How to become an electrician in Maine

2,000 hours of supervised work, then the state exam.¹ Maine licenses electricians through the Maine Electricians' Examining Board.¹

2,000hours of work before the exam

Pick your way in

Every route ends at the same place: 2,000 logged hours and the state exam.

A program hires you, pays you on the job and runs your classes.

Learn the basics, then find work to log your hours.

Get hired as a helper by a licensed electrical contractor and log hours on the job.

journeyman in training from the Maine Electricians' Examining Board.

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
Maine Electricians' Examining Board
Compare the ways in
Log 2,000 hours2,000 hrs
About 1 years of full-time work under a licensed electrician. Keep your own log of hours and pay stubs.
Issued by
Your employer signs off
Time
2,000 hrs
What counts as hours
Pass the journeyman in training exam$90 exam
Apply to the Maine Electricians' Examining Board with your hours, then book the exam with Prov.
Issued by
Maine Electricians' Examining Board
Cost
$90 exam
Exam, fees and code book
Keep it currentEvery 2 years$150 renewal
Renew every 2 years. A 15-hour current National Electrical Code course as adopted by the board, documented at renewal
Issued by
Maine Electricians' Examining Board
Time
Every 2 years
Cost
$150 renewal
Renewal and continuing education
Run your own shop
Journeyman-in-training: 2,000 hours as a licensed helper plus a 576-hour program, or 6,000 hours as a licensed apprentice plus a 576-hour course. Apprentices must be enrolled in a registered apprenticeship program.
Issued by
Electricians' Examining Board (OPOR)
Maine contractor license

Already logging hours?

Exam vendor, code book, fees, renewal and reciprocity for the Maine journeyman in training.

Pay once you're working

$75,380

a year is the median for electricians in Maine ($36.24 an hour, May 2025).³

Maine median $36.24 an hour

About 1 years of full-time work: the journeyman in training requires 2,000 hours of supervised experience.¹

Yes. Maine licenses electrical contractors through the Electricians' Examining Board (OPOR).¹

Projections Central expects about 340 electrician openings a year in Maine through 2034, counting new jobs and people leaving the trade.²

Next step

15 registered programs in Maine. Enter your ZIP to see the closest ones and what they ask for.