JLPT N4 Test Guide: Exam Pattern, Pass Marks, Kanji, Practice Questions and Registration in India

Dr. Jayanthy Ramakrishnan

06/11/2026

8 min read

The JLPT N4 test is the second level of the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test, one step above N5. It checks whether you can read short passages on familiar daily topics in basic vocabulary and kanji, and follow everyday conversations when they are spoken slowly.

This guide covers what the N4 exam tests, its sections and timing, the pass mark, what the JLPT says about vocabulary and kanji, where to find official practice papers, a set of practice questions we wrote, and how to register in India. Every rule here comes from the official JLPT site, jlpt.jp, read on 3 November 2026. For all five levels side by side, see our JLPT exam guide for India.

What does the JLPT N4 test?

The Japan Foundation describes N4 as “the ability to understand basic Japanese” (level summary). In practice that means:

• Reading: you can read and understand passages on familiar daily topics written in basic vocabulary and kanji.
• Listening: you can follow conversations you meet in daily life and generally understand them, provided they are spoken slowly.

Compared with N5, which stays with simple sentences and short exchanges, N4 asks you to read whole passages and follow longer conversations. Like every JLPT level, it has no speaking or writing section: every question is multiple choice.

What is the JLPT N4 exam pattern?

The N4 exam is taken in three timed sections, 115 minutes in all (official test sections page). The question types are from the Japan Foundation’s N4 purposes of test items.

The usage question type is the main addition over N5, and the reading passages are close to twice as long. The vocabulary and grammar-reading times were shortened from the December 2020 test, with fewer questions; the JLPT FAQ says the difficulty and content did not change. Section times can change, and the listening time can vary slightly with the recording.

What is the JLPT N4 pass mark?

N4 is scored out of 180, in two scoring sections. To pass you need both the overall pass mark and the minimum in each section (official scoring page):

That is 10 points more than the N5 total. The vocabulary paper and the grammar-and-reading paper are sat separately but scored together, because at the basic stage language knowledge and reading overlap too much to score apart (JLPT FAQ). If one section falls below its minimum you fail, whatever your total, and missing a section also means a fail. A candidate who passes N4 gets a CEFR reference of A2 on the score report (CEFR reference).

Is there an official JLPT N4 kanji list?

No. The JLPT does not publish an official N4 kanji, vocabulary or grammar list. The JLPT FAQ says it stopped publishing its “Test Content Specifications” at the 2010 revision, because the test measures whether you can use Japanese to communicate rather than how many items you have memorised. It points learners instead to the level summary, the question types and the official sample questions.

Two official facts help you judge the scope:

• N4 matches the old Level 3. The FAQ says a learner able to pass Level 3 of the pre-2010 test can pass N4.
• Reading means real passages. The longest N4 passage is about 450 characters on everyday topics, and the notice you search for information is about 400 characters.

N4 kanji lists and vocabulary books are compiled by publishers and websites, not by the JLPT. Use them to study, but treat their numbers as estimates rather than as the syllabus.

Where can you find JLPT N4 past papers and old questions?

The JLPT does not publish complete past papers. It does publish, free, a full-length N4 practice set on its sample questions page: the N4 section of the 2012 Official Practice Workbook, with questions chosen from real tests since 2010, plus the listening audio, the script, a sample answer sheet and the answers. A second volume (2018) is sold in print.

Those questions are copyrighted by the JLPT organisers, so we do not reproduce them. Sit the official set under timed conditions; it is the closest thing to an N4 old question paper that exists.

Galvanize practice questions for the N4 test

These questions are original Galvanize practice, written in the style of N4. They are not from a JLPT paper and are not official JLPT material. Choose one answer for each.

1. Kanji reading. How is the underlined word read? 来週、友だちと 旅行に 行きます。

1. りょこう
2. りょうこう
3. りょこ
4. りゅこう

Answer: 1. 旅行 (りょこう) means a trip. The wrong choices change the vowel length, a common N4 trap.

2. Orthography. Which is the correct way to write the underlined word? この へやは とても ひろいです。

1. 広い
2. 太い
3. 長い
4. 高い

Answer: 1. 広い (ひろい) means wide or spacious. 太い is thick, 長い is long and 高い is high or expensive.

3. Grammar. Which word goes in the blank? 雨が ふって いる（　）、しあいは 中止に なりました。

1. ので
2. のに
3. けど
4. まで

Answer: 1. ので gives a reason: “because it is raining, the match was cancelled”. のに and けど both set up a contrast, which does not fit.

4. Paraphrase. Which sentence is closest in meaning? この レストランは すいて います。

1. この レストランには 人が あまり いません。
2. この レストランには 人が たくさん います。
3. この レストランの りょうりは おいしいです。
4. この レストランの りょうりは 高いです。

Answer: 1. すいて いる here means the restaurant is not crowded, so there are not many people.

5. Usage. Which sentence uses しんせつ correctly?

1. 田中さんは いつも しんせつに おしえて くれます。
2. この へやは しんせつです。
3. きのう しんせつな 雨が ふりました。
4. テストは とても しんせつでした。

Answer: 1. しんせつ (kind) describes people and how they act, so it fits Mr Tanaka kindly teaching you, not a room, rain or a test.

6. Information retrieval. Read the notice and answer the question.

図書館からの お知らせ　来週の 月曜日は 図書館が 休みです。本は 火曜日から また 借りる ことが できます。

来週 本を 借りたい 人は、何曜日から 行けば いいですか。

1. 月曜日
2. 火曜日
3. 水曜日
4. 日曜日

Answer: 2. The library is closed on Monday and lending starts again on Tuesday (火曜日).

How do you register for the JLPT N4 test in India?

You register with the host institution in your test city. India has eight JLPT cities: New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Karur and Santiniketan, which holds only the July test (official list of overseas test cities, as of 11 September 2026). Our JLPT dates and India centres page names the host for each city.

1. Pick N4 on the host’s form. You register for one level per session, so you cannot sit N5 and N4 on the same day.
2. Apply in the host’s window. Outside Japan, registration runs around March to April for the July test and around August to September for the December test; each city sets its own dates (overseas test process).
3. Pay the host’s fee. Each host sets its own. As one example, MOSAI, the New Delhi host, charged Rs 2,200 including GST for N4 and N5 for the December 2026 test (MOSAI JLPT December 2026 notice). Other cities may charge differently.
4. Keep your Test Voucher. The host sends this admission ticket before the test; bring it with the photo ID the host asks for. In New Delhi, N3, N4 and N5 are held in the afternoon session.

When is the next JLPT N4 exam?

N4 is held on the same days as every other level: Sunday 5 July 2026 and Sunday 6 December 2026 (jlpt.jp). MOSAI’s notice showed December 2026 registration as closed when we checked on 3 November 2026, so if you have not registered, plan for July 2027. The Japan Foundation had not published the 2027 dates by then.

Results go online first and the paper score report follows through your host; the JLPT dates page has the timeline for each session.

Should you take N5 before the N4 test?

You do not have to. The JLPT has no prerequisite, so you can register for N4 directly. Some learners sit N5 first as a practice run and a first certificate; our JLPT N5 guide covers that level. Either way, the official N4 sample set is the best test of whether you are ready.

Is JLPT N4 enough to study in Japan?

N4 shows a working base in Japanese, but it is not an admission level for degrees taught in Japanese, which usually expect N2 or higher. Most English-taught degrees ask for English rather than any JLPT level, and N4 then helps with daily life and part-time work. Many students build from N4 towards N2 at a language school; see our guide to studying Japanese at a language school in Japan and the Japanese you need for a master’s in Japan.

If you are planning a degree in Japan and want help choosing programmes, deciding on the language route or applying for scholarships, talk to our Japan admissions team.