PMP Formulas Cheat Sheet: The Complete List of Formulas [2026]
A. Togay Koralturk, Best-Selling PMP Author
Last updated on June 26, 2026
8 min read
The PMP exam is scenario-based, but a defined group of formulas runs through those scenarios — earned value, schedule float, three-point estimating, and a handful of financial and risk calculations. This guide gives you the complete set you need for the exam, grouped by topic, with what each formula tells you, short examples, and a full worked example at the end.
Do you need formulas for the PMP exam?
Yes — and they matter. The PMP exam is scenario-based, but formulas run through those scenarios: you are asked to compute or interpret values, the majority of them earned value (EVM), with float, estimating, and financial figures alongside. Because each of these has a single correct answer, they are among the most dependable points on the exam, which is exactly why they reward the time it takes to learn the whole set.
So learn the complete set below, but focus on the logic behind each formula — what it measures and why — rather than memorizing letters. Because the questions are scenario-based, that understanding is what lets you reach for the right formula when a situation is described to you. The rest of this page is that set, grouped by topic, with examples.
Earned value (EVM) formulas
Earned value is the single most important formula group on the exam. First, the abbreviations these formulas use:
- EV — Earned Value: the budgeted value of the work actually completed.
- PV — Planned Value: the budgeted value of the work that should be done by now.
- AC — Actual Cost: what you have actually spent.
- BAC — Budget at Completion: the total project budget.
- EAC — Estimate at Completion (forecast total cost); ETC — Estimate to Complete (forecast cost of the remaining work).
| Formula | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Cost Variance: CV = EV − AC | Positive = under budget; negative = over budget |
| Schedule Variance: SV = EV − PV | Positive = ahead of schedule; negative = behind schedule |
| Cost Performance Index: CPI = EV / AC | Greater than 1 = under budget; less than 1 = over budget |
| Schedule Performance Index: SPI = EV / PV | Greater than 1 = ahead of schedule; less than 1 = behind |
| EAC = BAC / CPI | Forecast assuming the current CPI continues to the end |
| EAC = AC + (BAC − EV) | Forecast assuming the remaining work goes to plan (a one-off variance) |
| EAC = AC + (BAC − EV) / (CPI × SPI) | Forecast factoring in both cost and schedule performance |
| EAC = AC + bottom-up ETC | Forecast used when the original plan is no longer valid and you re-estimate |
| Estimate to Complete: ETC = EAC − AC | The cost of the work still remaining |
| Variance at Completion: VAC = BAC − EAC | Positive = expected to finish under budget; negative = over |
| TCPI (to hit the budget) = (BAC − EV) / (BAC − AC) | The efficiency needed for the rest of the project to still meet the BAC |
| TCPI (to hit the forecast) = (BAC − EV) / (EAC − AC) | The efficiency needed to meet the revised EAC instead |
A quick read on TCPI: a value above 1 means you must work more efficiently than planned to hit the target (you are currently behind or over), while below 1 means you have some slack.
Critical path method (CPM) formulas
These come up in schedule and float questions, which work by walking through the activity network twice. The forward pass moves left to right and finds each activity's earliest possible start and finish; the backward pass moves right to left and finds the latest each can start and finish without delaying the project. Float is the gap between the two — how much an activity can slip before it pushes the end date out. Activities on the critical path have zero float: they cannot slip at all without moving the finish date.
| Formula | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Total float = Late Finish − Early Finish (= Late Start − Early Start) | How long an activity can slip without delaying the project |
| Free float = ES of the next activity − EF of this activity − 1 | How long it can slip without delaying the next activity |
Three-point estimating formulas
Three-point estimating combines an optimistic (tO), most likely (tM), and pessimistic (tP) estimate into one figure.
| Formula | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Triangular distribution = (tO + tM + tP) / 3 | A simple average of the three estimates |
| Beta (PERT) distribution = (tO + 4tM + tP) / 6 | Weights the most likely estimate four times more heavily |
For example, take an activity estimated at 4 days if all goes well (tO), 6 days most likely (tM), and 14 days if things go badly (tP). The triangular estimate is (4 + 6 + 14) / 3 = 8 days, while the beta (PERT) estimate is (4 + 4 × 6 + 14) / 6 = 7 days. PERT comes out lower here because it leans on the most likely value and gives the long pessimistic tail less pull.
Project selection (financial) formulas
These appear in business-case and project-selection questions, where you compare options.
| Formula | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Payback period = Initial investment / Cash inflows per period | A shorter payback period is more attractive |
| ROI = (Revenue − Cost of investment) / Cost of investment × 100 | A positive ROI is a gain; a negative ROI is a loss |
| Benefit-cost ratio (BCR) = Benefits / Costs | Greater than 1 = profitable; less than 1 = a loss |
| Cost-benefit ratio = Costs / Benefits | Less than 1 = profitable; greater than 1 = a loss |
For example, a project that costs $50,000 and is expected to return $65,000 has an ROI of (65,000 − 50,000) / 50,000 × 100 = 30%, and a benefit-cost ratio of 65,000 / 50,000 = 1.3, which is above 1 and therefore profitable. When choosing between projects, prefer the higher BCR, the higher ROI, the higher NPV, and the shorter payback period.
Other essential formulas
A few more worth keeping on the sheet:
| Formula | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Communication paths = n × (n − 1) / 2 | The number of channels in a team of n people |
| Expected Monetary Value (EMV) = Probability × Monetary impact | The weighted value of a risk, used in decision-tree analysis |
| Cost of Quality (CoQ) = Cost of conformance + Cost of nonconformance | The total cost of quality on a project |
The communication-paths formula is a classic exam favorite. A team of 5 has 5 × (5 − 1) / 2 = 10 channels, but add a sixth person and it jumps to 6 × 5 / 2 = 15 — that fast, non-linear growth is exactly why the formula is used to argue for keeping teams small. EMV works the same way once you plug in numbers: a risk with a 20% chance of a $10,000 loss has an Expected Monetary Value of 0.20 × (−$10,000) = −$2,000, the figure you would carry into a decision tree.
Worked example: earned value in action
Numbers make these concrete. Say a project has a total budget (BAC) of $100,000. By now, the plan was to have completed half the work (PV = $50,000). In reality, you have completed work worth EV = $40,000 and spent AC = $55,000.
- Cost variance: CV = EV − AC = 40,000 − 55,000 = −$15,000 → over budget.
- Schedule variance: SV = EV − PV = 40,000 − 50,000 = −$10,000 → behind schedule.
- CPI: EV / AC = 40,000 / 55,000 = 0.73 → you are getting 73 cents of value per dollar spent (over budget).
- SPI: EV / PV = 40,000 / 50,000 = 0.80 → progressing at 80% of the planned pace (behind schedule).
- EAC (if CPI holds): BAC / CPI = 100,000 / 0.73 ≈ $137,000 → the forecast total cost.
- VAC: BAC − EAC = 100,000 − 137,000 = −$37,000 → expected to finish about $37,000 over budget.
Notice that the arithmetic itself is simple. The skill the exam actually rewards is knowing which formula a scenario calls for and reading what each result means: a CPI of 0.73 is not just a number, it is a warning that the project is returning only 73 cents of value for every dollar it spends. That interpretation — not the division — is what the question is testing.
How to use formulas on exam day
The formulas are only useful if you can recall and apply them under pressure. Learn the complete set — every group on this page can appear, so none of them is safe to skip — and give earned value the most attention, since it is the most heavily tested and the most interconnected. But the single most important thing you can do is practice with realistic, scenario-based questions. That is what turns a formula from something you recognize on a page into something you reach for the moment a question describes a situation, which is the only form the exam ever uses. Our PMP practice exams include the calculation questions in exactly that form, so the recognition becomes automatic well before exam day.
For the final stretch, keep the formulas in front of you in a compact form. Our PMP Exam Cheat Sheets put them on a quick-reference page, and our PMP Flashcards are built for drilling the formulas and their meanings into recall. Pair that with a sense of how hard the PMP exam is, and the calculation questions become a part of the test you can count on rather than fear.
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Frequently asked questions
How many formulas do you need to memorize for the PMP?
There is a real set to learn — roughly a dozen formula groups, concentrated in earned value (EVM), plus critical path float, three-point estimating, financial evaluation, communication paths, and risk. Earned value is the priority because it is the most heavily tested, so master it first.
What are the most important PMP formulas?
The earned value formulas: cost variance (CV), schedule variance (SV), the cost and schedule performance indexes (CPI and SPI), estimate at completion (EAC), and the to-complete performance index (TCPI). If your study time is limited, learn these cold before anything else.
Are formulas still on the PMP exam in 2026?
Yes, and they matter. The exam is scenario-based, but formulas are woven into the scenarios: you are asked to compute and interpret earned value, float, and similar figures, and these are some of the most reliable points available. They are essential exam knowledge, not an optional extra.
How do you memorize PMP formulas?
Learn what each formula means rather than memorizing it as a string of letters, group them by topic (as on this sheet), and practice applying them to scenario questions so you learn to recognize which formula a situation calls for. Flashcards and a one-page cheat sheet make the final review efficient.
What is the earned value (EVM) formula set?
CV = EV − AC, SV = EV − PV, CPI = EV / AC, SPI = EV / PV, plus the forecasting formulas: EAC (most commonly BAC / CPI), ETC = EAC − AC, VAC = BAC − EAC, and TCPI = (BAC − EV) / (BAC − AC). These all build on four inputs — EV, PV, AC, and BAC.
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