ACCA MA Pass Rate 2026: Results by Sitting and What They Mean

ACCA Management Accounting (MA) had a published pass rate of 65% at the June 2026 sitting, against 64% in December 2025 and 64% in June 2025, according to ACCA's pass rates page. That makes it a mid-table paper: above every three-hour Applied Skills paper, but below Business and Technology, Corporate and Business Law and Financial Accounting. This page gives the sitting-by-sitting figures, the exam format, the topics where candidates drop marks and a preparation plan.

ACCA MA pass rate by sitting

ACCA's published figures for Management Accounting range from 64% to 65% across the sittings shown, and the most recent, June 2026, was 65%. Across the nine Applied Knowledge and Applied Skills papers on ACCA's page, the June 2026 figures run from 41% for Performance Management to 89% for Business and Technology, so MA ranks 4 of 9 by June 2026 pass rate. For the full picture see our ACCA pass rates for 2026 and our ACCA pass rates by paper pages.

Two cautions apply to every number on this page. First, ACCA publishes these figures on its pass rates page without calling them global, and its footnote says only that they are the results achieved by students for paper-based and computer-based examinations, so we describe them as ACCA's published pass rates and not as a worldwide average. Second, a pass rate describes a group of candidates and not you: it moves with how well prepared the people sitting that session happened to be. ACCA's next set of results, for the September 2026 sitting, is due on 19 October 2026, and we will refresh this page when ACCA's pass rates page is updated. The pass mark for every ACCA exam is 50%.

MA exam format

MA is a two-hour computer-based exam. In ACCA's 2025-26 study guide, the paper has 35 two-mark objective test questions followed by three ten-mark multi-task questions. We have not checked whether the 2026-27 guide changes that structure, so confirm the layout in the current guide before you sit. As an Applied Knowledge paper, MA is available on demand throughout the year, which is why ACCA's page shows N/A for the March and September columns.

What MA covers

MA introduces the cost and management accounting techniques used inside a business. The main areas are the nature and purpose of management accounting information, cost accounting techniques including absorption and marginal costing, budgeting, standard costing and variance analysis, performance measurement and the techniques used to support decisions, such as relevant costing and basic investment appraisal. ACCA does not publish topic weightings, so cover the whole study guide.

Where candidates lose marks

ACCA's examining team reports for recent sittings repeatedly flag the same errors. Candidates enter numbers in the wrong format on number-entry questions, so check what the question asks for (units, currency, decimal places) before you type. They get compound interest calculations wrong, they make mistakes in marginal costing, and they slip on payback, net present value and internal rate of return. Variance analysis and residual income or return on capital employed also feature among the weak areas. Most of these are calculation-method problems, which means they respond well to practice.

How to prepare for MA

Practise by question type, not by chapter. Do a set of marginal costing questions, then a set of variance questions, and keep a list of the exact errors you make so that you can see the pattern. For investment appraisal, practise using discount factors accurately and check your answer is sensible, for example that a project with a positive net present value should have an internal rate of return above the cost of capital. Because the multi-task questions carry ten marks each, a method error early on can cost several marks, so show your workings where the system allows. Our guide to passing MA sets out a longer plan.

What is changing for 2026-27

We checked the 2025-26 MA documents and have not confirmed what, if anything, ACCA changed for 2026-27. Look at the syllabus and study guide changes page on ACCA's website before you buy new materials, and make sure your tuition provider has updated its notes if ACCA has published a change.

Frequently asked questions

What is the ACCA MA pass rate?

ACCA's published figure for Management Accounting at the June 2026 sitting was 65%. Across the sittings shown on its page from June 2025 to June 2026 the range was 64% to 65%.

What is the pass mark for ACCA MA?

The pass mark is 50%, as it is for every ACCA exam.

Is MA harder than Business and Technology?

On ACCA's published figures, yes: MA was at 65% in June 2026 against 89% for BT. MA requires numerical technique rather than breadth of theory, which is why practice questions matter.

When are the next ACCA results?

ACCA's September 2026 results are due on 19 October 2026. The December 2026 Applied Skills exams run from 7 to 11 December 2026, with results due on 18 January 2027.

Next steps

Read our MA subject guide for the syllabus and our guide to passing MA for study technique, then check the wider ACCA courses and the Learnsignal ACCA tuition pages if you want structured support. If you are deciding what to sit next, our guides on the order to take your ACCA exams and how many ACCA exams to sit per sitting explain how to plan the sequence.

Source: ACCA pass rates page and ACCA study guides, checked October 2026.