How to become a plumber in Montana

The path in Montana, step by step

Montana licenses plumbing work at the state level through the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Board of Plumbers. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Get 5 years of plumbing experience or finish an approved apprenticeship, then pass the journeyman exam.
2. Work 4 years as a licensed journeyman, with 3 years alongside a master plumber or as a supervisor.
3. Apply online for the master license with an experience verification form and the $380 fee.
4. After board approval, schedule and pass the IAPMO master exam with 70 percent or better.
5. Renew every year with 4 hours of approved code continuing education.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: plumbing license in Montana.

Finding an apprenticeship in Montana

Montana 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 Montana 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 plumbers learn the trade in a 4 or 5 year apprenticeship, with about 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training plus some classroom instruction each year.

License levels and exams in Montana

The license to aim for: Master Plumber.

Trade exam. Montana master plumber written exam, given through IAPMO after the board approves you. Passing score is 70 percent.

Keeping it. Every year. You need 4 hours of board approved code related continuing education each year.

Coming from another state. Montana has journeyman reciprocity with Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota and South Dakota. It does not reciprocate a master license.

What the Montana license costs

The fees the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Board of Plumbers lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.

What plumbers earn in Montana

The median plumber in Montana earned $38.44 an hour in May 2025, 10th of 51 states, with 1,860 on payrolls. The national median was $30.67.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of plumbers in Montana earned under $29.32 an hour and a tenth under $23.20. At the top, a quarter earned over $45.37 and a tenth over $48.49.

Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: plumber salary in Montana.

Jobs ahead in Montana

Montana's labor market office projects jobs for plumbers growing from 2,260 in 2022 to 2,770 in 2032, a change of 22.6%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 270 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 22.6% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 2.3% projected nationally, ranking 3rd 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 plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters.

Starting your own plumber business in Montana

To contract on your own in Montana, the license is the Master Plumber.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Montana median of $38.44 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $138.10 per billable hour. Try your own in the plumber labor rate calculator.

The full checklist is in how to start a plumbing 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.