply memorize them.
How long do you have to pass the CPA Exam in 2024?
Candidates who have passed at least one section of the CPA Exam before January 1, 2024, will have those credits extended to June 30, 2025 (see if your jurisdiction has adopted this here) Candidates in most states now have 30 or 36 months to pass the exam.
Why is CPA so hard?
Each section has an incredible amount of material to cover when studying. That's one of the main reasons why the CPA Exam is so difficult—and there's no way to cut that down. It makes efficiency crucial when studying so you can get through all the material and truly understand it and be able to apply it later.
Is 75 a passing score for CPA?
The CPA Exam is scored on a scale from 0 to 99, and a CPA passing score for each section is a minimum of 75.
How many people pass CPA on first try?
You've probably heard quite a bit of intimidating details about how hard it is — it's long, it requires hundreds of hours of study time, it's so difficult that the average CPA Exam passing rate for first-time candidates is only 50%.
Did the CPA Exam get harder?
Actually, it is fact that the content of the exam has grown over the years as the breadth of knowledge an entry level CPA is expected to possess has expanded (source: just trust me bro). That isn't to say the modern CPA exam is harder, just more. Moving on…
Is CPA harder than LSAT?
Some candidates claim that it's easier to study for the LSAT than the CPA Exam and that the LSAT requires fewer study hours to get a good score. The CPA Exam requires a lot of memorization, and most candidates need to take several practice exams before they can pass.
How many hours to study for CPA?
The AICPA recommends that candidates spend between 300-400 hours to study for the entire exam CPA exam. Because we all learn differently, some sections will require more study hours than others due to the volume of material included in a section and how quickly one is able to grasp and retain the study material.
Is CFA harder than CPA?
CFA vs CPA Exam difficulty
Both are challenging and require gaining skills and knowledge in complex topics. However, the CPA Exam generally requires less studying - around 80 to 120 hours per section compared to 300 hours per section of the CFA Exam, and the CPA Exam also has a higher pass rate.