Last updated: August 2026. Written by Josh Hutcheson, OnlineCourseing editor. See our review methodology.
Disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links; we may earn a commission if you enroll through them, at no extra cost to you. We have affiliate partnerships with both providers compared here, so the comparison earns either way — every price was read off each provider’s live site in August 2026, and the verdict follows the facts.
QUICK VERDICT
Bottom line: this one splits cleanly on format, not quality. The Securities Institute of America wins for self-studiers — more included per dollar, a longer access window, and the only money-back pass guarantee of the two. Kaplan wins if you want instructor-led learning — its OnDemand and Live Online classes have no SIA equivalent at any price.
- Pick SIA if: you study on your own — $289 buys the complete Series 7 package with textbook, 3,000+ questions, AI support, and the GreenLight guarantee
- Pick Kaplan if: you want a class — Premium Live Online runs $309 (Series 7) / $229 (SIE) with real instructor interaction
- Watch the access clock: Kaplan includes 5 months ($49 to extend); SIA includes 180 days
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How we compared them
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Nobody else has published a direct SIA-versus-Kaplan comparison — the reviews that exist compare each brand against someone else — so we built this one from primary sources only: both providers’ live package grids for prices and tier contents, Kaplan’s own fine print for the access period and extension fee, and the full text of SIA’s guarantee terms rather than its marketing summary. Everything dated August 22, 2026. Where a claim couldn’t be verified on a provider’s own pages — question-bank sizes Kaplan doesn’t publish, pass rates nobody audits — we say so rather than filling the gap with folklore.
SIA vs Kaplan at a glance
| Securities Institute (SIA) | Kaplan | |
|---|---|---|
| SIE prep | $85 / $115 / $139 | $99 base; $199 OnDemand; $229 Live Online |
| Series 7 prep | $149 / $209 / $289 | $139 basic; $279 OnDemand; $309 Live Online |
| Teaching format | Self-study (textbook + video + question bank) | Self-study, OnDemand instructor video, or scheduled Live Online classes |
| Access included | 180 days | 5 months (+$49 for a 5-month extension) |
| Pass guarantee | GreenLight money-back (conditional) | None advertised on the SIE / Series 7 product pages |
| AI study help | TotalGenius assistant, 24/7 | None advertised |
| Standing discounts | NEWPATH2025 (SIE), SERIES7NOW (10% off S7) | None displayed; paid add-ons instead ($19–$45) |
All prices read from securitiesce.com and kaplanfinancial.com package pages, August 22, 2026.
Pricing: closer than the reputations suggest
The folk wisdom says Kaplan is the expensive brand and SIA is the discount one. The live package grids say otherwise: for the Series 7, Kaplan’s $139 basic tier is actually the cheapest package either company sells, and its $279–$309 Premium tiers sit within $20 of SIA’s $289 complete course. On the SIE, SIA’s $85–$139 band undercuts Kaplan’s $99–$229, with the gap widening if you want Kaplan’s instruction tiers.
The real difference isn’t the sticker — it’s what the sticker buys. SIA’s top tier is still self-study: the extra dollars buy the physical textbook, the full 3,000+ question bank, the GreenLight readiness exam, and the TotalGenius AI assistant. Kaplan’s extra dollars buy teaching: OnDemand instructor video at $279, or the scheduled Live Online class at $309. Comparing SIA’s $289 against Kaplan’s $139 basic — or Kaplan’s $309 Live Online against SIA’s $149 video tier — is comparing different products that happen to share an exam.
Format: self-study machine vs classroom
SIA has one way of teaching: you, the materials, and a practice engine. It’s a deliberately complete self-study kit — textbook authored in-house, video lessons, and a question bank you can slice by topic, question count, and your own miss history. The TotalGenius assistant fills the “wait, why is that the answer?” gap that self-studiers usually take to Google. What it will not do is put an instructor in front of you on a schedule.
Kaplan is built around the opposite premise: that most people study better when someone teaches. Its Premium packages center on instructor-led classes — recorded and searchable in the OnDemand tier, live and interactive in the Live Online tier — backed by Kaplan’s exam manuals and question bank, plus an à la carte shelf of flashcards ($29), quick-reference sheets ($19), and an audiobook of the license exam manual ($45). If your discipline comes from a calendar rather than willpower, that structure is worth Kaplan’s premium over its own basic tier.
Practice banks and question quality
The Series 7 is won and lost in the question bank, and here the two take different postures. SIA publishes its number — 3,000+ Series 7 practice questions, 1,000+ for the SIE — and builds the whole product around drilling them: custom exams by topic and miss history, simulated finals, and the once-only GreenLight readiness exam as the capstone. The consistent community read is that SIA’s questions run harder than the real exam, which stings in week two and pays off on test day.
Kaplan ships its well-regarded QBank and mastery exams with every package, but doesn’t publish question counts on its product pages, so we won’t guess at a number. What Kaplan adds instead is the layer above the questions: instructors who explain the why in class, which for some learners replaces a thousand extra reps. If your plan is pure volume drilling, SIA gives you the bigger declared arsenal; if your plan is understand-then-drill, Kaplan’s teaching tiers are built for it.
Access windows: read this before buying
This is the comparison point nobody advertises. Kaplan includes 5 months of online access, and its own fine print offers a 5-month extension for $49. SIA includes 180 days — roughly six months — with no extension product pushed at checkout. For a typical 6–10 week study plan either window is plenty; but if you’re studying around a demanding job, a deferred exam date can quietly turn Kaplan’s window into a $49 surcharge. Whichever provider you choose, set your exam date before you buy and count backward.
The guarantee gap
SIA backs every training package with its GreenLight Guarantee: pass SIA’s GreenLight readiness exam — one attempt only, within five days of your real exam — then fail the actual test, and your purchase is refunded (less $25 shipping if a textbook shipped). It’s conditional, but the conditions are defined and the refund is real; we walk through the full terms in our Securities Institute of America review.
Kaplan advertises no comparable money-back pass guarantee on the SIE or Series 7 product pages we checked. That doesn’t make Kaplan’s materials weaker — but it does mean SIA is the only one of the two putting money behind a defined readiness standard, which matters most to self-funded candidates for whom a retake means paying FINRA twice.
Brand and track record
Kaplan is the name your branch manager already knows — a global education company whose securities catalog spans the FINRA and NASAA exam range with self-study and instructor-led formats, and whose materials many firms buy for entire incoming classes. SIA is the specialist: 25+ years in securities exam prep specifically, by its own count across 400,000+ exams, years as a John Wiley & Sons partner company, and independent again since reacquiring Wiley’s stake in October 2020. Neither publishes an audited pass rate — FINRA releases no official ones, so treat any percentage from any provider as marketing.
What about the SIE stage?
If you’re earlier in the path — taking the SIE before a firm sponsors your Series 7 — the same logic applies at smaller numbers. SIA’s SIE line runs $85 to $139 for the complete package with the textbook and 1,000+ questions; Kaplan’s runs $99 to $229, with the instruction tiers ($199 OnDemand, $229 Live Online) carrying the premium. The SIE is the broader, shallower exam, and most candidates pass it comfortably on self-study — which is why we’d point most SIE-stage readers at the cheaper end of either catalog and save the live-class decision for the Series 7, where the material depth actually rewards teaching. Our SIE exam guide covers that stage’s full picture, including FINRA’s fees and the no-sponsorship registration path.
Choose SIA if…
- You’re a disciplined self-studier who wants the most complete package per dollar — textbook, 3,000+ questions, readiness exam, and AI support at $289 for the Series 7
- The money-back guarantee matters — you’re self-funding and want a defined refund path
- You want the harder practice bank — training above exam difficulty is SIA’s signature
- You may take several licenses — SIA covers 19 exams on one platform
Choose Kaplan if…
- You learn best from instruction — the $279 OnDemand or $309 Live Online tiers put real teaching behind the material
- Your firm uses Kaplan already — matching your training class’s materials has practical value
- You want the cheapest possible entry — the $139 basic Series 7 package is the lowest-priced tier either company sells
- You like à la carte extras — flashcards, quick sheets, and the audiobook manual are add-ons SIA doesn’t sell
The bottom line
Ask one question: will you actually attend a class? If yes, Kaplan — it’s the only one of the two that teaches, and its Live Online tier is fairly priced for what it adds. If you’re honest with yourself that you’ll study from a book and a question bank on your own schedule, SIA gives you more of everything that matters for that style — questions, access time, AI help, and a guarantee — for the same money or less. Candidates comparing more than these two should see our full Series 7 prep course ranking, where STC, Achievable, and Knopman Marks round out the field.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Securities Institute of America better than Kaplan?
For self-study, usually yes: SIA’s $289 Series 7 complete package includes a physical textbook, a 3,000+ question bank, a readiness exam, an AI assistant, 180 days of access, and a conditional money-back guarantee. Kaplan is better if you want instruction – its $279 OnDemand and $309 Live Online tiers offer instructor-led classes SIA doesn’t sell.
Is Kaplan more expensive than SIA for securities exam prep?
Not reliably. Verified August 2026: Kaplan’s $139 basic Series 7 tier is the cheapest package either company sells, and its Premium tiers ($279-$309) sit within $20 of SIA’s $289 complete course. On the SIE, SIA runs $85-$139 versus Kaplan’s $99-$229.
Does Kaplan have a pass guarantee for the Series 7?
No money-back pass guarantee is advertised on Kaplan’s SIE or Series 7 product pages as of August 2026. SIA’s GreenLight Guarantee refunds your purchase if you pass its once-only readiness exam within 5 days of your real exam and then fail the actual test (less $25 shipping if a textbook shipped).
How long do SIA and Kaplan give you access?
SIA includes 180 days on its training packages. Kaplan includes 5 months, and sells a 5-month extension for $49. Set your exam date before buying and make sure the window covers it.
Can I take live classes with SIA?
No – every SIA package is self-paced self-study. If live instruction is what you need, Kaplan’s Premium Live Online tiers ($229 SIE, $309 Series 7) or STC’s class-based packages are the options to compare.