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Home / Electricians / Ohio

How to become an electrician in Ohio

Ohio does not license individual electricians. You learn on the job or in school, and the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) licenses electrical contractors who run their own business.1

49registered apprenticeship programs$31.11median an hour in Ohio

Pick your way in

Apprenticeship

Earn while you learn

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

Pay
From day one
In OH
49 registered programs
Find a program near you
Trade school

Classroom first

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

Pay
You pay tuition
In OH
22 schools with programs
Compare 22 schools
Helper

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
How to get started

The license steps

  1. Get hired or start training

    Join a registered apprenticeship, take a trade school program, or work as a helper for a licensed contractor.

    Compare the ways in
  2. Run your own shop

    5 years as a tradesperson in the trade immediately before applying, or a registered Ohio engineer with 3 years' construction business experience in the trade, or other experience the section accepts; age 18+, US citizen or legal alien.

    Issued by
    Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB)
    Ohio contractor license
Pay once you're working

$64,700

a year is the median for electricians in Ohio ($31.11 an hour, May 2025).4

Pay by city and percentile
  1. Akron$37.19
  2. Lima$36.35
  3. Toledo$35.92
  4. Cleveland$34.07
  5. Columbus$31.11
Ohio median $31.11 an hour

Questions

Do you need a license to work on your own as an electrician in Ohio?

Yes. Ohio licenses electrical contractors through the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB).2

Are electricians in demand in Ohio?

Projections Central expects about 2,920 electrician openings a year in Ohio through 2034, counting new jobs and people leaving the trade.3

Next step

Find an apprenticeship near you

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

Find a program

More for electricians in Ohio

Sources

  1. Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB), Ohio Department of Commerce: commercial contractor licenses only (com.ohio.gov, 2026-10-27)
  2. Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) contractor licensing (codes.ohio.gov, 2026-10-27)
  3. Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2024-2034 (projectionscentral.org, 2024-2034)
  4. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Ohio, May 2025 (bls.gov, May 2025)