United States
Hong KongThe CFP exam, start to finish
The Certified Financial Planner exam: 170 questions over six hours, three windows a year, and a year of coursework before you are allowed to sit.
Overview
- Questions
- 170, all scored
- Time
- Six hours - two sessions of three hours, 85 questions each
- Pass mark
- Not published by CFP Board, in any form
- Pass rate
- Around 64%; 66% in the July 2026 window
- Format
- Multiple choice: stand-alone, short scenarios and case studies
- Fee
- USD 825 early / 925 standard / 1,025 final week
- Sittings
- Three windows a year - March, July, November
- Administered by
- Prometric, on behalf of CFP Board
- Before you can sit
- CFP Board Registered Program coursework, 12-18 months
- Results
- Pass or fail, within four weeks of the window closing
The eight knowledge domains
| Domain | Subtopics | Questions (derived) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Retirement Savings and Income Planning | 7 | 31 |
| 2. Investment Planning | 8 | 29 |
| 3. General Principles of Financial Planning | 8 | 25 |
| 4. Tax Planning | 8 | 24 |
| 5. Risk Management and Insurance Planning | 8 | 19 |
| 6. Estate Planning | 8 | 17 |
| 7. Professional Conduct and Regulation | 6 | 13 |
| 8. Psychology of Financial Planning | 6 | 12 |
Every section of the guide
Exam basics and logistics
Windows, registration, format, fees and how results arrive.
15 articlesDifficulty and pass rates
What CFP Board's published pass rate does and does not tell you.
9 articlesThe eight knowledge domains
Every Principal Knowledge Domain, its weighting, and what sits inside it.
94 articlesStudy plans and method
Schedules built around the 250-300 hours this takes, and around a job.
13 articlesPractice and exam technique
How CFP case studies are built, and how to take six hours of them.
14 articlesCertification mechanics
Education, exam, experience and ethics - and which one actually gates you.
15 articlesPay, jobs and the work itself
What the marks are worth, who hires, and whether it opens the door you want.
15 articlesComparisons
CFP against the CFA, the ChFC, and against doing nothing.
20 articlesQuick answers
Short answers to the specific things candidates ask.
20 articlesIf you only read a few
- The CFP exam pass rate, and the number it is constantly confused with
- Review courses: what you are actually buying
- CFP practice questions, and why the case studies are the whole exam
- Question banks compared
- What to actually buy
- Do you need a review course?
- Free versus paid prep
- Live class versus self-study
- Mock exams and what they are worth
- The total cost
- What a good question looks like