FINRA · SIE
Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Exam practice exams
FINRA's Securities Industry Essentials exam — practice against the official SIE content outline, with every answer explained.
Or read 15 sample questions with answers.
About the SIE exam
The SIE covers the basics every securities professional needs: how capital markets and regulators work, securities products and their risks, trading and customer accounts, prohibited activities, and the regulatory framework.
These practice exams follow FINRA's SIE content outline: capital markets 16%, products and risks 44%, trading, accounts and prohibited activities 31%, and regulatory framework 9%.
The real exam
Public information published by FINRA. A ExamWize practice exam matches this format — it is not a copy of the exam's contents.
- Format
- 75 multiple-choice questions in 1 hour 45 minutes. No firm sponsorship required.
- Cost
- FINRA lists the fee on its SIE page — check FINRA for current pricing.
- Scoring
- Passing score is 70. Practice scores here use the same 70 line.
- Validity
- SIE results are valid for four years.
Practice by exam topic
ExamWize practice exams draw questions in these same proportions, from a bank of 596 SIE questions. Open a topic for what it covers and free questions with answers.
Who it's for
- Students and career changers entering the securities industry
- New hires at broker-dealers before their Series 6 or 7
- Anyone 18 or older who wants to show basic industry knowledge
How to prepare
- Products and their risks are 44% of the exam — know stocks, bonds, options, mutual funds, ETFs and annuities.
- Learn bond math basics: price and yield move in opposite directions.
- Know order types, settlement (T+1), margin basics and account registrations.
- Memorize prohibited practices like churning, front running and insider trading.
See the free SIE cheat sheet for a one-page domain summary, and the content policy for how these questions are written.
Free SIE practice resources
- 15 free SIE practice questionsSpread across the exam's topics, each with the answer and an explanation for every option.
- Free 10-question diagnosticA quick, scored check of where you stand, with no account needed.
- SIE cheat sheetThe topics and the facts that come up most, on one page.
- SIE study guideHow to plan your preparation.
SIE exam FAQ
- What is the format of the SIE exam?
- 75 multiple-choice questions in 1 hour 45 minutes. No firm sponsorship required.
- How much does the SIE exam cost?
- FINRA lists the fee on its SIE page — check FINRA for current pricing.
- How is the SIE exam scored?
- Passing score is 70. Practice scores here use the same 70 line.
- How long is the credential valid?
- SIE results are valid for four years.
- How many SIE practice questions does ExamWize have?
- 596 original practice questions, drawn into full practice exams in the same format and domain proportions as the real SIE. Every option has its own explanation.
- Are these real SIE exam questions?
- No. Every question is original, written from FINRA's public content outline — never copied from the real exam or from exam dumps. They match the real exam's format, not its contents.
- Can I try ExamWize for free?
- Yes. The free diagnostic has 10 SIE practice questions with a full explanation for every answer, and no account is needed.