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Time and cost to get licensed, by trade and state
Every row is a real credential path, sourced from the state's own licensing board. "Time" is the on-the-job training to the first license you can hold at full-time hours; "starting cost" is the lowest published application or license fee. Where a state states its requirement in years rather than hours, or set fees vary, the cell reads "varies" — open the page for the sourced detail.
| State | Trade | Time to first license | Starting cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | Electricians | ~2.5 yrs | $175 | how → |
| California | HVAC technicians | varies | $450 | how → |
| California | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $450 | how → |
| California | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $100 | how → |
| Florida | Electricians | varies | $151 | how → |
| Florida | HVAC technicians | varies | $149 | how → |
| Florida | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $245 | how → |
| Florida | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $75 | how → |
| Georgia | Electricians | varies | varies | how → |
| Georgia | HVAC technicians | varies | $30 | how → |
| Georgia | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $40 | how → |
| Georgia | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $10 | how → |
| Illinois | Electricians | varies | $150 | how → |
| Illinois | HVAC technicians | varies | varies | how → |
| Illinois | Plumbers and pipefitters | ~2.5 yrs | $100 | how → |
| Illinois | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $50 | how → |
| Michigan | Electricians | ~4 yrs | $15 | how → |
| Michigan | HVAC technicians | ~3 yrs | $300 | how → |
| Michigan | Plumbers and pipefitters | ~2 yrs | $15 | how → |
| Michigan | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | varies | how → |
| New York | Electricians | varies | $310 | how → |
| New York | HVAC technicians | varies | varies | how → |
| New York | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $585 | how → |
| New York | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $10 | how → |
| North Carolina | Electricians | varies | $100 | how → |
| North Carolina | HVAC technicians | ~2 yrs | $150 | how → |
| North Carolina | Plumbers and pipefitters | ~2 yrs | $150 | how → |
| North Carolina | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | varies | how → |
| Ohio | Electricians | varies | $25 | how → |
| Ohio | HVAC technicians | varies | varies | how → |
| Ohio | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $25 | how → |
| Ohio | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $32 | how → |
| Pennsylvania | Electricians | varies | $262 | how → |
| Pennsylvania | HVAC technicians | varies | varies | how → |
| Pennsylvania | Plumbers and pipefitters | varies | $125 | how → |
| Pennsylvania | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | varies | how → |
| Texas | Electricians | ~4 yrs | $20 | how → |
| Texas | HVAC technicians | varies | $20 | how → |
| Texas | Plumbers and pipefitters | ~2 yrs | $15 | how → |
| Texas | Truck drivers (CDL) | varies | $25 | how → |
40 sourced credential paths across 10 states and 4 trades. "Time" uses 2,080 hours = a full-time year. Fees are the lowest published application or license fee and exclude separate exam-vendor fees; the trade-and-state page lists every tier.
How to read this
Faster and cheaper is not the same as better. A state where you can be licensed in about two years may pay less, or license only a limited scope of work; a longer path often leads to a higher-paid, less-restricted license. Use this to see the landscape, then open a page for the pay figures beside the full requirements. The trades that are federally credentialed rather than state-licensed — the CDL (federal training plus a state road test) and HVAC (the federal EPA 608 refrigerant certification plus, in most states, a contractor license) — show "varies" for time because there is no single on-the-job-hours figure; the steps are on each page.