Updated Checked by the Tax-Services.ca editorial team How we check
CPA Canada reports results as competency levels and doesn’t set a numeric pass mark, so there isn’t one percentage to quote. It publishes exam performance statistics on its own site, so that page is where the real figures live. What follows is how to read those numbers when you find them, and how to plan around them.
Where do you find the CPA exam pass rate?
Go to the source. CPA Canada has a page titled “CPA examination performance rates”, and your provincial CPA body posts results after each sitting. We tried to open both while writing this. The national page refused our request, so we haven’t read its figures ourselves.
You’ll also find plenty of rates quoted by prep firms and news sites. Some may be right. But a number with no link to the body that produced it is a rumour, and it’s easy to end up comparing a rate for first-time writers with one for everybody.
Once you do find the official table, write down three things next to the percentage: the year, the group, and the number of people who sat. A figure without those three is half a fact.
What should you check before you trust a pass rate?
Four things change what a percentage means.
| Question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| First-time writers or all writers? | Repeat attempts usually pull a combined rate down |
| One sitting or a full year? | Spring and fall groups can differ in size and mix |
| Which exam? | The rate for the final exam isn’t a rate for earlier modules |
| Which year? | Marking and cohorts change, so old rates age badly |
Then look at the count behind the rate. A rate from a few dozen people jumps around. A rate from thousands is steadier.
What does a pass rate say about your chances?
Less than you’d think. It’s an average over everyone who sat, including people who studied part time, people who didn’t finish the prep, and people who were on a second try.
Here’s the arithmetic, using made-up numbers. If 1,000 people write and 700 pass, the rate is 70%. The percentage calculator gives that in a second. But it can’t tell you if that group of 1,000 looks anything like you, with your job, your hours and your study habits. Your own practice results, timed and marked honestly, say far more.
Flip it around and the same 1,000 people tell you that 300 didn’t pass. Those 300 weren’t all unlucky or unprepared. Some ran out of time on one case, some froze, some had a bad week at work. A pass rate hides all of that, which is why a resit plan belongs in your timeline from the start, just in case.
What does studying cost you in pay?
Preparation eats evenings and weekends, and sometimes paid hours. Suppose you earn $28 an hour, an example wage. The hourly to salary calculator shows $58,240 a year before deductions and $46,154 after them, which is about $3,846 a month to live on.
So a plan that drops you to four days a week isn’t free. Drop one day and that same wage becomes roughly 80% of the pay, before deductions. Run your own hours through the take-home pay calculator and build a study-season budget with the budget calculator. Those figures use Ontario as the place of work. If exam fees, course fees or employer support matter to you, we couldn’t confirm any amounts, so ask your CPA body and your employer for the current ones.
What are the common mistakes when you use pass rates?
Comparing a national rate to a provincial one is the classic slip. So is treating a single low year as a trend. Another is choosing a prep course because of a pass rate the course itself advertises. Ask how they counted, who was included and whether the figure is published anywhere you can check.
And don’t let a rate scare you off, or let it relax you either. Whatever it is, the exam still asks you to work through a business case under time pressure. So practise on cases, mark yourself hard, and sign up for your sitting only when the practice scores say you’re ready. Then ask a colleague who has already passed what they’d change.
What this page is based on
The only figures here are the arithmetic examples and our 2026 Ontario payroll data, checked on 29 September 2026. The pass rate itself comes from CPA Canada and the provincial CPA bodies, whose pages we couldn’t open, so we quote none. This site has no connection with CPA Canada, the CRA or any government.
Frequently asked questions
Is there one CPA exam pass rate for all of Canada?
CPA Canada reports national examination performance rates, and provincial CPA bodies report their own results. Check which group a figure covers.
Why do different sites quote different pass rates?
They may count first-time writers only, a single sitting, or a full year. Some quote no source at all.
Does a low pass rate mean the exam is unfair?
No. It's an average across everyone who wrote, including repeat attempts, so it doesn't describe your own odds.
Should I pick a prep course by its pass rate?
Be careful. Ask how the course counted its students and whether anyone independent published the number.
Can I take time off work to study?
Some people do, but it costs pay. Model the lost income with a take-home pay calculator before you decide.
- How to choose a tax preparer in Canada
How to decide if you need a tax preparer, what a preparer does, the questions to ask before you hire one and where to find free help in Canada