Skip to content
State files updated Oct 27, 2026
Look up a contractor
MenuClose

Home / Electricians / Virginia

Hands stripping a wire with pliers at an open junction box on a white wall

Home / Electricians / Virginia

How to become an electrician in Virginia

Virginia licenses electricians at the state level through DPOR.1 You start as an apprentice or trainee and work toward the exam.

305registered apprenticeship programs$30.24median an hour in Virginia

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 VA
305 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 VA
18 schools with programs
Compare 18 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. 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
    Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR), Board for Contractors
    Compare the ways in
  2. Journeyman license5 yrs

    Four years of practical experience plus 240 hours of formal vocational training, or one year with an engineering bachelor's degree, two years with a two-year associate degree or certificate in a tradesman-related field, or longer experience with fewer training hours (160 hours + 5 years, 80 + 6, 40 + 7, none + 8 years)

    Time
    5 yrs
  3. Master license

    Hold a Virginia journeyman license in the trade for at least one year, or nine years of practical experience in the trade

  4. Run your own shop

    Master tradesman: held a valid journeyman license in the trade 1 year, or the residential tradesman license 3 years, or 9 years of practical experience (18VAC50-30-39 D). Journeyman exam eligibility ranges from 1 year of experience with an engineering bachelor's degree to 8 years with no education (18VAC50-30-39 B).

    Issued by
    VA Board for Contractors (DPOR)
    Virginia contractor license
Already logging hours?

Exam vendor, code book, fees, renewal and reciprocity for the Virginia license.

Virginia electrician license
Pay once you're working

$62,900

a year is the median for electricians in Virginia ($30.24 an hour, May 2025).5

Pay by city and percentile
  1. Charlottesville$30.28
  2. Blacksburg–Christiansburg$30.04
  3. Virginia Beach–Chesapeake$29.98
  4. Staunton–Stuarts Draft$29.88
  5. Harrisonburg$29.75
Virginia median $30.24 an hour

Questions

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

Yes. Virginia licenses electrical contractors through the VA Board for Contractors (DPOR).3

Are electricians in demand in Virginia?

Projections Central expects about 2,560 electrician openings a year in Virginia through 2034, counting new jobs and people leaving the trade.4

Next step

Find an apprenticeship near you

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

Find a program

More for electricians in Virginia

Sources

  1. Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR), Board for Contractors (law.lis.virginia.gov, 2026-10-27)
  2. Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR), Board for Contractors: experience requirements (law.lis.virginia.gov, 2026-10-27)
  3. VA Board for Contractors (DPOR) contractor licensing (law.lis.virginia.gov, 2026-10-27)
  4. Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2024-2034 (projectionscentral.org, 2024-2034)
  5. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Virginia, May 2025 (bls.gov, May 2025)