Welcome to the 2026 Connecticut Personal Finance Challenge!
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Engage your students by participating in the National Personal Finance Challenge (NPFC), a fun and motivating team competition that provides high school students with the opportunity to get financially savvy and demonstrate their money management skills.
The NPFC is free, easy to sign up for, and offers materials to make coaching easy. Our NPFC toolkit provides personal finance lessons, activities, videos, and quizzes to help you and your team be successful!
Note: There’s no limit on the number of teams you can enter in Round 1. Use the NPFC as a way to ignite your students’ interest in personal finance as a fun and engaging classroom or club activity!
2026 Connecticut State Personal Finance Challenge
The Challenge will run from February 5th to March 17th, 2026. The Connecticut State Personal Finance Challenge consists of two rounds – the first round is the Online Challenge and then the top 8 teams will advance to the next round for in-person state finals.
Round One, The Online Challenge (February 5th to March 17th, 2026)
The Online Challenge is a 30-question, rapid-fire exam with questions from categories on Income and Money Management, Spending and Credit, and Saving and Investing. Individual students will complete the Challenge online at their schools, under the supervision of their teachers or an approved exam proctor. Each student will have 35 minutes to complete the exam. The top 8 teams from the Online Challenge will advance to the In-Person Connecticut State Finals.
Round Two, In-Person Connecticut State Finals (March 31st, 2026)
The top 8 state finalist teams advance to the state finals competition in-person in Stamford, CT on Tuesday, March 31st, 2026. The state finals consists of two rounds – First, all 8 state finalist teams compete in the case study round and use their knowledge to create a financial plan for a fictitious family scenario. Then, the top 4 teams from the case study round will advance to compete for the state championship title in a Quiz Bowl.
1. Case Study Round:
All 8 state finalist teams will compete in this round, with the top 4 teams advancing to the quiz bowl based on evaluations from the judging panels.
2. Final Quiz Bowl:
In this decisive round, the top four teams will compete in a 20-question Quiz Bowl to determine the winner of the 2026 National Personal Finance Challenge!
Connecticut In-Person State Finals Details
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Date:
Tuesday, March 31st, 2026
8AM – 3PM
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Location:
Synchrony
Stamford, CT
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CT State Finals Prizes (per team):
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1st place: $1,000
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2nd place: $500
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3rd place: $250
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4th place: $125
The first-place team at the Connecticut State Finals will also advance to the National Finals!
Congratulations to the 2025 Connecticut State Personal Finance Challenge Winners:
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1st place: Team Kurtz Team 1 from Westhill High School
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2nd place: Team The Salesmen from Holy Cross High School
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3rd place: Team The Four Muskateers from SW Investors
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4th place: Team Williams 2 from The Williams School
2026 Connecticut State Personal Finance Challenge Important Dates:
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Team Registration Period: February 5th, 2026 - March 17th, 2026.
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Online Challenge Exam Period: February 5th, 2026 - March 17th, 2026.
The final day to take the online exam is March 17th, 2026 at 6:00PM EST.
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Connecticut State Finalists Advancing to In-Person State Finals Notified: March 18th, 2026
The top 8 teams from the Online Challenge will advance to the In-Person Connecticut State Finals.
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Connecticut In-Person State Finals: Tuesday, March 31st, 2026.
The first-place team at the Connecticut State Finals will also advance to the National Finals!
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National Personal FInance Challenge Finals: May 31st - June 1st, 2026 in Atlanta, GA.
Participation is Rewarding:
Each teacher can register as many teams as they want. For the 2026 NPFC we are offering an incentive to teachers who have 2 or more teams participate! Teachers who have 2 or more teams compete will receive a $50 gift card for classroom supplies. After the state competition concludes, we will reach out to those who have qualified to distribute your gift cards!
The top Connecticut teams will win the following cash prizes (per team):
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1st place: $1,000
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2nd place: $500
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3rd place: $250
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4th place: $125
Winning teams move on to compete with teams across the nation and win cash prizes at our exciting in-person National Finals in Atlanta, Georgia. In the National Finals your students will demonstrate their personal finance knowledge, using a case study format to consider alternatives and trade-offs for a family scenario. The top 16 teams in the National Finals' case study round will then compete in a Quiz Bowl where the Top 4 teams advance to compete in the National Finals Quiz Bowl for the title of national champion!
As their coach you will accompany your students.
While in Atlanta, ALL EXPENSES are covered (including food, hotel, and events). Transportation to/from state of origin excluded.
The top teams in the National Finals will win the following cash prizes (per team member and one coach):
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1st place: $2,000
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2nd place: $1,000
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3rd place: $500
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4th place: $250
Get started today!
Register your account and create teams
Register teacher/coach account and create teams for the 2025 Connecticut Personal Finance Challenge here!
Check out these resources to get started!
The National Personal Finance Challenge Rules - Take a look at the Official NEC Rules & Eligibility!
NPFC Teacher/Coach Toolkit - Explore our resources to help your students prepare!
National CEE Website - Visit CEE's Official page for the NPFC!
NPFC Econ Ed Link Collection - Browse our library of lessons and content dedicated to helping your students learn and prepare for the Challenge!
Contact:
Douglas Tan
CT Student Competitions Coordinator
Council for Economic Education
CTcouncil@councilforeconed.org
Ruben Rivera
Senior Director, Academic Programs
Council for Economic Education
rrivera@councilforeconed.org
Note: Please make sure to check your junk/spam for our emails that may be blocked by your school servers. Important emails about NPFC deadlines and the National Finals will be conveyed via email from the above addresses.