What I want to know is what the work load is like on a day to day basis of each of them. For instance in a given six month period of studying for the CFA (so lets say for the first CFA exam) how does that compare to the 6 months of studying for the CQF?I am planning getting both qualifications over the next few years and I was thinking of doing the CQF first to have it under my belt. But I was also considering in doing the first CFA exam first just to start with something with less workload as I am still learning the ropes at my job. I just want to clarify what the workload was like on each of them.

CFA is sort of incremental for each level and it sort of depends on your background how long it takes. They state 250-300 hours for for level 1 which seems accurate if you assume reading, example exams, mock exams and questions are included in that.

what Hansi said sounds about right.The new CFA notes from the providers like Schweser tend to come out early in the new year and the exams are end of may or start of june, so you study hard for maybe 4 months and do 2 or 3 hours a day which would be 240 to 360 hours

Couple of things since I have both:1) The workload for the CQF is more intense for any one level of the CFA; it's more like 8-9 months when you include the maths primer and project. Expect to spend 10-15 hrs a week if your maths are sharp- 20+ if rusty. During the exam periods you'll have to ramp that amount up to 20+ hrs a week. Not too much reading for this program, which is a plus!2) The CFA is tiring due to the 3 lvls over, at least, 2.5 years. If you're a slow reader, it can take awhile to get through the material; there's over 2000 pages for each lvl with the official material. For each lvl, depending on background, will be ~ 5 months. Probably 10-15 hrs per week for the first 3 months, then 20+ 1.5 months from the exam.

many thanks... thats a pretty good indicator