How to Learn Accounting with CFI

Courses at CFI are taught 100% online by leading instructors, using proprietary technology to help with learning and retention. Learn at your own pace, combining theory with practice for an in-depth understanding of the topic and its practical applications.

35 courses

Consisting of over 1800+ lessons

150+ interactive exercises

Learn by doing with guided simulations

Expert instructors

Learn from the very best

New courses monthly

On need-to-know subject matter

Blockchain certificate

To verify your skills

500,000+ 5-star ratings

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Find the right accounting course

CFI offers a range of courses to suit new students as well as experienced finance professionals. Expert instructors guide you through the fundamentals of financial accounting, including cash flow statements and balance sheets, to the reading and interpretation of financial statements and creating financial models. Courses can be applied to certification programs to advance your career.
1h
Careers in Commercial Banking
4.8
Explore commercial banking, functions, and career paths. Understand bank structure, origination, underwriting, and how roles collaborate for revenue growth and risk mitigation.
2h
Introduction to Banking
4.8
Understand banking industry fundamentals: explore financial institutions, services, how banks generate returns, and how balance sheets and income statements differ.
5h
Accounting Fundamentals
4.9
Master accounting fundamentals: understand financial statements, record transactions, and prepare income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements.
2h
Advanced Prompting for Financial Statement Analysis
4.8
Leverage AI and LLMs for enhanced financial analysis. Master Chain-of-Thought prompting, financial ratio calculation, earnings prediction, and custom GPTs for competitive insights.
2h
Reading Financial Statements
4.8
Learn to read and interpret financial statements and reports, understand company operations, business strategy, and risk factors. Analyze financials and MD&A.
3h 30min
Reading & Analyzing a Bank's Financial Statements
4.9
Understand unique bank financial statements, analyze their ratios, and interpret their pyramid of ratios to gain a comprehensive view of the business.
2h
Greenhouse Gas Accounting
4.9
Learn GHG accounting principles, calculate scope 1, 2, 3 emissions, and interpret reports to understand climate risks and opportunities for corporations and investors.
2h 30min
Reading & Analyzing an Insurance Company's Financial Statements
5.0
Understand the insurance industry, its accounting rules, revenue generation, investment accounting, and financial statement analysis, including key IFRS vs. US GAAP differences.
2h
Accounting for Business Combinations & Other Equity Investments
4.9
Practice the equity method, and smaller equity investments with practical Excel case studies. Learn to calculate goodwill and understand IFRS vs. US GAAP.
2h 30min
FP&A Modeling Pt.2 - Formatting & Revenue
4.9
Learn best-in-class revenue forecasting for FP&A models. Explore custom and conditional formatting techniques for effective financial models.
6h
Introduction to 3-Statement Modeling
4.8
Build a three-statement financial model from scratch. Learn financial model-building best practices, projection modeling, assumption crafting, forecasting, and model auditing.
2h 30min
FP&A Modeling Pt.3 - Headcount Analysis
4.9
Master headcount and employee cost forecasting in FP&A models. Learn corkscrews, advanced custom formatting, and conditional formatting for accurate and insightful analysis.
3h
Accounting for Inventory
5.0
Learn inventory accounting choices, their impact on comparability and profitability, and analyze various metrics, including FIFO and LIFO methods, and LIFO liquidation.
5h
Financial Analysis Fundamentals
4.8
Assess financial health by computing and interpreting ratios for profitability, asset utilization, leverage, and liquidity, then compare companies and analyze trends.
1h
FP&A Modeling Pt.4 - Contractor Analysis
4.9
Master forecasting contractor costs in FP&A models. Learn to calculate workdays, detect scheduling issues, schedule payables, and summarize COGS/SG&A for income statements.
1h 30min
Accounting for Leases
4.8
Learn to differentiate, account for, and analyze finance and operating leases, understanding their impact on comparability and profitability.
3h
Budgeting Processes
4.9
Master financial budgeting: create a disciplined culture, learn various methods, analyze results, and improve organizational performance through budget planning and analysis.
3h
M&A Accounting & Purchase Price Allocation
4.8
Understand M&A accounting: fair value adjustments, goodwill, deferred taxes, and deal structures. Learn to build pro forma financial statements for acquisition analysis.
1h 30min
FP&A Modeling Pt.5 - Debt and Capex Analysis
4.9
Master debt and capex forecasting and analysis. Learn best practice approaches to monitor capital expenditure, manage revolving lines of credit with model instructions and checks.
2h
Introduction to Mergers & Acquisitions
5.0
Learn the mergers and acquisitions process, as well as different types of mergers, deal structures, and financing considerations.
7h
Applied DCF Valuation Modeling
4.8
Learn to build and present professional, multi-schedule DCF models with Applied DCF Valuation Modeling. Use structured dashboards to communicate key insights.
6h 30min
3-Statement Modeling
4.8
Master 3-Statement Modeling: design, balance, and link financial statements, build debt/equity schedules, manage circularity, and create insightful dashboards.
2h
FP&A Modeling Pt.6 - Financial Statement Aggregation
4.9
Understand financial statement construction, aggregation, and analysis using FP&A totals, focusing on profitability, cash flow, and tax implications, with Excel applications.
2h
Accounting for Diluted Shares and Earnings per Share
5.0
Master diluted share count and earnings per share calculations. Learn to account for dilutive securities, applying the Treasury Stock Method, If-Converted Method, and adjustments.
3h 30min
Reading Business Financial Information
4.9
Learn to analyze business financial information: understand financial statements, accountant reports, tax returns, and key credit ratios for informed credit decisions.
2h 30min
Auditing and Balancing a 3-Statement Model
4.9
Review and fix an imbalanced model quickly by following error-checking best practices.
3h
FP&A Modeling Pt.8 - 3-Statements
4.9
Master 3-statement modeling for FP&A. Learn to balance financial models, understand statement relationships, and apply common structures like corkscrews and revolvers.
2h
Normalizing Income Statements
4.8
Analyze and adjust income statements to account for non-core and non-recurring items, to aid in accurate financial analysis and decision-making.
8h
Operational Modeling
4.9
Build foundational financial models with a proven framework. Learn to analyze operations, organize schedules, calculate outputs, and finalize models for effective analysis.
2h 30min
Cash Flow Cycles and Analysis
4.9
Master cash flow management: analyze operating and investing cycles, calculate working capital gaps, optimize accounts, assess investment returns, and perform cash flow analysis.
7h 30min
Financial Analysis for Credit
4.9
Master financial analysis for credit: conduct horizontal and vertical analysis, apply ratio analysis, and perform industry benchmarking to assess a company's financial standing.
2h 30min
AI-Enhanced Financial Analysis
4.8
Integrate AI into financial analysis. Learn AI-powered ratios, time-series analysis, and generative AI applications for improved forecasting and risk assessment.
3h
Monthly Cash Flow Modeling
4.9
Master cash flow forecasting with Excel models from scratch. Learn to predict revenues, expenses, and balance sheet changes for optimal financial health and strategic decisions.
1h 30min
Tesla Earnings Analysis - A Sell-Side Research Case Study
1h 30min
Modeling Taxes for Different Business Structures
5.0
Build an income tax model using personal and corporate tax data. Master Excel shortcuts, tables, and functions like MATCH, INDEX, XLOOKUP, and Goal Seek for financial analysis.

Learn more with free accounting resources

Explore all of CFI's accounting learning and development resources.

AI Agents for Month-End Close Automation: Use Cases, Benefits, and Control Considerations

Accounting Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Articles Artificial Intelligence (AI)

18 Best AI Prompts for Accounting: Workflows, Examples, and Guardrails

Accounting Articles Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Webinar: Ask the Authors – A Live Q&A with the SMEs Behind Your CFI Courses

eLearning Excel Accounting Financial Modeling Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Career Webinars Investment Banking Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI Agents for Accounting: A Practical Guide for Modern Finance Teams

Accounting Articles Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Finance Lease in Accounting: Definition, Criteria, and Example

Accounting Articles

Indirect Method

Accounting Financial Modeling Articles

Issued vs. Outstanding Shares: What’s the Difference?

Accounting Equities Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Articles

Off-Balance Sheet Financing: Definition, Uses, and Types

Accounting Articles

Bookings vs. Billings: SaaS Business Model Guide

Accounting Valuation Articles

ROCE vs. ROA: Differences, Formulas, and Uses in Financial Analysis

Accounting Financial Modeling Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) Articles

10 Most Confusing Finance Terms Explained

Accounting Career Articles

Accrued Expense vs. Accounts Payable: Key Differences and Examples

Accounting Articles

Why Learn Accounting with CFI?

CFI is a leading provider of online financial analyst certification programs and courses. Each course and program is designed with the aid of professional Wall Street trainers with experience training new hires at global investment banks for decades.

Using a combination of theory, application, and intuition to enhance learning and retention. The self-paced programs are available anytime, anywhere, and leverage proprietary technology, leading instructors, and creative designers.

Over 75% of CFI learners report improved productivity or competency within weeks.

With our accounting courses, you can learn how to:

Explain the format of the income statement and balance sheet
Record financial statement transactions, such as raising equity and buying inventory
Prepare a simple income statement and balance sheet
Read and interpret items on a published balance sheet
Understand balance sheet concepts, such as goodwill and investments
Explain common accounting standards that financial analysts encounter, including accrual basis of accounting, historical cost principle, and conservatism principle

Who should take accounting courses online?

Our accounting courses are designed for anyone who wants to review the fundamentals of the accounting process and progress to financial reporting and analysis, including those looking for careers in investment banking, financial planning and analysis (FP&A), corporate development, and other areas of corporate finance.

Investment professionals

Management consultants

Financial analysts

Registered Provider: National Association of State Boards of Accountancy

All accounting courses are accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), CPA Institutions in Canada, and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) in the US. Most courses qualify for verified CPE credits for CPA charter holders.

Courses include video lessons, quizzes, and final assessments.

Frequently Asked Questions

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If you haven’t found your answer from our FAQ, please send us a message.
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