Compare certifications · Updated 16 September 2026
CFA vs FRM: cost, hours, pass rates and which to take
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) against Financial Risk Manager (FRM), from the issuing bodies' own fee schedules.
The CFA costs $3,520 to $9,500 all-in and takes 900 to 1200 study hours; the FRM costs $1,600 to $3,400 and takes 400 to 600 hours. The CFA is worth it if you are already in, or credibly aiming at, an investment seat - equity or credit research, asset management, portfolio management, investment risk or institutional wealth - where it is a stated screen and employers often reimburse it; it is not worth it for investment banking, private equity or corporate finance, where deal experience and modelling tests decide hiring. The FRM is worth it if you already work in or next to a risk function at a bank, asset manager or regulator and want the portable signal for that market; it is not worth it if you are aiming at front-office trading, research or corporate finance, where it reads as a back-office credential.
| CFA | FRM | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuing body | CFA Institute | Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) |
| Exam fee | USD 1,140 early registration / USD 1,490 standard registration | USD 600 early / USD 800 standard, plus a one-time USD 400 enrollment fee for first-time registrants |
| All-in cost | $3,520–$9,500 | $1,600–$3,400 |
| Study hours | 900–1200 | 400–600 |
| Calendar months | 18–48 | 9–24 |
| Levels / exams | 3 | 2 |
| Pass rate | CFA Institute publishes a pass rate for every sitting: 39% for Level I in May 2026 against a long-term average of 40%, about 43% at Level II and about 50% at Level III | GARP publishes a rate for every window and reported 47% on Part I and 50% on Part II for November 2025 |
| Format | three sequential computer-based levels: 180 multiple-choice questions at Level I, 88 vignette-linked item-set questions at Level II, and constructed-response essays plus item sets at Level III | Part I is 100 multiple-choice questions in 4 hours and Part II is 80 questions in 4 hours, computer-based at a test centre in the May, August and November windows |
| Prerequisites | A bachelor's degree, final year of one, or 4,000 hours of work and higher education over three sequential years; the charter also needs 4,000 qualified investment hours. | None to sit the exams. To be awarded the designation you must submit two years of professional risk work experience within five years of passing Part II. |
| Renewal | No re-examination. Charterholders pay annual CFA Institute membership dues of roughly USD 350 and file a Professional Conduct Statement. | No annual fee and no mandatory continuing education; GARP's 40-credit CPD programme and paid membership are both voluntary. |
| Pay impact | CFA Institute's Compensation Study finds that base salaries for CFA Institute members and charterholders rose faster year over year than the general market, and that the charter is associated with meaningfully higher total compensation in investment roles (portfolio management, research and risk), where the gap is widest. The effect is much smaller in roles far from portfolio decisions. source | GARP does not publish a compensation study. Robert Half's annual Salary Guide, which surveys US finance and accounting employers, shows risk and compliance analyst pay clustering well above general accounting roles and reports that specialist certifications are among the factors employers pay a premium for. Treat FRM salary claims from prep providers with scepticism - the credential's measurable effect is largest for people already inside a risk function. source |
| Careers that use it | Investment Banking Analyst, Private Equity Associate, Quantitative Analyst, Financial Analyst, Management Consultant | Quantitative Analyst, Financial Analyst, Investment Banking Analyst, Actuary |
| Fees checked | September 2026 | September 2026 |
Is the CFA worth it?
The CFA is worth it if you are already in, or credibly trying to get into, an investment role where the charter is a stated or implicit screen: equity or credit research, asset management, portfolio management, investment risk, or institutional wealth. In those seats the cost is small relative to the pay, employers often reimburse it, and passing Level II in particular is treated as real evidence of technical depth. It is also one of the few credentials that can help a non-target-school candidate get read at all. It is not worth it if you want investment banking or private equity, where deal experience and modelling tests decide hiring and the charter is largely ignored; if you are in corporate FP&A, where an MBA or CPA travels further; or if you are hoping a credential alone will move you into finance from an unrelated field, which it very rarely does. Be honest about the real price: roughly 900 to 1,200 hours of evenings and weekends over several years, with a better-than-even chance of failing at least one level. If you would not do the reading for its own sake, the expected value is poor.
Is the FRM worth it?
The FRM is worth it if you already work in or next to risk - model validation, credit risk, market risk, treasury, regulatory reporting - and want the standard portable signal for that market. It is cheap relative to the CFA, has no degree gate, and the Part II syllabus maps unusually closely to what risk teams actually do, which makes it useful even before you pass. It is a reasonable second credential for a CFA charterholder moving into risk, and a good first one for a quant or engineer entering finance. It is not worth it if you want a front-office trading, research or banking seat, where it is read as a back-office signal; if you are hoping it substitutes for programming and statistics skills, which risk teams now screen on directly; or if you have no route to the two years of risk experience needed to actually certify, since passing both exams without it leaves you as a 'Part II passed' candidate rather than an FRM. The syllabus is also broad and shallow in places - it will not make you a quant.
CFA vs FRM FAQ
Which costs more, the CFA or the FRM?
All in, the CFA runs $3,520 to $9,500 and the FRM runs $1,600 to $3,400, including membership, required education, study materials and one exam sitting. Exam fees alone: USD 1,140 early registration / USD 1,490 standard registration for the CFA and USD 600 early / USD 800 standard, plus a one-time USD 400 enrollment fee for first-time registrants for the FRM, checked September 2026 and September 2026 against the issuing bodies.
Which takes longer to study for, the CFA or the FRM?
Candidates report 900 to 1200 study hours over 18 to 48 months for the CFA, against 400 to 600 hours over 9 to 24 months for the FRM. CFA Institute publishes a pass rate for every sitting: 39% for Level I in May 2026 against a long-term average of 40%, about 43% at Level II and about 50% at Level III. GARP publishes a rate for every window and reported 47% on Part I and 50% on Part II for November 2025.
Should I take the CFA or the FRM first in 2026?
The CFA is worth it if you are already in, or credibly aiming at, an investment seat - equity or credit research, asset management, portfolio management, investment risk or institutional wealth - where it is a stated screen and employers often reimburse it; it is not worth it for investment banking, private equity or corporate finance, where deal experience and modelling tests decide hiring. The FRM is worth it if you already work in or next to a risk function at a bank, asset manager or regulator and want the portable signal for that market; it is not worth it if you are aiming at front-office trading, research or corporate finance, where it reads as a back-office credential. Prerequisites differ: A bachelor's degree, final year of one, or 4,000 hours of work and higher education over three sequential years; the charter also needs 4,000 qualified investment hours. For the FRM: None to sit the exams. To be awarded the designation you must submit two years of professional risk work experience within five years of passing Part II.
Who asks for the CFA versus the FRM by name?
Asset managers, equity and credit research shops, pension and endowment investment offices, investment risk and performance teams, and institutional and private wealth managers ask for the CFA by name, frequently as "CFA charterholder or candidate" in the job posting itself. Outside those seats - investment banking, corporate financial planning and analysis, consulting - it is a nice-to-have that nobody screens on. Bank market, credit and operational risk departments, buy-side risk teams, treasury, model validation, regulatory capital and stress-testing groups, financial regulators and the risk practices of the large consultancies list the FRM by name in job specifications.