Ràdio 4 was launched in 1976 during the Spanish transition to democracy, and was integrated into a regional countrywide Radio 4 network in 1988 after the closure of the state-owned but commercially funded Radiocadena Española in that same year. The integrated regional countrywide Radio 4 network was shut down in 1991 due to poor ratings, and RNE Ràdio 4 once again became a standalone radio station.
In 2006 however, RNE Ràdio 4 was itself threatened with the prospect of closure due to a very low audience share (only 8,500 listeners in Catalonia out of a population of 7.5 million people). This sparked a campaign against closure of the station, which eventually proved successful after Santiago Gonzalez, the then newly appointed director of RNE (Radio Nacional de España), decided against closing Ràdio 4.