CCP Study Materials 2026: What AACE Recommends and What to Read First

AACE's list, with prices

None of it is compulsory. AACE is clear that these are recommendations and that it doesn't generally supply study materials itself, although members can download Recommended Practices and the TCM Framework free.

The membership question

If you're buying several of these, look at membership before you check out. Members pay $165 less on the exam itself and get the member prices above, including free RPs and the TCM Framework. Whether that outweighs the dues depends on what you buy; current dues are on AACE's membership page.

A sensible order to use them in

Start with RP 10S-90. It's free, it's AACE's terminology, and a surprising number of questions turn on knowing exactly how AACE defines a term. Keep it open for the whole of your preparation.

Make Skills & Knowledge of Cost Engineering your main reference, but don't read it cover to cover. Work through the chapters that line up with the exam domains, starting with the material behind Domain 1, Managing Project Costs, which carries 43 of the 119 questions.

Use AACE's CCP Certification Study Guide to check your coverage and practise. Dip into RP 11R-88 to see the skills AACE expects of a cost engineer, which is a quick way to spot gaps. The TCM Framework is worth reading for how the pieces connect across a project's life; our TCM guide is a gentler introduction.

Read How to Write a CCP Memo early rather than in the last week, and then practise writing memos against the clock. Our memo guide covers structure and timing.

Let the blueprint set your priorities

Whatever you buy, organise your time around AACE's May 2026 blueprint rather than the order of the book. Domain 1 deserves the most hours; scheduling (6 questions) and risk (9) deserve proportionately less. The CCP syllabus and Domain 1 guide break this down.

Free places to start

AACE's CCP Candidate Handbook is the official source for the blueprint, rules and fees. Add the free memo guide and 10S-90, plus our sample questions and formulas guide.

If you'd prefer a structured route, our CCP Complete Self-Paced Preparation brings together a study guide built on the 2026 blueprint, video lessons organised by exam domain, three full-length mock exams, memo guidelines with three sample memos, a formula sheet and a terminology guide, with 180 days of access. 3FOLD Training describes its approach on its CCP online training page.