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How to become an electrician in Tennessee

To work as an electrician in Tennessee, outside the cities and counties that issue their own building permits, you need your own license from the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors. If you work in one of those cities and counties, ask its building department which license you need.

See your steps Find an apprenticeship

Your ladder

  1. ApprenticeStart here
  2. Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE)Your first state license
  3. Electrical Contracting (CE)Run your own business

First: start as an apprentice.

Find an apprenticeship

Your steps

Steps for: New to the trade. Change where you are at the top of the page.

  1. Step 1, Start here

    Start as an apprentice

    An apprenticeship is a paid job with training. You work for an employer and you learn the trade on the job. Tennessee has 98 registered electrician apprenticeship programs. The median wage is $16.37 an hour at the start and $30.37 an hour at the end.

    The programs with the most active apprentices

    See all 98 programs

  2. Step 2,

    Apply for your Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license

    Apply to the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors for the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license. You must pass the exam named "LLE, Limited Licensed Electrician". Prov gives the exam.

    You don't need experience or classroom hours to qualify for the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license.

    The Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license costs $50.

    You must pass the exam named "LLE, Limited Licensed Electrician". The exam costs $53.

    You renew the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license every 2 years. The renewal costs $50. You don't need continuing education to renew.

    You pay the $53 to Prov, the testing company, and not to the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors. Some of its forms still list an older fee of $57.

  3. Step 3,

    Renew your license

    You renew the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license every 2 years.

To run an electrical business

This is the license for running an electrical business.

Electrical Contracting (CE)

The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors decides whether your experience is enough for the classification, and it prefers 3 years. It can consider previous employment, volunteer work, internships, education and training. You can prove your experience with letters of recommendation, certificates, diplomas or employment verification. The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors also looks at your equipment and your financial statement. The license has a monetary limit of 10 times your working capital or your net worth, whichever is lower.

The Electrical Contracting (CE) license costs $250.

You must pass the exam named "CE, Electrical Contractor". The exam costs $53.

You renew the Electrical Contracting (CE) license every 2 years. The renewal costs $200.

You pay the $53 to Prov, the testing company, and not to the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors. Some of its forms still list an older fee of $57.

You take 2 exams for this license, the Tennessee Business and Law exam and the trade exam, and you pay the $53 fee for each.

Take the exam

LicenseExam
Electrical Contracting (CE)CE, Electrical ContractorProv gives the exam.
Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE)LLE, Limited Licensed ElectricianProv gives the exam.

You take the exam for the license you apply for.

What electricians earn in Tennessee

$29.37an hour

$61,090 a year, full time

Half of the electricians on a payroll in Tennessee earn more than $29.37 an hour, and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the yearly figure at $61,090.

These figures cover everyone on a payroll as an electrician in Tennessee, from apprentices to people with decades in the trade, so they aren't a starting wage. The survey counts 17,070 jobs. The figures don't include self-employed electricians.

The yearly figure is for full-time work all year, which is 2,080 hours.

Use a license from another state

If you hold a license from one of the states listed for a license, you may be able to use your license to qualify in Tennessee.

Tennessee licenseRecognized from
Electrical Contracting (CE) licenseAlabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina and West Virginia

The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors doesn't recognize a license from another state for the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license.

If you're licensed in one of these states, you can ask for a waiver of the Tennessee trade exam. You can't work in Tennessee on a license from another state. So you still need to pass the Tennessee Business & Law exam and get a Tennessee license. Your state completes the License Verification form. Send it with your application.

These states recognize a license from Tennessee.

Tennessee licenseRecognized by
Electrical Contracting (CE) licenseNorth Carolina

Questions

Can you become an electrician with no experience?

Yes. You can start as an apprentice and learn the trade on the job.

Tennessee electrician apprenticeships

How much do most electricians earn in Tennessee?

Half of the electricians on a payroll in Tennessee earn between $23.26 and $36.57 an hour. These figures don't include overtime pay.

Can an electrician earn $100,000 a year in Tennessee?

The highest-paid 10% of electricians on a payroll in Tennessee earn more than $92,160 a year before overtime, so most electricians earn less than $100,000 a year from regular hours.

Contact the licensing office

Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractorstn.gov/commerce/regboards/contractors.html

Words to know

Apprentice
Someone who learns the trade on the job, working under a licensed worker.
JATC
A Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, an apprenticeship program run together by a union and contractors.
Continuing education
Classes you take to keep your license.
Reciprocity
An agreement that lets you use a license from one state to get a license in another.
Prov
A company that runs licensing exams for state and city offices.
Median
The middle figure. Half of the workers earn more, and half earn less.

Sources

14
  1. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, electrician licensing, the licensing office
  2. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE), exam
  3. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, electrician licensing, who needs a license and license names
  4. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  5. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, electrician licensing, license names
  6. Tennessee Secretary of State, Rule 0680-01-.16, Appendix A
  7. Prov, CE – Electrical Contractor and LLE – Limited Licensed Electrician
  8. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, Electrical Contracting (CE), exam
  9. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, electrician licenses, fees
  10. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, Electrical Contracting (CE), renewal
  11. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, Electrical Contracting (CE), licenses from other states
  12. NC State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, Electrical Contracting (CE), licenses from other states
  13. Tennessee Secretary of State, Rule 0680-3-.05(2)
  14. U.S. Department of Labor national apprenticeship data, extract of August 17, 2026

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