Series 4 Exam Overview — Format, Weights & Eligibility

Series 4 at a glance (FINRA)

• Scored items: 125
• Unscored pretest items: 10 (135 total)
• Time: 3 hours 15 minutes (195 minutes)
• Format: Multiple choice
• Passing score: 72
• Cost: $155
• Corequisites: SIE + Series 7
• Effective date: 04/1975 – present

Note: FINRA includes unscored pretest items for question development. You won’t know which items are unscored, so treat every item as scored.

What Series 4 tests (job functions)

Series 4 is organized by six major functions:

• F1 — Supervise the Opening of New Options Accounts — 16.8% (21 items)
• F2 — Supervise Options Account Activities — 20% (25 items)
• F3 — Supervise General Options Trading — 24% (30 items)
• F4 — Supervise Options Communications — 7.2% (9 items)
• F5 — Implement Practices and Adhere to Regulatory Requirements — 9.6% (12 items)
• F6 — Supervise Associated Persons and Personnel Management Activities — 22.4% (28 items)

Eligibility (important)

Series 4 requires firm sponsorship. You must be associated with a FINRA member firm (or other applicable SRO member firm) to enroll and test.

FINRA describes SIE and Series 7 as corequisites for holding the Registered Options Principal registration. The Series 4 content outline also references other qualification paths (e.g., certain Series 7 modules or combinations) depending on the candidate’s situation—confirm prerequisites with FINRA and your firm before scheduling.

✅ Next: work through the Series 4 syllabus » and then start timed drills in Practice ».