How to become an HVAC technician in Delaware

The path in Delaware, step by step

Delaware licenses HVAC work at the state level through the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation, Board of Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Examiners. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Get a journeyman certificate through a federally approved HVACR apprenticeship, or build seven years of work under a master licensee.
2. Get your CFC refrigerant certification card if you will apply for Master HVACR or a refrigeration or air conditioning restricted license.
3. Apply in DELPROS with Verification of Employment forms and pay the $173 fee.
4. If you have no journeyman certificate, pass the ABC Delaware by-pass exam with at least 70 percent, then take the Master exam when the board approves you.
5. Get a Delaware business license from the Division of Revenue.
6. Renew every two years with the required continuing education, 5 hours after the first renewal.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: HVAC license in Delaware.

Finding an apprenticeship in Delaware

Delaware 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 Delaware 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. Some technicians train through an apprenticeship, which usually lasts several years. Each year mixes paid on-the-job training with some classroom work on safety, blueprint reading, and heating and cooling systems.

License levels and exams in Delaware

The license to aim for: Master HVACR.

Trade exam. Yes. Applicants take the board Master exam. Applicants without a journeyman certificate first take the Apprenticeship By-Pass Exam from ABC Delaware and must pass it with at least 70 percent.

Keeping it. Every two years. After the first renewal, 5 hours of continuing education per renewal. Late renewals carry a 50 percent late fee.

Coming from another state. Holders of a current master license in Connecticut, Iowa or Maryland do not need to prove experience. Applicants from several other states, including Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, Virginia and the District of Columbia, must show seven years as a licensed master.

What the Delaware license costs

The fees the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation, Board of Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Examiners lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.

What HVAC technicians earn in Delaware

The median HVAC technician in Delaware earned $29.96 an hour in May 2025, 21st of 51 states, with 1,730 on payrolls. The national median was $29.33.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of HVAC technicians in Delaware earned under $25.51 an hour and a tenth under $21.64. At the top, a quarter earned over $36.89 and a tenth over $46.93.

Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: HVAC technician salary in Delaware.

Jobs ahead in Delaware

Delaware's labor market office projects jobs for HVAC technicians growing from 1,550 in 2022 to 1,740 in 2032, a change of 12.3%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 160 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 12.3% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 5.5% projected nationally, ranking 21st 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 heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers.

Starting your own HVAC technician business in Delaware

To contract on your own in Delaware, the license is the Master HVACR.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Delaware median of $29.96 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $123.20 per billable hour. Try your own in the HVAC technician labor rate calculator.

The full checklist is in how to start an HVAC 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.