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CFA Level 1 Formula Sheet

A free CFA Level 1 formula sheet: every formula in the notes for the 2027 curriculum, by topic and reading, free to print or save as a PDF. Each reading links to the notes that explain its formulas; for the key takeaways and exam shortcuts as well, use the cheat sheet.

Formulas by topic

The sheet holds 501 formulas from the notes; worked numbers from the examples are left out. The topics with the most are Quantitative Methods (133), Financial Statement Analysis (95) and Equities (92). Ethical and Professional Standards has no formulas; the key takeaways are on the cheat sheet. Topic weights are the ranges CFA Institute publishes for the 2027 Level I exam: Ethical and Professional Standards 10–15%; Quantitative Methods, Financial Statement Analysis, Equities and Fixed Income 11–14% each; Portfolio Construction 8–12%; Economics, Corporate Finance, Derivatives and Alternative Investments 6–9% each.

Quantitative Methods11–14% of exam 133 formulas · 10 of 11 readings

Reading 1: Returns of Financial Assets and Instruments

Return over a single period
Averaging returns over several periods
Annualizing a holding period return
Compounding frequency and continuous compounding
Building blocks of a required return
Real return
Pretax vs. after-tax nominal return
Leveraged return

Reading 2: Types of Financial Returns

Two sources of return
Interest rates and the risk-free rate
Foreign exchange rates
The risk-return tradeoff
Portfolio expected return

Reading 3: Benchmarking Returns

Money-weighted rate of return (MWR)
Time-weighted rate of return (TWR)
What an index is and how its return is measured
Price-weighted index
Market-capitalization-weighted (value-weighted) index

Reading 4: The Time Value of Money in Finance

The time value of money
Fixed-coupon bonds
Perpetual bonds
Amortizing bonds and annuities
Equity instruments
Zero-coupon bond
Equity: implied required return
Equity: implied growth rate
Forward interest rates
Forward exchange rates
Option values: one-period binomial model

Reading 5: Statistical Characteristics of Asset Returns

Population vs. sample
Range and mean absolute deviation
Skewness
Kurtosis
Covariance
Correlation
Semivariance and target downside deviation
Coefficient of variation

Reading 6: Statistical Distributions for Financial Asset Prices and Returns

Cumulative distribution function (CDF)
Unconditional expected value (mean)
Unconditional variance and standard deviation
Unconditional covariance
Discrete distributions
Continuous distributions
Conditional mean, variance and covariance
Updating probabilities with Bayes' formula

Reading 7: Estimation and Hypothesis Testing

The central limit theorem (CLT)
Standard error and sampling error
Confidence intervals
Value at risk (VaR) — a one-tailed interval
Test statistic for a mean
Spearman rank correlation test
Test of independence using a contingency table

Reading 8: The Return and Risk of a Financial Portfolio

Expected return of a portfolio
Portfolio variance
Covariance and correlation
More assets: the variance–covariance matrix
Large portfolios: variance approaches average covariance
Minimum-variance portfolio of two risky assets
Adding a risk-free asset
Utility function
The capital allocation line (CAL)
The capital market line (CML)
Return-generating models and the CAPM
Beta

Reading 9: Simulation of Financial Asset Prices and Returns

Multivariate simulation and the Cholesky decomposition

Reading 10: Applications of Simple Linear Regression in Finance

The model and the regression line
Least squares criterion
Analysis of variance (ANOVA)
Goodness-of-fit measures
F-test
t-test of a regression coefficient
Predicted values
Confidence (prediction) interval for a predicted value
The CAPM as a one-factor regression
Economics6–9% of exam 23 formulas · 6 of 8 readings

Reading 12: The Firm and Market Structures

The two concentration measures

Reading 14: Fiscal Policy

Fiscal policy tools: spending and revenue, advantages and disadvantages

Reading 15: Monetary Policy

Effective central banks, targeting regimes and limits of policy

Reading 17: International Trade

Tariff welfare formulas (small country)

Reading 18: Capital Flows and the FX Market

Nominal and real exchange rates
Percentage change in a currency's value
Exchange rates, trade and capital flows

Reading 19: Exchange Rate Calculations

Currency cross-rates
The no-arbitrage (interest rate parity) relation
Forward quotes in points or percentages
Forward premium or discount
Corporate Finance6–9% of exam 18 formulas · 4 of 7 readings

Reading 20: Organizational Forms, Corporate Issuer Features, and Ownership

Key features of corporate issuers
Public versus private companies

Reading 23: Working Capital and Liquidity

The cash conversion cycle
Trade credit and its cost
Comparing CCCs
Liquidity ratios

Reading 24: Capital Investments and Capital Allocation

Net present value (NPV)
Internal rate of return (IRR)
Return on invested capital (ROIC)
Real options

Reading 25: Capital Structure

Calculating and interpreting the WACC
MM Proposition II (no taxes): cost of equity and leverage
MM with taxes
Static trade-off theory
Financial Statement Analysis11–14% of exam 95 formulas · 10 of 12 readings

Reading 28: Analyzing Income Statements

Revenue over time (long-term contracts)
Depreciation methods
Capitalized interest
Basic EPS
Diluted EPS and the if-converted method
Testing for dilution
Vertical common-size income statement
Margin ratios

Reading 29: Analyzing Balance Sheets

Goodwill
Vertical common-size balance sheet
Liquidity ratios (short-term obligations)
Solvency ratios (long-term obligations)

Reading 30: Analyzing Statements of Cash Flows I

Why a separate cash flow statement?
Timing differences show up on the balance sheet
The direct method
Starting point: net income
Investing activities (CFI)
Financing activities (CFF)

Reading 31: Analyzing Statements of Cash Flows II

Free cash flow to the firm (FCFF)
Free cash flow to equity (FCFE)

Reading 32: Analysis of Inventories

Inventory ratios

Reading 33: Analysis of Long-Term Assets

Goodwill
Impairment of assets held for use: IFRS and US GAAP
Ratios built from the disclosures

Reading 34: Topics in Long-Term Liabilities and Equity

Lessee accounting
Defined contribution vs. defined benefit plans

Reading 35: Analysis of Income Taxes

The income tax expense equation

Reading 36: Financial Reporting Quality

Depreciation, amortization and impairment
Linking the signs to what is being manipulated
Cash flow versus earnings

Reading 37: Financial Analysis Techniques

Activity ratios
Liquidity ratios
Solvency ratios
Profitability ratios
Two-part decomposition
Original (three-part) DuPont equation
Extended (five-part) DuPont equation
Business risk and the coefficient of variation
Equities11–14% of exam 92 formulas · 11 of 12 readings

Reading 39: Equity Instrument Features

Preference shares (preferred stock)

Reading 41: Equity Issuance and Trading

Quotes and the spread
VWAP
Float, trading volume and other liquidity measures

Reading 42: Sources of Equity Returns

Price return and total return on equity
Reinvested dividends
Equity value as a present value

Reading 43: Introduction to Equity Valuation

Book value, market capitalization and enterprise value
Limits of book value

Reading 44: Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) and Growth Models

Cash flow measures for present value models and the valuation process
Free cash flow to equity
Free cash flow to the firm
EBITDA
Residual income
Constant growth (Gordon growth) model
Multistage (two-stage) models
Estimating the constant growth rate
Weighted average cost of capital
Non-callable, non-convertible preferred

Reading 45: Relative Value Equity Valuation Approaches

Method of forecasted fundamentals
Reconciling the two methods
Value = assets in place + growth opportunities
Price-to-sales (P/S)
Enterprise value multiples
Balance-sheet multiples
Cash-flow multiples and yields
Using projected future values

Reading 46: Financial Statement Forecasting in Equity Valuation

Revenue modeling
Expense (profit) modeling
Financing modeling
Start-up stage: venture capital arithmetic
Growth stage
Decline stage
Enterprise value and EV multiples
Valuing equity from forecast model outputs

Reading 47: Industry and Competitive Analysis

Profitability
Market share and concentration

Reading 48: Company Analysis: Past, Present, and Future

Market potential for start-up and growth companies
Operating profitability
Operating leverage
Free cash flow to equity
Working capital management
Capital investments
Capital structure

Reading 49: Equity Analyst Research Reports

Two-stage FCFE valuation

Reading 50: The Capital Asset Pricing Model, Market Model, and Other Factor-Based Equity Models

CAPM and the security market line
Adjusted beta (mean reversion)
Beta from comparables (pure-play approach)
Estimating the market risk premium
Emerging markets: country risk premium
Arbitrage pricing theory (APT)
The four-factor model
Fixed Income11–14% of exam 62 formulas · 11 of 19 readings

Reading 54: Fixed-Income Markets for Corporate Issuers

Repurchase agreements

Reading 56: Fixed-Income Bond Valuation: Prices and Yields

Price = present value of the promised cash flows
Accrued interest, flat price and full price
Matrix pricing

Reading 57: Yield and Yield Spread Measures for Fixed-Rate Bonds

Periodicity and the effective annual yield
Current yield and simple yield
Option-adjusted price and option-adjusted yield
Z-spread
Option-adjusted spread (OAS)

Reading 58: Yield and Yield Spread Measures for Floating-Rate Instruments

Simplified valuation on a reset date
Key formulas: money market yields
Comparing with a semiannual-pay bond

Reading 59: The Term Structure of Interest Rates: Spot, Par, and Forward Curves

Pricing with spot rates
Par rates
Forward rates and notation
Valuing a bond with forward rates

Reading 60: Interest Rate Risk and Return

Horizon yield
Holding period return, Macaulay duration and the investment horizon
Calculating and interpreting Macaulay duration

Reading 61: Yield-Based Bond Duration Measures and Properties

Modified duration
Approximate modified duration
Money duration and PVBP

Reading 62: Yield-Based Bond Convexity and Portfolio Properties

Convexity from the cash flows
Approximate convexity
Price change using duration and convexity
Money convexity

Reading 63: Curve-Based and Empirical Fixed-Income Risk Measures

Why effective duration and effective convexity for bonds with embedded options
Percentage price change for a change in the benchmark yield
Key rate duration and shaping risk

Reading 64: Credit Risk

Measuring credit risk
Market factors: liquidity

Reading 69: Mortgage-Backed Security (MBS) Instrument and Market Features

Mortgage pass-throughs and CMOs
Commercial mortgage-backed securities
Derivatives6–9% of exam 41 formulas · 10 of 10 readings

Reading 70: Derivative Instrument and Derivative Market Features

Long and short exposure

Reading 71: Forward Commitment and Contingent Claim Features and Instruments

Value at expiration and profit for long and short option positions

Reading 72: Derivative Benefits, Risks, and Issuer and Investor Uses

Risks

Reading 73: Arbitrage, Replication, and the Cost of Carry in Pricing Derivatives

Replicating forwards (underlying with no costs or benefits of holding)
Spot versus expected future price, and the cost of carry
Currency forwards

Reading 74: Pricing and Valuation of Forward Contracts and for an Underlying With Varying Maturities

Value and price of a forward: at initiation, during its life, at expiration
Implied (no-arbitrage) forward rates
Forward rate agreements (FRAs)

Reading 75: Pricing and Valuation of Futures Contracts

Interest rate futures

Reading 76: Pricing and Valuation of Interest Rates and Other Swaps

Solving for the par swap rate
Value during the life

Reading 77: Pricing and Valuation of Options

Moneyness, exercise value and time value

Reading 78: Option Replication Using Put-Call Parity

Put–call parity
Put–call forward parity and options in corporate finance
Option view of a firm (equity and debt)

Reading 79: Valuing a Derivative Using a One-Period Binomial Model

Call: long \(h\) shares, short one call
Put: long \(h\) shares, long one put
Risk neutrality
Alternative Investments6–9% of exam 11 formulas · 4 of 7 readings

Reading 80: Alternative Investment Features, Methods, and Structures

Calculating the performance fee

Reading 81: Alternative Investment Performance and Returns

Life cycle and the J-curve
Leverage
After-fee return mechanics

Reading 84: Natural Resources

Commodity valuation: cost of carry

Reading 85: Hedge Funds

Where returns come from, index biases and diversification
Portfolio Construction8–12% of exam 26 formulas · 3 of 6 readings

Reading 87: Portfolio Risk and Return: Part I

Utility function
Adding the risk-free asset: the capital allocation line
One asset
Two assets: covariance
Correlation
Portfolio standard deviation
Investing in assets that are less than perfectly correlated

Reading 88: Portfolio Risk and Return: Part II

Adding a risk-free asset to a risky portfolio
The capital allocation line (CAL) and the capital market line (CML)
Systematic and unsystematic risk
Return generating models and the market model
Calculating and interpreting beta
The CAPM, its assumptions, and the security market line (SML)
Applying the CAPM and the SML: finding mispriced securities

Reading 89: Portfolio Management: An Overview

Measuring the benefit: the diversification ratio
Mutual funds and other pooled investments
Ethical and Professional Standards10–15% of exam No formulas

This topic has no formulas. Its key takeaways and exam shortcuts are on the cheat sheet.

CFA Level 1 Formula Sheet: common questions

Is the formula sheet free?

Yes. It is free to read, print or save as a PDF, with no account.

Does it cover the whole 2027 curriculum?

Yes. It has every formula in the notes for the 102 readings of the 2027 curriculum, grouped by topic and reading.

What is the difference between the formula sheet and the cheat sheet?

The formula sheet has only the formulas. The cheat sheet also has the key takeaways and exam shortcuts of every reading.

What is the difference between the formula sheet and the notes?

The notes explain each formula, with worked examples and practice questions; each reading on this sheet links to them. The formula sheet is for checking the equations quickly.

Can I print one topic?

Yes. Choose a topic, or all topics, next to the print button and use Print / Save as PDF. Each topic starts on a new page.