How to become an electrician in Florida

The path in Florida, step by step

Florida licenses electrical work at the state level through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Electrical Contractors Licensing Board. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Build the required experience, for example 4 years as a supervisor or contractor in the trade within the last 8 years.
2. Apply for the exam with the ECLB 8 form and pass both parts of the state exam.
3. Get liability insurance, workers compensation or an exemption, credit reports and a business financial statement.
4. Apply for initial certification with the ECLB 1 form and pay the $296 fee within 3 years of passing.
5. Renew every two years with 11 hours of continuing education.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: electrical license in Florida.

Finding an apprenticeship in Florida

Florida runs Registered Apprenticeship through its own State Apprenticeship Agency, recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor to register and oversee programs there. Its staff are state employees, and it may use the federal paperwork or forms of its own. Apprenticeship.gov lists the Florida State Apprenticeship Agency as the contact.

Either way, a registered program means paid work with a mentor, raises as you progress, classroom instruction and a credential recognized in every state. Search open spots in the Apprenticeship Job Finder.

Across the country. Most electricians learn the trade in a 4 or 5 year apprenticeship. Each year brings about 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training plus some classroom instruction.

License levels and exams in Florida

The license to aim for: Certified Electrical Contractor (EC).

Trade exam. Yes. A two part state exam taken on computer at vendor sites around Florida. You must pass before applying for the license, and passing scores must be less than 3 years old.

Keeping it. Every two years. Certified electrical contractors need 11 hours of continuing education, including workers compensation, workplace safety, business practices, Florida laws and rules, a building code advanced module, and 6 technical hours. Licenses expire August 31 of even years.

What the Florida license costs

The fees the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Electrical Contractors Licensing Board lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.

What electricians earn in Florida

The median electrician in Florida earned $27.52 an hour in May 2025, 48th of 51 states, with 49,700 on payrolls. The national median was $30.38.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of electricians in Florida earned under $22.91 an hour and a tenth under $18.36. At the top, a quarter earned over $29.76 and a tenth over $37.10.

Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: electrician salary in Florida.

Jobs ahead in Florida

Florida's labor market office projects jobs for electricians growing from 46,450 in 2022 to 54,510 in 2032, a change of 17.4%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 5,200 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 17.4% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 6.5% projected nationally, ranking 9th of the 50 states in the file.

These are the state's own long-term projections, published together on Projections Central for the occupation group electricians.

Starting your own electrician business in Florida

To contract on your own in Florida, the license is the Certified Electrical Contractor (EC).

Insurance. Public liability of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence, plus $500,000 property damage, or a combined single limit policy of $800,000. You also need workers compensation or an exemption.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Florida median of $27.52 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $118.92 per billable hour. Try your own in the electrician labor rate calculator.

The full checklist is in how to start an electrical business. The free Koira Office plan gives you a website on a Koira address, estimates customers sign with a deposit, invoices with card payments and your day's jobs in one place, with no per-person fee. See the plans.