Wiley CPA vs Becker CPA Review

Wiley Efficient Learning once stood as a leading CMA review course, renowned for its blend of traditional and modern teaching methods. However, with the uncertainty following UWorld’s acquisition of Wiley, we find it challenging to currently recommend its courses. Prospective students should exercise caution and explore other options.

If you’re looking for the best review course for your CPA certification, you’re probably looking at some of the top contenders on the market, wondering which might be right for you. Programs like Wiley CPA or Becker CPA Review are both endorsed by the Big 4 accounting firms. That certainly doesn’t make narrowing down the best fit for you any easier!

That’s why we’ve put together this complete review of the courses and offerings from both Wiley CPA and Becker CPA Review. We’ll compare textbooks, software, practice tests, and a ton of other features in order to help you decide which course will help you Crush the CPA Exam!

Both my team and I have used both of these courses extensively in our quest to find the perfect CPA prep materials. Our hands-on experience has revealed some significant differences between the programs that CPA hopefuls should keep in mind.

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Wiley CPA vs. Becker Costs | Course Access | Course Books | Practice Questions | Flashcards | Course Format | Software Updates | Video Updates |

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CPA vs Becker CPA Review Cost

One of the notable differences between Becker and Wiley CPA is the cost structure. Becker has a higher price tag than Wiley CPA, at a price point of $2,299 for all four of its sections. In contrast, Wiley CPA offers several packages at different price points, with the most similar to the Becker CPA Review being $2,199.

Becker justifies the higher tuition with its stable of expert educators, Adapt2U learning materials, and realistic exam replicas. Honestly, these extra features alone make paying the extra $100 worth it, but you may still prefer Wiley if you only want practice questions.

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Course Expiration and Access

Depending on the speed with which you absorb the material and ultimately end up planning to take the CPA exam, the amount of time you have to access the course may be incredibly important to you. However, the good news is that both Becker and Wiley provide unlimited access to their CPA study materials to their enrolled students. This is a new feature for Becker, but Wiley has had it in place for quite some time now.

This is because Wiley CPA has a Partner Until You Pass Guarantee, which means you’ll have course access and free content and software updates until you pass the CPA exam. In the past, this meant that you wouldn’t have to fork over any more money to renew your access. This allows you to take unlimited course repeats and even have access for a year AFTER you pass the exam.

With this being said, it’s important to note that the recent buyout of Wiley CPA by Uworld might make their CPA course disappear altogether. If this is the case, forever access will mean nothing.

Although Becker’s Advantage course has a 24-month access period, both their Premium and Pro tiers are unlimited. Additionally, the Becker Promise ensures that candidates who don’t pass the CPA exam on their first attempt won’t have to pay to retake their prep course. Thanks to that, Becker just barely beats out Wiley in this department.

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CPA vs. Becker Books

Another huge difference in course offerings comes in the form of textbooks and guides that accompany each course. Becker textbooks are strongly geared towards visual learners, with colored diagrams and images. The content is also organized and structured very well: built to match the exam with relevant problems, real-world scenarios, task-based simulations, and mock exams. You won’t be surprised by the content you find on the actual exam if you follow along with these materials.

Wiley’s CPA textbooks skimp on the colors, diagrams, and images in favor of empty space built in to take notes in the margins and paragraphs. This is useful for learners who retain information by taking reading notes and maybe don’t respond to visuals as strongly.

You might prefer one of these styles to the other, but we think that Becker provides the more helpful option.

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Becker CPA vs Wiley CPA Practice Questions

Becker’s CPA Review includes over 9,200 multiple-choice questions and 580 task-based simulations that help you apply concepts in real time. Because Becker consistently consults with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) about potential exam changes, the content is updated regularly to reflect problems on the exam. Furthermore, their mock exams aren’t weighted like the actual CPA exam, meaning you’ll end up getting a higher score on the real exam if you do well on Becker’s practice questions.

In contrast, Wiley’s CPA review course has slightly higher numbers, which is impressive when you consider that it also costs slightly less. In the course, you’ll encounter approximately 12,000 multiple-choice questions, 600 task-based simulations, and at least 6,000 true or false questions. The latter is called “proficiency questions” and helps to serve as a progress check in each section to determine whether you should continue or review.

If you’re looking for quantity, Wiley has what you need. Becker falls just a bit short in this comparison, but they more than make up for it with the Becker Bump— which is the term students use when talking about the difficulty of their mock exams.

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Becker CPA vs Wiley CPA Flashcards

Both Becker CPA Review and Wiley CPA offer flashcards to their students. Although Becker used to charge extra for access to these cards, their most recent update includes them for free with all three-course tiers. Their Concierge course also has a ton of excellent resources, including flashcards. They’re available in both physical and digital formats; digital flashcards are accessible on Apple, Kindle, and Android mobile devices.

Wiley CPA also comes equipped with digital flashcards—a whopping 4100, in fact. If you absolutely must have a printed version of your flashcards, however, Wiley CPA will sell them to you for $150.

When it comes to price, Becker offers the better deal. However, the sheer number of Wiley’s available flashcards is equally appealing.

*Study Tip: Don’t BUY flashcards, MAKE them! You will retain much more information by physically creating them by yourself.

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Course Formats

Becker offers three different course formats: online, self-study, and live classes. This is a huge benefit to doing the Becker program, as you may have a much different learning preference than your neighbor. They are one of the only CPA review companies that provides a live classroom course.

Wiley offers some solid self-study prep courses along with a blend of pre-recorded lectures and live CPA online classes led by instructors who discuss the most frequently missed questions in Wiley CPAExcel. Students have the opportunity to ask questions of live instructors and access archived lectures.

Sounds pretty similar, right? Well, there’s one key difference between Becker and Wiley: mobile compatibility. Becker’s materials are designed from top to bottom with mobile users in mind. On the other hand, Wiley’s mobile app has been unpopular among students because of frequent crashes and disconnections.

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CPA vs Becker Software Updates

Unlike other programs, Becker chooses to charge for regular updates to the course, particularly when the material on the CPA exam changes. This cost is justified by the fact that Becker arranges in-depth meetings to get ahead of course changes, and their courses are, according to the company, as up-to-date as possible. Regardless, you will have to pay money for updates or choose to study with outdated materials.

Wiely CPA comes with free software and content updates. You can access their updated video lectures online for free. But again, with the recent buyout, we aren’t sure how long this will continue or if the new company will take the time to update the material or fuse it into their other course offerings.

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Wiley CPA vs Becker Video Lessons

When it comes to video lessons, Becker offers a feature unique to their program. If you are confused about a task-based simulation question, you can click on the SkillMaster button. A CPA will walk you through the processes step-by-step, just like your own personal coach! Becker also receives a lot of positive feedback on their video host: a slightly nerdy CPA accountant who goes over additional examples not found in the text to really drive the lesson home.

Wiley’s videos are also fairly user-friendly, and some have found the presentation more measured and organized. Some candidates have complained that their “bite-sized videos” can still take hours to digest, making Becker a clear winner here.

Becker CPA Video Lecture:

Becker CPA Exam Review Course Demo: Financial F4

Wiley CPA Video Lecture:

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Can You Trust The CPA Pass Rate Stats Wiley & Becker Publish?

One main way that students often make the decision between CPA review courses is their passing rates. However, these often aren’t as clear as they seem. This is because no two programs calculate their passing rates the same way. So, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how accurate the passing rate is in the scope of the entire CPA marketplace.

Becker’s website claims that its students pass with double the success rate of non-Becker students, while Wiley CPA names a student pass rate of 87%. Regardless of how both of these companies measure student success, they both guarantee that students can retake the test for free if they don’t pass. In addition, since both programs are endorsed by the four major accounting firms, we think it’s safe to say you have a strong chance of success with either.

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CPA Course Recommendation

When weighing Becker CPA against Wiley CPA, Becker takes the lead in several crucial areas. Becker’s comprehensive and intuitively designed course content, coupled with its state-of-the-art adaptive technology, offers candidates a tailored studying experience.

Furthermore, Becker’s reputation for having high-quality materials and a track record of student success solidifies its position as a premier choice for CPA exam preparation. While Wiley brings its own set of strengths to the table, the uncertainty surrounding its future, given UWorld’s recent acquisition, makes Becker the safer and more reliable option at this juncture. For those seeking a blend of quality, reliability, and proven results, Becker CPA emerges as the clear front-runner.

Learn More About Becker CPA Review