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Home / Electricians / Colorado
How to become an electrician in Colorado
Colorado licenses electricians at the state level through DPO.1 You start as an apprentice or trainee and work toward the exam.
Pick your way in
Earn while you learn
A program hires you, pays you on the job and runs your classes.
- Pay
- From day one
- In CO
- 67 registered programs
Classroom first
Learn the basics, then find work to log your hours.
- Pay
- You pay tuition
- In CO
- 8 schools with programs
Start on a crew
Get hired as a helper by a licensed electrical contractor and log hours on the job.
- Pay
- Paid on the job
- Start
- No experience needed
The license steps
Start as an apprentice or trainee
Join a registered apprenticeship, take a trade school program, or work as a helper for a licensed contractor.
- Issued by
- Colorado State Electrical Board, Division of Professions and Occupations (DPO)
residential wireman2 yrs
2 years
- Time
- 2 yrs
Journeyman license4 yrs
4 years of apprenticeship or practical experience including 288 hours of related training
- Time
- 4 yrs
Master license1 yr
Engineering degree plus 1 year, trade school plus 4 years, or 1 year beyond journeyman level
- Time
- 1 yr
Run your own shop
To bid and contract on your own you need an electrical contractor license or registration.
- Issued by
- Division of Professions and Occupations - Electrical Board
Exam vendor, code book, fees, renewal and reciprocity for the Colorado license.
$62,230
a year is the median for electricians in Colorado ($29.92 an hour, May 2025).4
Pay by city and percentile- Boulder$30.83
- Greeley$30.43
- Denver–Aurora$30.36
- Fort Collins–Loveland$29.52
- Pueblo$28.94
Questions
Do you need a license to work on your own as an electrician in Colorado?
Check the Division of Professions and Occupations before you bid work on your own.1
Are electricians in demand in Colorado?
Projections Central expects about 2,340 electrician openings a year in Colorado through 2034, counting new jobs and people leaving the trade.3
Find an apprenticeship near you
67 registered programs in Colorado. Enter your ZIP to see the closest ones and what they ask for.
Find a programMore for electricians in Colorado
Sources
- Colorado State Electrical Board, Division of Professions and Occupations (DPO) (dpo.colorado.gov, 2026-10-27)
- Colorado State Electrical Board, Division of Professions and Occupations (DPO): experience requirements (leg.colorado.gov, 2026-10-27)
- Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2024-2034 (projectionscentral.org, 2024-2034)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Colorado, May 2025 (bls.gov, May 2025)