What Are the Different Levels of Electricians? The License Ladder by State

In the six states below, electricians climb a ladder with three main rungs: apprentice or trainee, journeyman or journey level, and master. A separate electrical contractor license sits above it and lets a company sell the work. The names, hours and limits change from state to state, and in the Board pages and statutes we read for North Carolina, we found no state apprentice or journeyman card.

Marshall Schofield and Jeremiah Jaskulski, our founders, are licensed general contractors and master electricians, so this page is written from the contractor side of the counter. For how every state licenses companies, start with our contractor license guide.

At a glance

• Texas: TDLR licenses apprentices, residential wiremen, journeymen and masters, and an electrical contractor must be a master or employ one (TDLR FAQ 3.6).
• Washington: trainee, journey level or specialty, then master, and a contractor must designate a master or administrator certificate holder (RCW 19.28.041(5)).
• Colorado: journeyman needs 8,000 hours over at least four years and residential wireman 4,000 hours over at least two (C.R.S. 12-115-110, as amended by SB 25-165).
• North Carolina: the Board classifies contractor licenses as limited, intermediate or unlimited, with special restricted classes possible, each backed by a listed qualified individual (G.S. 87-43.3, 87-41.1).
• Minnesota and Oregon: a contractor must designate a responsible master (Minn. Stat. 326B.33 subd. 17) or employ a full-time general supervising electrician (OAR 918-282-0010).

The five rungs, in plain words

In the six states below, electrical licensing follows the same logic, even when the titles differ.

1. Apprentice or trainee. A person learning the trade under supervision. Texas, Washington, Minnesota and Oregon each require a license, certificate or registration even here, and the work happens under a licensed electrician.
2. Journeyman or journey level. A person who has finished the training hours and passed an exam. In these states a journeyman works under a master or a contractor and does not run a business alone.
3. Master. A person with more years at the journeyman level and a second exam. In the states below, a master may supervise others and may be the person a contractor license depends on.
4. Limited, residential and specialty licenses. Side rungs for a narrow scope, such as one to four family homes, signs or plant maintenance.
5. Electrical contractor license. A license held by the business, not the worker. It allows a company to offer electrical work to the public, and in these states it requires a named master, administrator, supervising electrician or qualified individual behind it.

The exceptions matter as much as the pattern. In the North Carolina sources we read, the Board licenses the firm and its listed qualified individual. And cities can add their own requirements, so confirm with the board and the local building department before you act.

How six states build the ladder

The table gives the short version, and the notes carry the citations. Each state was read from its own board page, statute or session law on October 12, 2026.

Texas

The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) runs the ladder. An electrical apprentice is licensed to work under the general supervision of a master electrician, journeyman electrician or residential wireman, with no experience or exam requirement. A residential wireman is licensed only for installations in single-family and multifamily dwellings up to four stories, and qualifies with an approved career and technology education program or 4,000 hours of on-the-job training, plus the exam.

A journeyman works under the general supervision of a master and needs 8,000 hours, although TDLR allows the exam after 7,000 hours. A master needs two years as a journeyman and 12,000 hours under a Texas master, and may install, maintain or extend electrical wiring systems.

For the business, an electrical contractor must hold a master license or employ a master as its master electrician of record (FAQ 3.6); there is no contractor exam (FAQ 4.2). TDLR's contractor application page says a master may generally be assigned to only one electrical contractor unless the master owns more than 50 percent of the electrical contracting business. When the master of record leaves, the company has thirty business days to name a replacement (FAQ 3.8). Our Texas electrician license guide and Texas qualifying agent guide go deeper.

Washington

The Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) certifies individuals and licenses contractors separately. A trainee must work under a certified electrician on the same jobsite, at one trainee to one general journey level electrician for journey level work, or two trainees to one specialty electrician for specialty work.

A general journey level electrician (01) may perform all types of electrical and telecommunications installations. L&I lists 8,000 hours for the 01 exam, with no more than 4,000 of them worked in 4,000 hour specialties, plus 96 hours of classroom instruction. L&I describes the current pathway as starting as a trainee or with equivalent out-of-state or military experience, so confirm it before you plan hours.

A master needs at least four years as a certified general journey level electrician (two years in a specialty for a specialty master), may work as an installer, and may act as an administrator for a contractor. At the company level, RCW 19.28.041(5) requires the contractor to designate an individual who holds a master journey level certificate, a master specialty certificate, or an administrator certificate. See our Washington electrician license guide and Washington electrical contractor license guide.

Colorado

Senate Bill 25-165 (Chapter 370, signed June 3, 2025) amended C.R.S. 12-115-110. A journeyman applicant needs 8,000 hours over a period of at least four years, plus 288 hours of safety and National Electrical Code training. A residential wireman applicant needs 4,000 hours over at least two years of practical experience. An apprentice works under direct supervision, meaning the supervising master, journeyman or residential wireman is physically present at the same address (12-115-103(2.5)).

Colorado shows why a master is not the same as a company. Only a qualified applicant may apply for an electrical permit, and a master who is not a registered electrical contractor and works as an independent contractor for another business may not apply (C.R.S. 12-115-120, as amended by House Bill 22-1346). A qualified applicant is a master who is also a registered electrical contractor, a master directly employed by one, or a homeowner working on the homeowner's home. The session laws we read do not set the master hours or the contractor registration steps, so confirm those with the State Electrical Board. Our Colorado electrician license guide explains the ladder.

North Carolina

North Carolina's State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors licenses contractors by classification. G.S. 87-43 bars electrical contracting without a license in the right classification. G.S. 87-43.3(a) names limited (a single project not above $100,000, equipment rated at not more than 1,000 volts), intermediate (a single project not above $200,000) and unlimited (any project regardless of value), and 87-43.3(b) lets the Board create special restricted classifications. The statute says the Board sets values within those ceilings, so confirm the current figures with the Board.

Each licensee must regularly employ at least one listed qualified individual, someone who passed the exam and was certified by the Board (G.S. 87-41.1). The Board's FAQ says not everyone in a firm must hold a license, each place of business needs at least one listed qualified individual, and no listed qualified individual may be on more than one license certificate at the same time, except where a place of business has one listed qualified individual with licenses issued in different classifications. G.S. 87-43.1(3) excepts a bona fide employee of a licensee. In the Board pages and statutes we read, we found no state apprentice or journeyman card, so ask the Board whether any other requirement applies. See our North Carolina electrician license guide and North Carolina qualifying agent guide.

Minnesota

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) uses Class A and legacy Class B licenses. A Class A journeyworker needs at least four years of experience acceptable to the commissioner, with up to one year of credit for an approved two year electrical course (Minn. Stat. 326B.33 subd. 2), and may perform and supervise any electrical work except planning or laying out (326B.31 subd. 8). A Class A master needs a four-year electrical degree, one year as a licensed journeyworker, or five years of experience (326B.33 subd. 1), and may perform and supervise any electrical work (326B.31 subd. 9).

The entry rung is a registration. An unlicensed individual must register with DLI and work under the direct supervision of an individual actually licensed for that work, and a licensed electrician may supervise no more than two unlicensed individuals, with three allowed for technology circuits work (subd. 12).

For the company, each contractor must designate a responsible master electrician, satellite system installer or power limited technician (subd. 17). That person must be, by entity type, the individual, proprietor or a managing employee (sole proprietorship), a general partner or managing employee (partnership), a chief manager or managing employee (LLC), or an officer or managing employee (corporation). A managing employee must be actively engaged in the work and cannot work for another contractor, and an individual may be the responsible licensed individual for only one contractor. See our Minnesota electrician license guide.

Oregon

The Oregon Building Codes Division (BCD) administers the ladder under ORS 479.630, which provides for an electrical apprentice license, a limited residential electrician license (two years of residential apprenticeship and an exam), a general journeyman license (an exam and at least four years as an apprentice or its equivalent, as determined by the board by rule, including at least 1,000 hours on dwelling units), and a general supervising electrician license (an exam and at least four years as a general journeyman or its equivalent, as determined by the board by rule).

Subject to the owner exemptions in ORS 479.540, ORS 479.620 prohibits running an electrical installation business without an electrical contractor license, directing or supervising an installation without a supervising electrician license, and making an installation without a supervising or journeyman license. Under subsection (5), an installation on a single or multifamily dwelling unit not exceeding three floors above grade requires a limited residential electrician license instead. Under OAR 918-282-0010, an electrical contractor shall continuously employ at least one full-time general supervising electrician except as otherwise exempted, and a signing supervising electrician may supervise for only one contractor (OAR 918-282-0015). See our Oregon electrician license guide.

What this means for a contractor or business owner

1. Find what stands behind the contractor license in your state: a master in Texas, a master or administrator in Washington, a responsible master in Minnesota, a full-time general supervising electrician in Oregon, a listed qualified individual in North Carolina.
2. Check whether that person may serve more than one company. Texas generally limits it, and Minnesota, Oregon and North Carolina also limit it, with the exceptions noted above.
3. Read the permit rules before you bid. As Colorado shows, a master card does not by itself carry permit authority.
4. Plan for the qualifier leaving: Texas gives thirty business days to name a new master of record.

For the journeyman and master rungs in more states, read our journeyman vs master electrician guide, and for the company steps read how to get an electrical contractor license.

Frequently asked questions

What are the different levels of electricians? In the six states above, the ladder is apprentice or trainee, journeyman or journey level, and master, with limited or specialty licenses to the side and a contractor license for the business. States name and measure the rungs differently, so use your state board's current rules.

What is the difference between a journeyman and a master electrician? In the states above, a journeyman installs electrical work under a master or a contractor. A master has more experience and a second exam and, in Texas and Washington, may be the person a contractor license depends on. In the North Carolina sources we read, we found no state card for either rung, because the Board licenses the firm and its listed qualified individual.

Can a journeyman run an electrical business? Not by that card alone. In the states above, the business needs a contractor license with a master, administrator or equivalent behind it.

Does a master electrician license let me start a company? Not by itself. Texas, Washington, Minnesota and Oregon each require a contractor license for the company, and Colorado limits permit applications to a master who is also a registered electrical contractor, a master directly employed by one, or a homeowner performing work on the homeowner's home.

How a company gets qualified without a master on staff

Some electrical companies are owned by journeymen, general contractors or investors who do not hold the master or administrator credential the state wants behind the license. A qualifying agent solves that. A qualifying agent qualifies the company as an owner or a full time W-2 employee who supervises the work, and the company then holds the contractor license. Read what a qualifying agent is, see how to hire a qualifying agent, and review our contractor qualifier services for how this works. If your company works in more than one state, our licensing services in all 50 states cover the multi state side.

Next step

If you are ready to move from journeyman to company owner, or your company needs a qualifier behind an electrical contractor license, call 615-219-2110 or start at Hire a Qualifying Agent. Tell us the state and the work you do, and we will tell you plainly what the board expects.

Sources

Retrieved October 12, 2026.

• Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Electrical Safety and Licensing FAQ
• TDLR, Apply for a New Electrical Apprentice License
• TDLR, Apply for a New Residential Wireman License
• TDLR, Apply for a New Journeyman Electrician License
• TDLR, Apply for a New Master Electrician License
• TDLR, Apply for a New Electrical Contractor License
• Washington L&I, Electrical Licensing, Exams and Education
• Washington L&I, Electrician Certificate
• Washington L&I, Electrical Trainee
• Washington L&I, Master Electrician Certificate
• Revised Code of Washington, RCW 19.28.041
• Colorado General Assembly, Senate Bill 25-165, Chapter 370 (2025)
• Colorado General Assembly, Senate Bill 25-165 bill page
• Colorado General Assembly, House Bill 22-1346, Chapter 483 (2022)
• North Carolina General Statutes, G.S. 87-43, Electrical contracting license required
• North Carolina General Statutes, G.S. 87-43.3, Classification of licenses
• North Carolina General Statutes, G.S. 87-41.1, Definitions
• North Carolina General Statutes, G.S. 87-43.1, Exceptions
• North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, FAQ
• Minnesota Statutes, Section 326B.31, Definitions
• Minnesota Statutes, Section 326B.33, Licensing
• Minnesota DLI, Electrical licensing basics
• Oregon Revised Statutes, Chapter 479
• Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 282, Electrical and Elevator Licensing