The 2027 CFA Level 1 curriculum is here, and if you are planning your study schedule, the first question on your mind is probably: how much has actually changed?
The short answer: most of the curriculum is stable. The core topics you have been studying are still there, and the bulk of your existing preparation still applies. But a few areas were meaningfully reorganized, with Equity Investments seeing the biggest overhaul by far.
This article walks through every notable change so you know exactly where to focus your attention.
The big picture
If you compare the 2026 and 2027 CFA Level 1 curricula side by side, the majority of topics are unchanged in substance. Economics, Financial Statement Analysis, Corporate Issuers, Fixed Income, Derivatives, Alternative Investments, and Portfolio Management all carry over with their content intact.
The real movement is concentrated in three areas: Equity Investments, Quantitative Methods, and Ethics. Two readings were dropped from Level 1 entirely: Market Efficiency (from Equity) and the Introduction to the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS) (from Ethics). Everything else was kept, reorganized, or merged.
Equity Investments (the biggest change)
Equity Investments was restructured more than any other topic. Nine new readings were introduced, covering the subject in a more granular way:
- Equity Instrument Features
- Equity Jurisdictions, Classes, and the Voting Process
- Equity Issuance and Trading
- Sources of Equity Returns
- Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) and Growth Models
- Relative Value Equity Valuation Approaches
- Financial Statement Forecasting in Equity Valuation
- Equity Analyst Research Reports
- The Capital Asset Pricing Model, Market Model, and Other Factor-Based Equity Models
On the consolidation side, "Overview of Equity Securities" and "Equity Valuation Concepts and Basic Tools" were merged into a single reading called Introduction to Equity Valuation. Similarly, "Company Analysis: Past and Present" and "Company Analysis: Forecasting" were combined into Company Analysis: Past, Present, and Future.
Content from "Market Organization and Structure" and "Security Market Indexes" was redistributed into other readings (for example, into Equity Issuance and Trading and into Quantitative Methods). These topics were reorganized, not removed.
Market Efficiency was removed from Level 1. If you have been studying the Efficient Market Hypothesis, note that EMH concepts may still appear at higher CFA levels, but they are no longer tested at Level 1.
Quantitative Methods
Quantitative Methods saw several merges, splits, and renames:
- Merged: "Estimation and Inference" and "Hypothesis Testing" were combined into a single reading, Estimation and Hypothesis Testing.
- Split: "Rates and Returns" was broken into three focused readings: "Returns of Financial Assets and Instruments", "Types of Financial Returns", and "Benchmarking Returns". Likewise, "Statistical Measures of Asset Returns" was split into "Statistical Characteristics of Asset Returns" and "Statistical Distributions for Financial Asset Prices and Returns".
- Folded into other readings: Content from "Probability Trees and Conditional Expectations" was absorbed into the distributions reading. Content from "Parametric and Non-Parametric Tests of Independence" was folded into "Estimation and Hypothesis Testing".
- Renamed: "Introduction to Big Data Techniques" is now Introduction to Financial Data Science. "Simple Linear Regression" is now Applications of Simple Linear Regression in Finance.
Ethics
The Ethics section was reorganized for more granular coverage:
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The single "Guidance for Standards I-VII" reading was split into eight separate readings, one per Standard:
- Standard I: Professionalism
- Standard II: Integrity of Capital Markets
- Standard III: Duties to Clients
- Standard IV: Duties to Employers
- Standard V: Investment Analysis, Recommendations, and Actions
- Standard VI: Conflicts of Interest
- Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or Candidate
- Application of the Code and Standards: Level I
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"Ethics Application" was folded into "Ethics and Trust in the Investment Profession".
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The Introduction to the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS) was removed from Level 1.
What stayed the same
If you are studying any of the following topics, your existing materials and preparation carry over with minimal adjustment:
- Economics - all 8 readings kept, unchanged.
- Financial Statement Analysis - all 12 readings kept, unchanged.
- Corporate Issuers - content unchanged (only minor punctuation cleanups in titles).
- Fixed Income - content kept in full; readings were renumbered and reordered, with a couple of titles cleaned up. No additions or removals.
- Derivatives - content unchanged (minor title cleanups only).
- Alternative Investments - content unchanged (minor title cleanups only).
- Portfolio Management - content unchanged (minor title cleanups only).
That covers the majority of the curriculum. If you have been preparing in these areas, your work is not wasted.
What this means for your prep
The practical takeaway is straightforward: direct most of your fresh study attention to Equity Investments, where the structure changed substantially. Make sure you are working with 2027-aligned materials for Equity rather than relying on older resources that still cover Market Efficiency or follow the previous reading layout.
For Quantitative Methods, the content is largely the same, but the way it is organized has shifted. If you are used to finding probability and hypothesis testing in specific readings, check which reading now holds that content.
For Ethics, the split into per-Standard readings is mainly structural. The ethical principles and Standards themselves have not changed, but the finer breakdown means you will encounter the material in smaller, more focused units.
And for everything else (Economics, FSA, Fixed Income, Derivatives, Alternatives, Corporate Issuers, Portfolio Management), carry on. The content is the same.
Study with the 2027 curriculum in mind
EduFite's question bank, lessons, flashcards, and mock exams are fully updated for the 2027 CFA Level 1 curriculum. Every question is mapped to the current reading structure, so you are always practicing the right material.
If you want to see where you stand, try the free mini mock. It is a 30-question diagnostic aligned with the 2027 curriculum, and it gives you a realistic snapshot of your readiness.