Futures Managed Funds Exam (Series 31) Exam Guide

Exam Content and Structure

The Series 31 consists of 45 multiple-choice questions that test your knowledge of futures contracts, commodity pools, and the regulatory framework governing these investment vehicles. All 45 questions are scored, meaning there are no experimental or unscored items on this exam.

Eligibility and Prerequisites

To sit for the Series 31, you must be registered with FINRA as a General Securities Representative at a member firm that is also an NFA Member FCM or IB. Notably, the Series 31 does not require passage of the Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) exam as a corequisite, allowing you to pursue this qualification independently if you already hold the appropriate securities registration.

What You Need to Know

Candidates should have a solid understanding of commodity futures markets, commodity pool structures and operations, customer suitability requirements, and compliance rules specific to NFA-regulated activities. Knowledge of how managed accounts differ from traditional securities offerings and the disclosure requirements for CTAs is essential.

The Series 31 exam registration fee is $90 USD. If you are an AP applicant submitting a Form 8-R through NFA's Online Registration System, an additional application fee of $85 USD applies. You will have an enrollment window of 120 days from initial application to schedule and complete your exam appointment.

The Series 31 is a 60-minute proctored exam delivered by Prometric, FINRA's official test delivery vendor. The exam contains 45 scored questions, and you must achieve a passing score of 70% to qualify. Prometric offers both testing center locations and remote proctoring options, with an online distance requirement of at least 150 miles if you choose remote testing.

How Hard Is the Series 31 Exam?

The Series 31 is a moderately challenging exam designed to qualify securities professionals to solicit funds for commodity pools and discretionary accounts managed by commodity trading advisors (CTAs). Unlike broader licensing exams, it targets a specific compliance niche—which means focused, domain-specific content rather than exhaustive breadth. Most candidates who prepare systematically pass on their first attempt, making this one of the more approachable qualification exams in the futures and securities space. The key insight: because the Series 31 tests a narrow slice of regulatory knowledge rather than sprawling securities fundamentals, depth trumps breadth. You don't need to master equities, bonds, and options. You need to know commodity pools and CTA regulations cold.

The Exam Format at a Glance

The math is straightforward: you have approximately 80 seconds per question, which is generous compared to most securities exams. With a 70% passing threshold, you can miss 13 or 14 questions and still pass—a significant buffer that reflects the exam's realistic difficulty level. This timing cushion means you're not racing against the clock; careful reading and solid content knowledge will carry you through.

Who Can Take It?

Eligibility is restricted to a specific professional profile. You must be registered with FINRA as a General Securities Representative (Series 7) at a member firm that is also an NFA Member Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) or Introducing Broker (IB). The SIE is not a prerequisite for the Series 31, though most candidates pursuing this license already hold Series 7 registration. This gatekeeping ensures candidates have foundational securities knowledge before tackling commodity pool regulations. The restriction also means the candidate pool is smaller and more motivated—you're not sitting next to people taking the exam as a lark.

What You'll Be Tested On

The Series 31 focuses on the rules, regulations, and operational requirements for soliciting investors into commodity pools and CTA-managed accounts. Core topics include commodity futures fundamentals, NFA and FINRA compliance requirements, disclosure and suitability obligations, fee arrangements, performance reporting, and the legal structure of commodity pool operators (CPOs) and commodity trading advisors. The exam tests application of these rules to real-world scenarios rather than pure memorization, so understanding the logic behind regulations matters more than rote recall. You'll encounter fact patterns asking how to handle specific investor disclosures, how to price commodity pool shares, and what performance metrics CTAs must report—practical situations you'd actually face in the role.

Realistic Study Plan

Most candidates need 40 to 60 hours of focused preparation. Because the Series 31 is narrowly scoped—you're not studying equities, bonds, options, or municipal securities—you can afford to go deep on the commodity pool and CTA regulatory ecosystem without spreading yourself thin across unrelated topics. That focus means your study effort pays off faster than it would preparing for a comprehensive exam.

Week 1–2: Review NFA and FINRA rules specific to commodity pools. Focus on disclosure requirements, performance reporting standards, and suitability rules tailored to this asset class. Spend time understanding the differences between CPOs and CTAs and their respective regulatory obligations. Build a study guide that highlights key regulatory citations and the specific requirements that trip up most candidates.

Week 3: Study fee structures, compensation limits, and the anti-fraud provisions that govern commodity pool solicitation. Work through practice questions systematically to identify weak spots. Many candidates struggle with the detailed fee calculation and disclosure scenarios—allocate extra time here if you see a pattern in your practice quiz performance.

Week 4: Take full-length practice exams under timed conditions. Aim to score consistently in the 75–80% range before your test date. If you're below 75%, dedicate additional time to your weakest topic areas and retake practice exams. The last week is about confidence and endurance, not learning new material.

The compressed study window reflects the exam's focused scope. Candidates with strong Series 7 foundations often need less time because they already understand core compliance and regulation. If your Series 7 is rusty, budget an extra week to refresh on general securities law before diving into commodity-specific rules.

Cost Breakdown

The total out-of-pocket cost to sit for the Series 31 is straightforward. The exam fee itself is $90. If you're applying as an associated person (AP), you'll also pay an $85 non-refundable application fee through the NFA's Online Registration System using Form 8-R. For comparison, if you were to take the SIE beforehand—which is not required but some firms prefer for foundational knowledge—that exam costs $100, bringing your total exam and registration spend to $175–$285 depending on your specific pathway. Study materials and exam prep courses vary widely, typically ranging from $200 to $800, so factor those in when budgeting.

Difficulty and Pass Rates

Specific pass rate data for the Series 31 is not publicly disclosed by FINRA in the same granular way as major exams like the Series 7. However, industry data suggests that candidates who complete a structured study program pass at rates above 75%. The exam is considered moderately difficult—harder than the SIE, easier than the Series 7, and comparable in rigor to the Series 4 (Registered Options Principal). The narrow focus on commodity pool regulations means there are fewer topics to master but also less room to compensate by guessing on unfamiliar questions. Candidates who underestimate the specialized nature of the content sometimes stumble because they assume commodity rules follow the same logic as equities rules. They often don't.

Career Value

Passing the Series 31 directly qualifies you to solicit funds for commodity pools and discretionary accounts managed by CTAs. This opens doors to roles in commodity fund marketing, private commodity pool investor relations, and CTA business development—niches that often pay well because the talent pool is smaller and regulatory expertise is valued. If you're already a registered securities professional at a futures firm, the Series 31 is a natural next step that materially expands your licensing scope without requiring a completely different skill set. Many professionals pursue it specifically to transition from traditional securities roles into the higher-margin commodity pool or hedge fund space. For firms, having Series 31-qualified staff signals operational sophistication and compliance capability to institutional investors evaluating fund managers.

Next Steps

Enroll through your sponsoring firm's compliance department or directly via NFA registration if your firm supports it. You'll have a 120-day window to schedule and complete your exam with Prometric, FINRA's testing vendor. Schedule as soon as your enrollment is confirmed so you can commit to a study timeline. Most first-time test-takers who allocate 4–6 weeks of deliberate study pass comfortably. The compressed timeline and narrow scope make the Series 31 one of the most achievable advanced securities licenses if you approach it methodically.

The Series 31 (Futures Managed Funds Exam) and the Series 3 (National Commodities Futures Exam) are both administered by FINRA and both govern activity in the futures and commodities space, but they serve different roles. This page compares the two so you can understand where they overlap, how they differ in scope and depth, and which one applies to your situation.

At a Glance

Both exams are FINRA-administered qualification exams in the futures/commodities domain. The Series 31 is a focused, narrower exam covering the sale and solicitation of managed futures products (commodity pools and managed futures accounts). The Series 3 is a broader foundational exam covering commodity futures and options across the industry.

Series 31 — Futures Managed Funds Exam

The Series 31 exam consists of 45 questions, must be completed in 60 minutes, requires a passing score of 70%, and costs $90. It is tightly scoped: it centers on the rules and disclosures around managed futures — commodity pools and managed accounts — including the responsibilities of those who solicit or supervise these products.

Series 3 — National Commodities Futures Exam

The Series 3 is the broad, entry-level qualification for the commodity futures industry. It covers general futures and options theory, market mechanics, hedging and speculation, margin, and the regulatory framework governing commodity futures trading. It is the standard qualification for associated persons dealing in commodity futures broadly, rather than the managed-funds niche.

Scope

• Series 31: Narrow. Managed futures products — commodity pools and managed futures accounts — and the disclosure, solicitation, and supervisory rules attached to them.
• Series 3: Broad. General commodity futures and options, market fundamentals, and the overall regulatory landscape.

Difficulty and Depth

The Series 31 is a shorter, more targeted exam and is often taken by candidates who already hold the Series 3, so its content builds on futures knowledge rather than teaching it from scratch. The Series 3 is broader and generally regarded as the more comprehensive foundational exam because it must cover the full breadth of commodity futures fundamentals.

Who Each Is For

• Series 31: Individuals who solicit or supervise managed futures products such as commodity pools and managed accounts.
• Series 3: Associated persons who deal broadly in commodity futures and options and need the general industry qualification.

Prerequisites

The Series 31 is designed for those already grounded in futures fundamentals — many candidates approach it after the Series 3, treating the Series 3 as the general foundation and the Series 31 as the managed-funds specialization. The Series 3 itself is a foundational exam with no comparable prerequisite in this pairing.

The Futures Managed Funds Exam (Series 31) qualifies you to solicit and supervise managed futures and commodity pool accounts. It's a compact, focused exam, and the good news is you don't necessarily need to spend a lot to pass it. This page compares the free study options against paid courses and books, so you can decide where to invest your money — and where you can save it.

Because the exam is short and rules-focused, many candidates pass using free and low-cost materials alone. But paid prep still earns its keep in specific situations, which we break down below.

What the exam looks like

Before choosing a study path, it helps to size the target. The Series 31 has 45 scored questions, gives you 60 minutes to complete it, and requires a score of 70% to pass. The exam fee is $90. Because it's a relatively small question bank with a one-hour time limit, most of your prep should focus on recognition speed and rule familiarity rather than deep memorization.

Free study options vs. paid prep

When free makes sense

• You already work with futures, commodity pools, or managed accounts and mostly need to confirm rule details.
• You're a self-directed learner who can build and stick to a study schedule.
• You want to keep total cost as close as possible to the mandatory $90 exam fee.

When paid prep is worth it

• This is your first securities/derivatives qualification exam and you want structure.
• You benefit from large, realistic practice-question banks and timed mock exams — the single most predictive prep activity for a short, rules-heavy test.
• Your employer reimburses exam prep, or your timeline is short and you can't afford a retake.

A practical middle path

Many candidates start free — official outline plus a guide like this one — then add a paid question bank only if practice scores lag. Because the exam is just 45 questions with a 70% cut score, missing about 14 questions is the difference between passing and failing, so drilling realistic questions until you're comfortably above 70% is often the highest-value spend.