What is tested on the BAR CPA Exam?
The AICPA blueprint splits BAR into 3 content areas: Business Analysis at 40 to 50% of the section, Technical Accounting and Reporting at 35 to 45% of the section, State and Local Governments at 10 to 20% of the section. Below them sit 16 groups.
| Area | Content | Score weight |
|---|---|---|
| BAR.I | Business Analysis | 40 to 50% |
| BAR.II | Technical Accounting and Reporting | 35 to 45% |
| BAR.III | State and Local Governments | 10 to 20% |
Which area of BAR carries the most weight?
Business Analysis is the heaviest area of BAR at 40 to 50% of the section.
How many topics are in the BAR blueprint?
The BAR blueprint lists 3 areas and 16 groups, without naming individual topics. Each area carries a published score weight range rather than a fixed percentage, so the exact mix varies between sittings.
What skill levels does the CPA Exam test?
The AICPA tests CPA Exam content at 3 skill levels: Remembering, Application, Analysis. The level assigned to a given BAR topic is published in the AICPA blueprint document itself.
Which accounting standards does the BAR CPA Exam test?
BAR is tested against 36 pieces of authoritative literature, among them ASC 210, ASC 230, ASC 305, ASC 810, ASC 815, ASC 830, ASC 350, ASC 360, ASC 985, ASC 340. The remaining 26 are on the CPA Exam standards page, each listed against the blueprint groups that test it. The AICPA blueprint names the topics but not the standards behind them outside FAR, so this mapping is built from PocketCPA's own lesson citations and item sources rather than published by the AICPA.
What is tested in BAR Area I, Business Analysis?
BAR Area I, Business Analysis, is 40 to 50% of the section and covers 2 groups: Current period/historical analysis, including the use of data, Prospective analysis, including the use of data.
| Group | Content | Authoritative literature |
|---|---|---|
| BAR.I.A | Current period/historical analysis, including the use of data | ASC 210, ASC 230, ASC 305, ASC 810, ASC 815, ASC 830 |
| BAR.I.B | Prospective analysis, including the use of data | ASC 210, ASC 305, ASC 810, ASC 815 |
What is tested in BAR Area II, Technical Accounting and Reporting?
BAR Area II, Technical Accounting and Reporting, is 35 to 45% of the section and covers 11 groups: Indefinite-lived intangible assets, including goodwill, Internally developed software, Revenue recognition, Stock compensation (share-based payments), Research and development costs, Business combinations, Consolidated financial statements, Derivatives and hedge accounting, Leases, Public company reporting topics, Financial statements of employee benefit plans.
| Group | Content | Authoritative literature |
|---|---|---|
| BAR.II.A | Indefinite-lived intangible assets, including goodwill | ASC 350, ASC 360 |
| BAR.II.B | Internally developed software | ASC 350, ASC 985 |
| BAR.II.C | Revenue recognition | ASC 340, ASC 605, ASC 606 |
| BAR.II.D | Stock compensation (share-based payments) | ASC 718 |
| BAR.II.E | Research and development costs | ASC 350, ASC 720, ASC 730, ASC 985 |
| BAR.II.F | Business combinations | ASC 805 |
| BAR.II.G | Consolidated financial statements | ASC 210, ASC 305, ASC 810, ASC 830 |
| BAR.II.H | Derivatives and hedge accounting | ASC 210, ASC 305, ASC 810, ASC 815 |
| BAR.II.I | Leases | ASC 842 |
| BAR.II.J | Public company reporting topics | ASC 260, ASC 270, ASC 280, ASC 740, SEC rules under the Exchange Act |
| BAR.II.K | Financial statements of employee benefit plans | ASC 715, ASC 960, ASC 962, ASC 965 |
What is tested in BAR Area III, State and Local Governments?
BAR Area III, State and Local Governments, is 10 to 20% of the section and covers 3 groups: Format and content of the financial section of the annual comprehensive financial report, Deriving government-wide financial statements and reconciliation requirements, Typical items and specific types of transactions and events: measurement, valuation, calculation and presentation.
| Group | Content | Authoritative literature |
|---|---|---|
| BAR.III.A | Format and content of the financial section of the annual comprehensive financial report | GASB 34, GASB 44, GASB 54, GASB 63, GASB 65, GASB 98, GASB 103 |
| BAR.III.B | Deriving government-wide financial statements and reconciliation requirements | GASB 34, GASB 63, GASB 65 |
| BAR.III.C | Typical items and specific types of transactions and events: measurement, valuation, calculation and presentation | ASC 210, ASC 305, ASC 810, GASB 33, GASB 34, GASB 54, GASB 63, GASB 65, GASB 68, GASB 84 |
Areas, weights, groups and topics are the AICPA published blueprint. Pass rates are the AICPA published candidate pass rates for 2026 through Q2, read from AICPA & CIMA on 2026-08-17. The AICPA publishes them quarterly.
BAR pass rate, format and score weighting