1.3 Scoring, Pass Rates, and Blueprints
Key Takeaways
- A CPA Exam passing score is 75 on a 0-99 reporting scale; AICPA states it is not a percentage correct and is not curved.
- Scores combine scaled MCQ and TBS performance with 50/50 weighting for all 2026 sections except ISC, which is 60% MCQ and 40% TBS.
- AICPA's Q1 2026 pass rates are AUD 47.80%, FAR 43.46%, REG 66.65%, BAR 41.30%, ISC 66.79%, TCP 79.28%.
- The 2026 blueprints are effective January 2026 and define content areas, skill levels, and representative tasks for each section.
- Blueprint task counts are not weight counts; use the published allocation ranges, not the number of listed tasks, to prioritize study time.
What A 75 Means
The CPA Exam passing score is 75 for each section, reported on a 0 to 99 scale. AICPA is explicit that this is not a percent-correct score. A reported 75 does not mean you answered 75% of items correctly, and a 74 does not mean you missed by one raw question. The number is a scaled score, not a tally.
Scores are also not curved. Candidates are measured against a fixed standard of minimum competence, and scaling makes scores comparable across different exam forms and dates. That is why two candidates who saw different item mixes can receive directly comparable reported scores. Because the model is adaptive at the MCQ-testlet level, a stronger first MCQ testlet can trigger a harder second testlet, and harder items carry more scoring weight, so a smaller raw count of correct hard items can outscore a larger count of correct easy ones.
Item Weighting By Section
The total score is a weighted blend of scaled MCQ and TBS performance. In 2026 most sections are balanced; ISC is the lone exception.
| Section | MCQ weight | TBS weight | Planning implication |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUD | 50% | 50% | Evidence and reporting simulations matter as much as MCQs. |
| FAR | 50% | 50% | Computation speed must pair with schedule and document tasks. |
| REG | 50% | 50% | Tax-return logic and research-style simulations need drilling. |
| BAR | 50% | 50% | Analysis and technical accounting must transfer into cases. |
| ISC | 60% | 40% | MCQ volume weighs more, but TBSs still control 40%. |
| TCP | 50% | 50% | Planning and compliance scenarios cannot be skipped. |
A practical takeaway: in a 50/50 section, neglecting simulations caps your ceiling at roughly 50, which cannot pass. Even in ISC, ignoring TBSs forfeits 40 points of a 75 target. There is no section where MCQ mastery alone clears 75.
Latest Published Pass Rates
AICPA publishes pass rates quarterly. The latest available are Q1 2026, so the cumulative 2026 figure currently equals Q1.
| Section | Q1 2026 pass rate |
|---|---|
| AUD | 47.80% |
| FAR | 43.46% |
| REG | 66.65% |
| BAR | 41.30% |
| ISC | 66.79% |
| TCP | 79.28% |
Read this for context, not surrender. BAR (41.30%) and FAR (43.46%) are the lowest, but that reflects dense technical accounting and heavy computation, not impossibility. TCP (79.28%) is highest, yet a candidate weak in individual, entity, and property-transaction tax planning can still fail it. Pass rates describe the pool of test-takers, never your personal odds.
How To Read The 2026 Blueprints
The official AICPA Blueprints, effective January 2026, are the study map. Each blueprint defines a section by content area, group, topic, skill level, and representative task. Skill levels follow a revised Bloom's hierarchy: Remembering & Understanding, Application, Analysis, and (in AUD only) Evaluation. The blueprint exists to document the minimum knowledge for initial licensure, help candidates prepare, inform educators, and guide question writers.
Do not count representative tasks and assume more tasks equals more weight. The blueprint explicitly warns that the number of tasks in a group or topic does not indicate how heavily it is tested. Use the allocation ranges instead.
High-Yield Allocation Snapshot
| Section | Defining allocation signals |
|---|---|
| AUD | Forming conclusions/reporting and obtaining evidence dominate; Evaluation skill appears only in AUD (5-15%). |
| FAR | Financial statement accounts and select transactions/disclosures each carry the heaviest weight; Application leads the skill mix. |
| REG | Federal taxation of individuals (22-32%) and entities (23-33%), with ethics, business law, and property transactions. |
| BAR | Business analysis is the largest area; technical accounting close behind; state and local governments 10-20%. |
| ISC | Information systems & data management and security/confidentiality/privacy are largest; SOC engagements 15-25%. |
| TCP | Individual and entity tax compliance are largest; entity planning and property transactions are mid-weight. |
Worked Example: Why MCQ-Only Study Fails
Imagine a FAR candidate who drills 2,000 MCQs and scores around 80% on practice MCQs, but skips simulation practice. On exam day the two MCQ testlets feel manageable, yet the three TBS testlets present a bond amortization schedule, a consolidation worksheet, and a deferred-tax reconciliation, none of which the candidate practiced building. Because FAR is 50% TBS, even a strong scaled MCQ contribution near 45 cannot reach 75 when the TBS contribution collapses to roughly 20. The math is unforgiving: the candidate finishes near 65 and fails.
The lesson is to allocate study time in rough proportion to the scoring weight, which in FAR means at least half of practice on simulations.
Reading The Score Release Timeline
AICPA scores on a target schedule tied to the close of each testing window, then NASBA forwards advisory scores to boards, which approve and release them. Some boards add processing time, so a candidate may see a score posted by AICPA days before the official board release. Do not register for a retake of the same section until the prior score is final, because an open NTS for that section blocks a second NTS.
Common Traps
- Reading 75 as 75% correct. It is a scaled score against a fixed competence standard, never a raw percentage, and it is not curved.
- Counting blueprint tasks as weights. The number of representative tasks listed does not signal testing weight; only the published allocation ranges do.
- Chasing pass rates. A high TCP pass rate does not lower your risk if you are weak in entity and property-transaction planning.
- Ignoring the Candidate Performance Report. After a fail, this report compares your performance by content area and item type against passing candidates, pinpointing exactly where to concentrate retake study. Treat it as a diagnostic, not a verdict.
A candidate earns a reported CPA Exam score of 75. What does that score mean?
Which section has a different MCQ/TBS scoring weight from the other 2026 CPA Exam sections?