Before the CFP® Certification Exam: Meeting the Requirements
First, you need to complete a CFP Board-registered education program. You’ll go through oodles of coursework covering the essential topics of financial planning then complete a capstone where you apply what you learn in more realistic scenarios and case studies.
After you meet the CFP® Education coursework requirement, you can register for the exam, but you can’t sit for it until the CFP Board verifies your completion.
Also, if you don’t already have a bachelor’s degree before you sit for the exam, that’s okay, you can still take the exam. You just need to complete your degree within five years of passing.
To put all of this in 1980’s action movie terms:
- Your coursework is your training montage—you’re bulking up, studying the fundamentals and learning everything you need to take down your opponent (the CFP® Exam).
- Your capstone is your fight with your mentor, proving that the student has indeed become the master.
- Verifying your education with CFP Board is where they declare you are officially ready to take on your opponent.
Accelerated Path
Do you have one of these designations or credentials?
- Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
- Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
- Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) or Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC)
- Ph.D. in Financial Planning, Finance, Business Administration, or Economics
- Licensed Attorney
- International CFP® Certification
If yes, you can take the Accelerated Path—this lets you skip most of the CFP® Education coursework and go straight to the capstone course.
Other Requirements for CFP® Certification
Heads up: meeting the requirements to sit for the exam and the requirements to get certified are different. You know you need the coursework and to pass the CFP® Exam. But CFP Board also requires either 6,000 hours of relevant experience or 4,000 hours in an apprenticeship under a certified CFP® professional to satisfy the experience requirement. You’ll also need to pass a background check and uphold the Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct by signing an ethics pledge (so if you’re planning on committing crimes, maybe being a CFP® professional isn’t for you).
Learn More: CFP® Certification Requirements
Listen up: Check out the BIF Bites podcast episode, CFP Board’s Most Wanted. Jerry and Adam venture into true crime to talk about violations that CFP® professionals and candidates have committed and what happened to them.
The CFP® Exam Format
To go back to our 1980’s action movie metaphor, you need to learn more about your opponent. No surprises in the final boss battle.
The CFP® Certification Exam is a single-day, six-hour long exam with 170 multiple-choice questions. Sound intense? It is. The good news is that the exam is divided into four quarters, each with around 40 questions. You’ll get a scheduled 40-minute break after you finish the first two quarters because you’ve got to recharge and refuel before going back in the ring for Round 2.
The questions on the exam aren’t just about memorization and recall. You’ll need to apply your financial planning knowledge to real-life situations in scenario and case study formats, so make sure you polish up your critical thinking and problem-solving skills along with memorizing the basics.
CFP® Exam Topics
The 170 questions fall into eight key topic buckets:
- Professional Conduct and Regulation (8%)
- General Principles of Financial Planning (15%)
- Risk Management and Insurance Planning (11%)
- Investment Planning (18%)
- Tax Planning (14%)
- Retirement Savings and Income Planning (18%)
- Estate Planning (10%)
- Psychology of Financial Planning (7%)
Scoring and Passing the CFP® Exam
The CFP® Certification Exam is a pass or fail exam and each question earns one point. But it’s not that cut-and-dried where there’s a universal passing score you have to aim for.
Instead, Prometric, the company who administers the exam, and CFP Board use “Modified Angoff Scoring,” a psychometric method which determines the minimum competency needed to pass the exam. To put it as simply as possible, the Prometric team and CFP Board look at each test question and ask “What’s the chance a competent CFP® Professional would answer it correctly?” They assign that likelihood percentage to each question and add all those percentages together to calculate a passing score, though they also do some tinkering and adjustment to the estimates to get the official “cut score.”
Listen up: CFP Board’s John Loper joins the BIF Crew to answer student questions. At around 27:00, he talks about scoring the CFP® Exam in this episode of the BIF Bites podcast.
CFP® Exam Pass Rates
The CFP® Exam pass rate hovers around 65%. So yes, the exam is hard, but you can absolutely pass with the dedicated prep.
How to Prepare for the CFP® Certification Exam
Okay, after you finish your CFP® Education coursework, ace the capstone, and get the ok from CFP Board to sit for the CFP® Exam, you need to make sure you’re ready to pass the exam.
Create a Study Plan
- Set aside dedicated study time each week (no procrastinating!). We recommend at least 10 hours a week, but many students block out a lot more.
- Tackle topics in bite-sized sections so you don’t get overwhelmed or start zoning out
- Set specific goals for each session, like finishing a chapter, getting 100% clear on a concept that’s been tripping you up, or nailing a set score on a practice quiz.
With the BIF Review CFP® Exam prep, you get an organized 8-week study schedule that includes all the important tasks to complete!
Use a Variety of Study Materials
- Textbooks can provide added context and more in-depth information related to the concepts covered on the exam.
- Instructor-led sessions go deeper into specific topics and have real-world examples so you’ll understand and be able to apply what you learn.
- Flashcards and reference sheets reinforce concepts, formulas, and definitions
You get all this stuff, question banks, and so much more with the BIF Review so you can find what resources and tools work the best for you or mix it up so you don’t get bored or burned out.
Practice, Practice, Practice for the CFP® Exam
- Drill through practice questions to find weak spots and know which fundamentals you need to focus on
- Review your wrong answers so you know why you made a mistake and understand the right answer (Seriously, don’t skip this part. Practice questions don’t help much if you don’t know why you’re getting them right or wrong)
- Try full-length exams under real test conditions. Timing is everything.
With the BIF Review (Premium), you'll get a mock exam so you can do a trial run and know what to expect.
Learn more: CFP® Exam Tips
Listen Up: Check out Jerry and Adam’s Question Breakdown Checklist in the BIF Bites Podcast for deep-dives into exam questions.
Study Together
Find your study crew! A group can help you stay motivated, share resources, and tackle tricky topics. Just as important, it’s nice to have someone in the trenches with you who knows what you’re going through.
But remember, do not share actual test questions—that’s a no-go.
With The BIF Review (Premium), you’ll get access to the BIF online community so you can connect and collaborate with other exam candidates and even find study partners!
Scheduling and Registering for the CFP® Exam
After you complete your required coursework and are approved by the board to sit for the exam, you can register and schedule your exam date.
How to Register for the CFP® Certification Exam
You can schedule the CFP® Exam before registering, but we recommend registering with the CFP Board first to ensure you’re eligible. Here’s how:
- Create a CFP Board account if you don’t already have one
- Make sure CFP Board verified that you completed your coursework requirement
- Complete the exam registration form
- Pay the CFP® Exam registration fees
- Schedule your testing appointment through Prometric—instructions will pop up after you pay the exam fees.
CFP® Exam Testing Windows
CFP Board offers the CFP® Certification Exam three times a year (March, July, and November) for eight days each. Testing appointments are limited, so plan ahead to lock down your preferred date. Early registration not only saves you stress but also saves you money.
Speaking of CFP® Exam costs…
CFP® Exam Costs
- Early Bird (6+ weeks before deadline): $825
- Standard Registration: $925
- Late Registration (final week): $1,025
Plan ahead, save some cash, and treat yourself to a celebratory coffee when you register early! And save the more celebratory beverages for after the exam.
What to Expect on CFP® Exam Day
This is the moment it’s all been leading up to – the coursework, the studying, the fees…It’s CFP® Exam day! But you’re not out of the woods yet—here’s a quick checklist to ensure smooth sailing:
- Day-before prep: Stop studying at noon and focus on your mental health and wellbeing. Get good sleep. No one aces a 6-hour exam on 3 hours of shut-eye.
- Morning of: Give yourself extra time to reach the exam center. The last thing you want is being told to reschedule because you got stuck in traffic.
- Must-haves:
- Valid, government-issued ID
- Battery-powered, non-programmable financial function calculator (CFP Board-approved, please)
- Comfortable, layered clothing (testing rooms can feel like Antarctica or the Sahara)
At the center, you’ll undergo a brief body scan or fingerprinting, receive scratch paper, and have your calculator checked for compliance. You can request noise-cancelling headphones and then, it’s game time!
And remember the provided formulas and tax tables we recommended including in your flashcards? Prometric does provide them for the exam.
Listen up: Adam takes you into The Room Where It Happens in this BIF Bites podcast episode.
Finding out your CFP® Exam score
You’ll know as soon as you finish your exam whether you passed or failed. If you receive a Preliminary Fail, you’ll get a high-level breakdown of how you did on each of the Principal Knowledge Topics. If you passed, you don’t get the break down (but who cares? You passed!).
You will get a verified, finalized exam score and a more in-depth analysis of your performance about four weeks after the CFP® Exam cycle closes.
Retaking the CFP® Certification Exam
Didn’t pass the first time? It happens! Many candidates need a second go, and it’s all part of the process. Brush up, use feedback from your first attempt, and hit the books. You’ve got five shots in total (three within 24 months).
Get ready for the CFP® Exam with BIF
From textbooks to live sessions, The BIF Review covers your prep A-Z. With an 8-week roadmap tailored for ultimate success and subject matter experts supporting you every step of the way, you’re going to step into the ring ready to knock out the CFP® Exam (cue “Eye of the Tiger.”)
Ready to get started? Try it FREE for 30 days and see firsthand how we get you ready to pass!
