What's the Minimum Passing Score for CFA Level 1? (MPS Explained)

Updated: Jan 10

If you are searching “What’s the Minimum Passing Score for CFA Level 1”, the most accurate answer is: CFA Institute defines the Minimum Passing Score (MPS) as a scale score threshold, not a fixed percentage of correct answers. In the current reporting framework, the Level I MPS is 1600 on CFA Institute’s Level I scale score range.

What’s the Minimum Passing Score for CFA Level 1 (the official number)?

CFA Institute’s candidate-facing “Understanding your exam results” document states that the MPS for Level I is 1600.

It also describes the Level I scale score range as 1000 to 1900, with 1600 as the passing threshold.

Level I scale score reference

Program level	Minimum score	MPS	Maximum score
Level I	1000	1600	1900

Source: CFA Institute candidate results guidance.

What the MPS is (and what it is not)

The MPS is:

The score needed to pass: candidates at or above the MPS pass; below it do not pass.
Criterion-referenced: CFA Institute frames it as an “absolute standard” of required performance, not a “top X% pass” system.
Used alongside equating to keep standards comparable across administrations when major changes do not occur.

The MPS is not:

A publicly stated raw-score percentage (e.g., “70% correct”). CFA Institute explicitly notes that the percentage of questions you need correct depends on the difficulty of the exam version, even though versions are designed to be comparable on average.
Derived from topic-by-topic “minimums.” CFA Institute cautions that topic-area results can’t be combined to compute an overall outcome; pass/fail is determined from the total scale score.

How CFA Institute sets the MPS for Level I

CFA Institute describes a formal standard-setting workflow:

Standard setting workshop recommends an MPSCFA Institute uses the modified Angoff standard-setting method (an exam-centered, criterion-based approach) to recommend an MPS.
Board of Governors approves and sets the final MPSThe MPS is “approved and set by the Board of Governors,” per CFA Institute’s published guidance.
Equating maintains the standard across windows (when appropriate)When there is no significant curriculum or candidate-population change, CFA Institute states the MPS is maintained via equating, which adjusts for potential difficulty differences between exam forms and enables direct comparisons across administrations.

CFA Institute also notes that if the exam is meaningfully changed (structure, format, or content distribution) or the population changes significantly, equating may not be appropriate and a new standard-setting exercise may be needed.

How to interpret your Level I result against the MPS

CFA Institute’s results guidance explains that your report shows:

An MPS line (thin grey line)
Your score line (thick grey line)
A confidence interval around your score (a shaded band) reflecting measurement uncertainty and form-to-form variation.

If your score line is at or above the MPS line, you pass; if it is below, you do not pass. CFA Institute notes that scores very close to the MPS can appear to touch/overlap due to rendering.

What CFA Institute does and does not disclose about scoring

CFA Institute provides to candidates	CFA Institute does not provide
Pass/Do Not Pass and a scale score framework (including MPS)	Detailed exam scores and responses to exam questions (owned by CFA Institute)
Topic-area performance information for strengths/weaknesses	A universal “% correct to pass” number (varies by exam form difficulty)
Assurance that standards are maintained via equating when appropriate	A raw-score-to-scale-score conversion table for each form (not published)

Practical takeaways for candidates

Treat 1600 as the official Level I MPS—but remember it is a scale score threshold, not a promised percentage.
Do not try to reverse-engineer a single “passing percentage.” CFA Institute explicitly ties the required percent-correct to form difficulty.
Use the topic-area feedback as a diagnostic tool, not as a pass/fail formula; the decision is driven by the overall scale score versus the MPS.