CPA Exam Pass Rates by Section and What They Mean for Your Plan

What are the current CPA exam pass rates?

As of AICPA data through Q1 2026, CPA exam pass rates range from about 79% for the TCP Discipline down to about 41% for BAR. The three Core sections sit lower, with AUD near 48% and FAR near 43%, both below 50%. Pass rates are cumulative through the quarter and typically soften later in the year.

Those figures come from the AICPA, aggregated cumulatively through the first quarter of 2026, so they represent every candidate who sat that section year-to-date rather than a single testing window. Full-year 2026 numbers are not published yet. The pattern to remember: your three required Core sections are the harder set, and among the four Disciplines you may choose from, TCP passes at roughly twice the rate of BAR.

• •Highest odds: TCP Discipline, about 79% (AICPA, cumulative through Q1 2026).
• •Lowest odds: BAR Discipline, about 41%.
• •Core sections everyone takes: REG about 67%, AUD about 48%, FAR about 43%.

What are the CPA pass rates by section?

The AICPA reports a pass rate for each of the six CPA sections, and the spread is wide. Cumulative through Q1 2026, the TCP Discipline leads at 79.28%, while the BAR Discipline trails at 41.30% - a gap of nearly 38 points between the easiest and hardest sections to pass. In between, ISC and REG clear roughly two-thirds of candidates, while AUD and FAR both sit below the 50% line.

Read the table by column type as well as by rank. Every candidate takes the three Core sections - AUD, FAR, and REG - so those rates describe a pool nobody opts into. The three Disciplines below them are mutually exclusive choices: you sit exactly one, which means the large gap between TCP and BAR is partly a decision you get to make. The full-year 2025 column is there to show the trend, and it confirms the ordering is stable rather than a one-quarter fluke.

Why are FAR and BAR the hardest CPA sections to pass?

FAR and BAR are the two lowest scorers on the board, and they share DNA. FAR (Financial Accounting and Reporting) covers the widest body of technical material on the exam - financial statements, transactions, and governmental and not-for-profit accounting - and its 43.46% Q1 2026 pass rate reflects how much ground a candidate has to hold at once. It runs about 50 multiple-choice questions and 7 task-based simulations, and the simulations demand applied computation rather than recognition.

BAR (Business Analysis and Reporting) is the Discipline most FAR-heavy candidates gravitate toward, and at 41.30% it is the single hardest section to pass. It extends FAR into advanced financial reporting, data analytics, and technical accounting for complex entities, so it inherits FAR's breadth and adds depth. AUD (Auditing and Attestation) rounds out the sub-50% group at 47.80%; it rewards conceptual judgment over memorization, which many candidates find harder to drill than a formula.

The planning takeaway is blunt: budget your heaviest study blocks for FAR and, if you choose it, BAR. Because BAR builds directly on FAR, many candidates sit FAR first and move to BAR while the material is fresh. If FAR is already your weakest area, that dependency is a reason to weigh a different Discipline instead.

Which CPA Discipline has the best pass rate?

You must pass exactly one Discipline, and the three are not equally forgiving. TCP (Tax Compliance and Planning) posts the highest pass rate on the entire exam at 79.28%, ISC (Information Systems and Controls) clears 66.79%, and BAR sits at 41.30%. On pass rate alone, choosing TCP over BAR nearly doubles your odds on that section.

Pass rate is one input, not the whole decision. Self-selection drives part of the gap: tax-strong candidates pick TCP, IT-and-audit-minded candidates pick ISC, and each plays to a prepared crowd. Choose the Discipline that matches your coursework, your job, and your intended career - a section that fits your strengths is easier for you than the aggregate number suggests. But when two Disciplines feel equally plausible, the pass-rate gap is a legitimate tiebreaker. Candidates leaning tax often also weigh the Enrolled Agent credential, which overlaps heavily with TCP material.

How is the CPA exam scored, and what does a 75 mean?

A CPA pass rate is not the share of questions candidates answered correctly - it is the share of candidates who reached a scaled score of 75. Each section is scored on a 0 to 99 scale, and 75 is the passing standard set by the AICPA. Critically, 75 is not 75%: the score is a weighted, scaled figure that accounts for question difficulty and awards partial credit on the task-based simulations. You cannot back out how many questions you missed from the number you receive.

Within a section, multiple-choice questions and task-based simulations each contribute 50% of the score - with one exception. ISC weights its multiple-choice questions at 60% and its simulations at 40%. Every section runs four hours and mixes two MCQ testlets with three simulation testlets. The table below shows approximate question counts, drawn from a review provider's mapping of the AICPA blueprints; the AICPA notes the exam can vary, so treat the counts as close guides rather than fixed totals.

Two consequences follow for planning. First, because simulations carry at least 40% of every section, MCQ drilling alone will not get most candidates to 75 - simulation practice is where borderline scores are won. Second, since the standard is fixed at 75 rather than curved to a target pass rate, a hard section simply produces a lower pass rate; the bar does not move to let more people through.

What do CPA pass rates mean for your study plan?

Pass rates are a planning tool, not just trivia. They tell you where to spend hours, which Discipline to pick, and how to sequence four sections inside a fixed credit window. Read together, the Q1 2026 numbers argue for front-loading effort on the Core, choosing your Discipline deliberately, and leaving margin for a retake on FAR or BAR - the two sections most likely to need one.

How do retakes and the credit window affect CPA planning?

Because so many candidates need a second attempt at FAR or BAR, retake and timeline rules are part of pass-rate planning. Testing is continuous: there is no cap on attempts, and you can re-sit a section as soon as its prior score is released. Each retake means repaying the section fee, so a low-odds section is a budget question as much as a study one.

The credit window is the constraint that turns a pass rate into a deadline. Once you pass your first section, you must pass the remaining three before that first credit expires. The NASBA model rule extended this window from 18 months to 30 months, and most jurisdictions have adopted 30 - but the exact length is set by your state board, and a few may still use a shorter window or a different start date. Confirm your own jurisdiction's rule before you build a schedule around 30 months; an expired credit means retaking that section and paying for it again.

Budget for the sittings themselves too. NASBA-recommended 2026 figures put the exam section fee near $262.64 and a one-time application fee near $96, so a first sit runs roughly $359, with retakes near the section fee plus any re-registration charge. Each of the 55 US jurisdictions sets its own fees, so verify the exact dollars with your state board or NASBA before you plan a budget.

• •Attempts: unlimited; re-sit as soon as the prior score for that section is released (continuous testing).
• •Each retake: repay the section fee, near $262.64 under NASBA-recommended 2026 figures; jurisdiction-set.
• •Credit window: NASBA model rule is 30 months from your first pass, extended from 18, adopted state by state - confirm yours.
• •First sit: roughly $359 (section fee plus about $96 application); all figures vary by jurisdiction.