CFA Institute published the Level I syllabus for the 2027 cycle in August 2026, and it takes effect for sittings from February 2027. Candidates registered for May 2027 and August 2027 are on the 2027 curriculum too. The November 2026 sitting is still on the 2026 curriculum.
The changes are modest. The biggest is a new Introduction to Financial Data Science reading in Quantitative Methods. The Ethics subtopics were reorganized, Equity Valuation now leads with the discounted dividend model, and the Learning Outcome Statements were renumbered. Below is what changed, what to study depending on when you sit, and how FreeFellow updated its Level I bank (about 1,800 free practice questions today), its 105 lessons and its 197 concept flashcards.
What changed from 2026 to 2027
CFA Institute updates the Level I curriculum every August. Some years bring big structural changes (the 2024 cycle introduced the Practical Skills Modules) and some bring small refinements, like a few new or renamed readings. The 2026 to 2027 update was mixed: structural changes in two modules and light edits across the rest. Most of what a 2026 candidate studied is still relevant in 2027.
| What carries over | What changes |
|---|---|
| Mathematical foundations (TVM, statistics, probability) | Specific reading titles and ordering |
| Standard valuation frameworks (DDM, FCFE, ratio analysis) | Specific LOS numbering |
| Ethics framework and Standards I-VII | Subtopic reorganizations under each Standard |
| Calculator policy and exam format | Year-anchored regulatory and tax constants where applicable |
The largest content addition is the new Introduction to Financial Data Science reading. It covers basic data science concepts (data types, descriptive statistics for unstructured data, feature engineering basics, supervised vs unsupervised learning frameworks) at Level I depth. Level II already has machine learning content, so this is new for Level I rather than for the CFA Program. The reading is short and the LOS depth is foundational.
The Ethics module keeps the same seven Standards but reorganizes the subtopics under each one, and several examples were updated to reflect current market practice. Its weight drops from 15 to 20 percent of the exam to 10 to 15 percent, while Quantitative Methods rises from 6 to 9 percent to 11 to 14 percent.
Equity Valuation now leads with the discounted dividend model (DDM) as the foundational framework and then introduces free cash flow valuation as a generalization. It used to be the other way around. The math is the same, and only the teaching order changed.
Financial Statement Analysis, Fixed Income, Derivatives, Alternative Investments, Portfolio Management and Economics each got minor edits (a few readings renamed, a few examples updated), with no structural rewrites.
The Learning Outcome Statements were also renumbered across the curriculum. If you're using third-party material that cites 2026 LOS numbers, they won't map cleanly to 2027. FreeFellow uses topic-relative LO keys instead of absolute LOS numbers, so its alias map handles the renumbering for you.
How FreeFellow updated
For 2027 candidates, FreeFellow made three changes:
- It regenerated 102 lessons to match the CY2027 reading titles and the reorganized subtopics.
- It reconciled 107 concept flashcards to the CY2027 LO structure. 95 of the 107 mapped directly, and 12 were retired or split where the underlying CY2026 concept was rescoped.
- It re-tagged 1,245 practice questions (the bank has since grown to about 1,800) through an alias map that points every CY2026 LO key to its CY2027 successor or marks it as removed. Question content stayed the same wherever the underlying concept didn't change. Only the LO tags moved, so 2027 candidates see the right LO labels.
Questions tied to concepts removed in CY2027 are flagged but kept, so you can still drill them. The whole Level I bank is free with an account, with step-by-step solutions and notes on the answer choices, no trial and no credit card, and you can try sample questions without signing up.
What to study, depending on when you sit
November 2026
This is the last Level I window on the 2026 curriculum, so you want the 2026 material without spending time on 2027-only additions.
Set your exam date to the November 2026 sitting first, in Settings or when you build a study plan. Once it's set, the app serves you the 2026-correct question set and filters your Lessons list to the 2026 curriculum, so you don't have to find the boundary yourself. The material is dual-tagged, so if you mix question practice across the cycle boundary, the LO mapping handles it.
The one lesson to skip is Introduction to Financial Data Science under Quantitative Methods. It's the only reading that's new for 2027 and not on your exam, and with your date set to 2026 it's already hidden from your Lessons list.
Don't skip anything else. Roughly 95 percent of the material carried over from 2026. In Quantitative Methods, Equity and Ethics the 2027 updates are small additions folded into lessons you still need, so there's no clean section to cut. Reading the few added paragraphs costs almost nothing, since they're extra depth and not wrong for 2026.
Two topics run the other way. Market Efficiency and GIPS were removed from the 2027 curriculum but are still on your November 2026 exam. With your date set to 2026, FreeFellow serves you the lessons, concept flashcards and practice questions for both, alongside your 2026 CFA Institute curriculum reading.
2027
If you haven't started yet, use the CY2027 content directly. The lessons, flashcards and question bank already match the 2027 syllabus.
If you studied the 2026 curriculum and your sitting moved to 2027, read the new Introduction to Financial Data Science reading, skim the Ethics reorganization (the content didn't change much, but the structure did), and look at Equity Valuation again now that it leads with DDM. The rest of your 2026 study time still counts.
Level II and Level III
CFA Institute updates Level II and Level III on the same annual cycle. The 2027 Level II and Level III curricula were both published in August 2026. Level II's takes effect for the May 2027 sitting (Level II's first sitting of the year is May, not February), and Level III's for the February 2027 sitting (Level III sits in February and August).
FreeFellow's Level II track moved to the CY2027 curriculum in August 2026 and serves both cycles, so a November 2026 Level II candidate still sees the 2026 reading names and a May 2027 candidate sees the 2027 ones. The Level III question bank is still on the 2026 curriculum. FreeFellow is scoping the Level III CY2027 update and will publish a follow-up once that track's content is refreshed.
FreeFellow is a CFA Institute Prep Provider, independent of CFA Institute, and does not promise a passing score. Its material is meant to go alongside the CFA Institute curriculum, not replace it. You can start with the free CFA Level I practice questions, about 1,800 of them. If you're new to the credential, What is the CFA Exam covers the basics, and CFA Level I vs Level II vs Level III compares the three levels.