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How to become an electrician in California
California certifies individual electricians through the DIR (documented hours plus a state exam) to work for a licensed contractor. That certification is separate from the C-10 Electrical Contractor license the state's Contractors State License Board issues to a business. Electricians in California earned a median $76,160 a year in May 2025 ($36.62 an hour).
Electrician licensing in California
The licensing authority is California DIR, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (Electrician Certification Unit). The pages each row was read from are listed under the table, with the date each was read.
| License | What it takes | Experience | Exam | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Electrician (state certification) | 4,800 hours of work for an electrical contractor in two or more of the work areas the state lists, with a cap on the hours each area counts, and a passing state exam (80 questions). | 4,800 hrs (≈ 2.5 yrs) | Residential Electrician Certification Exam | $175 |
| General Electrician (state certification) | 8,000 hours of work for an electrical contractor in two or more of the work areas the state lists, with a cap on the hours each area counts, and a passing state exam (100 questions). Required to work as an electrician for a C-10 contractor. | 8,000 hrs (≈ 4 yrs) | General Electrician Certification Exam | $175 |
| C-10 Electrical Contractor (CSLB) | Business license to bid work and pull permits: four years of journey-level experience, the C-10 trade exam plus the Business and Law exam, and the $450 original application fee (exam or waiver for one classification). An active license expires every two years, an inactive one every four. | — | C-10 trade exam + Business and Law exam | $450 |
Reciprocity. For the CSLB C-10 contractor license (not the individual certification), California has reciprocity agreements with Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and North Carolina.
Renewal. Every 3 years for the state certification (the CSLB C-10 contractor license renews every 2 years), with 32 hours of continuing education.
Licensing sources: DLSE Electrician Certification Program (retrieved 2026-09-16) · DLSE Electrician Certification FAQ (retrieved 2026-09-24) · DIR Electrician Certification Unit: general electrician requirements (retrieved 2026-09-24) · DIR Electrician Certification Unit: residential electrician requirements (retrieved 2026-09-24) · CSLB C-10 classification (retrieved 2026-09-16) · California CSLB: fees (retrieved 2026-09-24) · CSLB general renewal information (retrieved 2026-09-24) · CSLB: Experience for the exam (retrieved 2026-09-24). Requirements change; confirm with California DIR, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (Electrician Certification Unit) before you act.
Years to this license at your hours a week → · Every fee here, itemised and totalled → · Compare time and cost across trades and states →
Common questions
Do you need a license to work as an electrician in California?
California certifies individual electricians through the DIR (documented hours plus a state exam) to work for a licensed contractor. That certification is separate from the C-10 Electrical Contractor license the state's Contractors State License Board issues to a business.
What does it cost to get licensed as an electrician in California?
The published fees in the table above run from $175 to $450 depending on the tier. Read each tier's requirements for any exam or license-issue fee charged on top.
How long does it take to become an electrician in California?
You can be licensed as Residential Electrician after 4,800 hours of on-the-job training; higher tiers take longer. The time-to-journeyman calculator turns the hours into years at your own hours a week.
How much do electricians make in California?
Electricians in California earned a median $76,160 a year in May 2025, $36.62 an hour. That median is 21% above the national figure of $63,190, and California ranks 15 of 51 by pay for this trade.
How much do apprentice electricians make in California?
In fiscal 2023 (October 2022 to September 2023), among registered apprentices in California under the occupation titles the U.S. Department of Labor maps to electricians, 1,902 apprentices started, at a median $21.00 an hour across the 1,894 whose starting wage DOL counts. Those who completed that year were paid a median $54.06 an hour at completion (1,302 completers with an exit wage DOL counts). Wages are in that year's dollars.
What electricians earn in California
Electricians in California earned a median $76,160 a year in May 2025, $36.62 an hour. 73,310 people held the job, 4.0 for every 1,000 jobs in the state. That median is 21% above the national figure of $63,190, and California ranks 15 of 51 by pay for this trade.
The full wage spread in California
| Point | Hourly | Annual | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $22.50 | $46,800 | A tenth of the workforce earns less than this. |
| 25th percentile | $28.50 | $59,280 | A quarter earn less. |
| Median | $36.62 | $76,160 | Half earn less, half earn more. |
| 75th percentile | $49.52 | $103,000 | A quarter earn more. |
| 90th percentile | $67.47 | $140,340 | A tenth earn more than this. |
| Mean | $41.28 | $85,860 | The average. Pulled up by the top earners. |
Annual figures are the hourly rate times 2,080 hours, BLS's full-time year. Overtime is inside the survey's earnings but not separated out.
Pay by metro area in California
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA employs the most electricians of the 25 metro areas based in California that BLS publishes, 20,610, at a median $73,810 a year. The best-paid is San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA at $92,830.
| Metro | Employed | Median annual | 10th pct | 90th pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 20,610 | $73,810 | $46,140 | $131,680 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 9,060 | $92,830 | $55,360 | $182,340 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 8,060 | $76,160 | $47,890 | $126,260 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 7,880 | $72,790 | $45,360 | $139,430 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 6,340 | $74,830 | $46,230 | $130,020 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 5,480 | $91,030 | $54,290 | $173,340 |
| Fresno, CA | 1,980 | $71,710 | $46,090 | $119,800 |
| Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 1,410 | $75,860 | $46,770 | $123,940 |
| Stockton-Lodi, CA | 1,180 | $76,410 | $46,030 | $137,400 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | 1,160 | $64,840 | $47,070 | $122,360 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 1,080 | $77,380 | $47,850 | $134,990 |
| Modesto, CA | 770 | $76,710 | $48,220 | $137,600 |
| Vallejo, CA | 720 | $79,490 | $48,860 | $142,240 |
| Visalia, CA | 640 | $64,390 | $43,950 | $102,000 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | 630 | $75,290 | $48,170 | $113,520 |
| Salinas, CA | 530 | $78,780 | $47,740 | $131,450 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | 530 | $76,540 | $46,210 | $143,060 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | 330 | $76,610 | $48,290 | $126,560 |
| Chico, CA | 320 | $65,400 | $46,910 | $141,250 |
| Redding, CA | 320 | $69,540 | $46,460 | $134,800 |
| Napa, CA | 240 | $78,080 | $50,850 | $120,620 |
| Hanford-Corcoran, CA | 220 | $86,040 | $48,510 | $154,120 |
| Yuba City, CA | 220 | $65,660 | $46,030 | $142,650 |
| Merced, CA | 180 | $76,120 | $44,510 | $139,600 |
| El Centro, CA | 160 | $74,450 | $45,570 | $121,310 |
Metropolitan statistical areas as BLS publishes them in the same May 2025 estimates. A metro that crosses a state line is listed only under its primary state, so part of a neighboring state's metro can sit outside this table. Areas outside any metro are not shown.
California against its neighbors on the pay ladder
| # | State | Median annual | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Montana | $76,760 | 2,750 |
| 13 | Wisconsin | $76,540 | 14,310 |
| 14 | Michigan | $76,270 | 23,530 |
| 15 | California | $76,160 | 73,310 |
| 16 | Wyoming | $76,120 | 2,960 |
| 17 | Maine | $75,380 | 3,780 |
| 18 | Rhode Island | $74,090 | 2,420 |
The complete ranking is on the Electricians page.
Against the national figure
| Figure | California | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Median annual | $76,160 | $63,190 |
| Median hourly | $36.62 | $30.38 |
| 10th percentile, annual | $46,800 | $42,640 |
| 90th percentile, annual | $140,340 | $108,510 |
| Employed | 73,310 | 757,220 |
Apprenticeships in California
U.S. Department of Labor records list 7,628 registered apprentices active in California in fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 to September 2024) under the occupation titles DOL maps to electricians (SOC 47-2111). The file's fiscal 2024 records largely stop after February 2024. In fiscal 2023, the latest year the file holds in full, 1,902 apprentices started, at a median $21.00 an hour across the 1,894 whose starting wage DOL counts. Those who completed that year were paid a median $54.06 an hour at completion (1,302 completers with an exit wage DOL counts).
Find a registered program: DOL's Apprenticeship Finder → · What those wages come to at your hours a week → · Every state's count and wages for this trade →
Wages are DOL's own hourly figures in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Which wages DOL counts, which titles count and how the state is assigned are on the data page.
Other trades in California
Plumbers and pipefitters ($72,830) · HVAC technicians ($72,560) · Welders ($58,060) · Truck drivers (CDL) ($60,230) · Lineworkers (power-line installers) ($129,040) · Elevator installers ($141,180) · Ironworkers ($76,370) · Sheet metal workers ($76,590) · Carpenters ($75,920) · Brickmasons and blockmasons ($69,050) · Auto service technicians ($64,980) · Diesel mechanics ($73,950) · Heavy equipment operators ($87,160) · Machinists ($57,190)
See all 15 ranked by pay in California.
The pay and employment figures on this page are the May 2025 BLS estimates, apart from the apprenticeship figures, which are DOL's; the licensing detail is read from the pages listed in the licensing section, each with the date it was read. See how the numbers are built.