The best free CPA study materials
The best free CPA study materials will not get most people through FAR, but they will tell you whether you are ready to commit, and they cover the blueprint, sample questions and the official interface better than anything you can buy.
Free CPA study materials worth your time
| Resource | Source | What it is good for |
|---|---|---|
| Exam blueprints | AICPA | The definitive list of what is testable. Read before buying anything |
| Sample tests | AICPA | The real exam interface, including simulations. Do this before exam day |
| Candidate bulletin | NASBA | Rules, ID requirements, scheduling mechanics |
| r/CPA | Score-release threads, study plans, honest course opinions | |
| Provider free trials | Becker, UWorld, Gleim | A week inside a platform before paying for it |
| University library access | Your institution | Often a full paid course, for nothing |
The official material comes from the exam’s owners: the AICPA’s guide to the new CPA exam points to the blueprints and sample tests, and NASBA publishes the candidate rules. For opinions from other candidates, see our CPA community guide.
What free cannot do
Free material is strongest where it is official and weakest where it matters most. Nobody publishes a free bank of several thousand calibrated questions with explanations, and nobody publishes free task-based simulations at exam depth — which is precisely where candidates lose marks.
Use free resources to decide whether you are ready and which section to start with. Then buy a question bank: our cheapest CPA prep guide covers low-cost options, and best CPA review courses compares the full courses.
Free question sets are not difficulty-weighted, so your score on them tells you very little.
The AICPA sample tests are the only realistic free simulations, and there are a handful.
Structure is most of what you are paying for in a course, and it is the hardest thing to replace.
A roughly $365 retake is the real cost of getting this wrong.
Common questions
Are the AICPA sample tests the real interface?
Yes, and that is what makes them valuable. They use the actual exam software including the simulation tools, so do at least one before exam day even if you have a paid course.
Can I pass using only free material?
A small number of people do, almost always recent accounting graduates or retakers who already own materials. If neither describes you, free material is best used to decide what to buy.
Do free trials require a card?
Some do and some do not, and it changes often. Each provider’s review notes the current position, and we recheck it whenever we update the review.
Where do I find the official CPA exam pages?
Our official CPA Exam links page collects the AICPA, NASBA, Prometric and state board pages in one place.