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How to become a plumber in Alabama

To work as a plumber in Alabama, you need your own license from the Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board (PGFB). The license belongs to you and not to your employer.

See your steps Find an apprenticeship

Your ladder

  1. Apprentice Plumber/Gas FitterStart here
  2. Journeyman PlumberThe next license up
  3. Master PlumberRun 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. Alabama has 12 registered plumber apprenticeship programs. At UA Local 91 in Birmingham, journeyman pay is currently $25.50 an hour.

    The programs with the most active apprentices

    See all 12 programs

  2. Step 2,

    Get your Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter license

    Apply to PGFB for the Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter license.

    What this license lets you do: “You learn the trade by assisting on plumbing and gas work, for a company registered with the board, always under the direct supervision of a certified journeyman or master who stays on the job site the whole time you work. One journeyman or master may supervise up to five apprentices on a residential job and up to three on any other job.”

    How to apply: “If you have never held a card with the board, you can register and pay online. Otherwise you send the paper Apprentice Registration Form, with a copy of your photo ID and payment, to the board by mail or to staff@pgfb.alabama.gov.”

    The Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter license costs $35.

    You don't need to take an exam for the Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter license.

    You renew the Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter license every year. The renewal costs $35. You don't need continuing education to renew.

    The official wording of the requirement
    Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitter“You register with the board before you start: you fill in the apprentice registration form (online, if you have never held a card with the board), sign the declaration of U.S. citizenship or lawful presence, send a copy of your photo ID, and pay the $35 fee. There is no exam and no experience requirement.”

  3. Step 3,

    Get the experience you need

    PGFB sets the experience you need for the Journeyman Plumber license.

    Journeyman Plumber

    Exam
    $110
    Fee
    $50

    What this license lets you do: “You install, repair and replace plumbing systems, working for a company registered with the board under the general supervision of a certified master plumber. You cannot contract on your own. To do gas fitting as well, you need at least an apprentice card for gas.”

    How to apply: “You send the journeyman exam application with the $110 fee to the board, by mail, by email to staff@pgfb.alabama.gov or by fax to (205) 945-9915; by email or fax you also send a credit card or e-check authorization form. Once the board approves you, you schedule the exam with Prov. After you pass, you send the Initial Application for Certificate with your score sheet and the $125 in fees within 90 days.”

    About the exam: “175 minutes · 75 questions · 70% to pass · open book · computer-based · offered in English. Includes five questions on Alabama plumbing and gas law.”

    The application fee is $50. The Journeyman Plumber license costs $75.

    You must pass the Alabama Journeyman Plumber exam. The exam costs $110.

    You renew the Journeyman Plumber license every year. The renewal costs $75. You need 4 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

    The official wording of the requirement
    Journeyman Plumber“You need two years of current work experience as a registered apprentice plumber, or a board-approved apprentice training program combined with registered apprentice time that adds up to two years. Two years of apprentice-level experience gained another way can also count, but you must ask the board in person: you file a Board Appearance Request with documents that prove it, and attend the board meeting where it is heard. Then you apply for the exam and pass it.”

  4. Step 4,

    Apply for your Journeyman Plumber license

    Apply to PGFB for the Journeyman Plumber license. You must pass the Alabama Journeyman Plumber exam. Prov, Inc. gives the exam.

  5. Step 5,

    Renew your license

    You renew the Journeyman Plumber license every year.

To run a plumbing business

These are the licenses for running a plumbing business.

Master Plumber

Exam
$260
Fee
$50

What this license lets you do: “You install, repair and replace plumbing systems and may contract for plumbing work. You can register with the board as the Principal Master of one business; you must be its active employee, not an independent contractor. A master who supervises anyone must make sure that person holds a current board certificate or registration.”

How to apply: “You send the master exam application with both exam fees to the board, by mail, by email to staff@pgfb.alabama.gov or by fax. Once approved, you schedule both exams with Prov. Within 90 days of passing both, you send the Initial Application for Certificate with your score sheets, the $50 processing fee and the $175 certificate fee.”

About the exam: “Master Plumber: 250 minutes · 100 questions · 70% to pass · open book · offered in English. Business and Law: 120 minutes · 40 questions · 70% to pass · open book.”

The application fee is $50. The Master Plumber license costs $175.

You must pass the Alabama Master Plumber exam and the Business and Law exam. The exam costs $260.

You renew the Master Plumber license every year. The renewal costs $175. You need 4 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

The $260 is 2 exams: $160 for the written Master Plumber exam and $100 for the Business Law exam. You need both for the certificate, and you pay both fees to PGFB.

The official wording of the requirement
Master Plumber“You need at least one year of current work experience as a certified journeyman plumber. Then you pass two exams: the Master Plumber exam and, since January 1, 2026, a Business Law exam.”

Business Registration

What this license lets you do: “The registration lets a business bid on and do plumbing work in Alabama through its certified employees. The business name must be painted or lettered on both sides of every service or construction vehicle, at least two inches high.”

How to apply: “You fill in the Business Registration Form entirely and send it with the $25 fee; the same form is used for updates and the annual renewal.”

The Business Registration costs $25.

You renew the Business Registration every year. The renewal costs $25.

The official wording of the requirement
Business Registration“Your business registers with the board before it bids on or does any plumbing work, and it must have a Principal Master: a certified master plumber who is an active employee of the business, not an independent contractor, and who is not principal for any other business. Its journeymen and apprentices must hold their own board certificates or registrations.”

Take the exam

LicenseExam
Journeyman PlumberAlabama Journeyman Plumber examProv, Inc. gives the exam.
Master PlumberAlabama Master Plumber exam and the Business and Law examProv, Inc. gives the exam.

You take the exam for the license you apply for.

What plumbers earn in Alabama

$28.21an hour

$58,670 a year, full time

Half of the plumbers on a payroll in Alabama earn more than $28.21 an hour, and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the yearly figure at $58,670.

These figures cover everyone on a payroll as a plumber in Alabama, from apprentices to people with decades in the trade, so they aren't a starting wage. The survey counts 6,950 jobs. The figures don't include self-employed plumbers.

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 Alabama.

Alabama licenseRecognized from
Master Plumber licenseMississippi

PGFB doesn't recognize a license from another state for the Journeyman Plumber license.

Journeyman Plumber license: If you got your journeyman plumber license in another state by passing an exam with at least 70%, you can use the out-of-state application. You take the Alabama journeyman exam. You must score at least 70 on it. Your license must be active with no open discipline. Your licensing agency fills in the PGFB verification form.

Master Plumber license: If you passed an exam in Mississippi to get your license there, you can use it. It must be a Mississippi Master Mechanical or Commercial Plumbing license. Then you can skip PGFB's written Master Plumber exam. It can't be a license that you got by reciprocity with another state. Mississippi can't have penalized you in the past year. You must still pass the Business Law exam.

These states recognize a license from Alabama.

Alabama licenseRecognized by
Master Plumber licenseMississippi

Questions

Can you become a plumber with no experience?

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

Alabama plumber apprenticeships

How much do most plumbers earn in Alabama?

Half of the plumbers on a payroll in Alabama earn between $22.63 and $31.12 an hour. These figures don't include overtime pay.

Can a plumber earn $100,000 a year in Alabama?

The highest-paid 10% of plumbers on a payroll in Alabama earn more than $76,690 a year before overtime, so most plumbers earn less than $100,000 a year from regular hours.

Contact the licensing office

Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Boardpgfb.alabama.gov/applicants/how-do-i-become-licensed

Words to know

Apprentice
Someone who learns the trade on the job, working under a licensed worker.
Journeyman
The license level after apprentice. Some states write journeyperson, journeyworker or journey level.
Master
A higher license level, for a worker with more years in the trade. It often lets you supervise others.
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

27
  1. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-5-.01, "Work Permitted By Journeyman Plumbers"
  2. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing, the licensing office
  3. Alabama Legislature, Code of Ala. 1975, §34-37-6(a), "Certification, Registration, and Examination; Emergency Certificate of Endorsement"
  4. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, Business Registration, experience
  5. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  6. Alabama Legislature, Code of Ala. 1975, §34-37-1(2), "Definitions"
  7. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-4-.01, "Forms, Requirements, And Fee Schedule"
  8. Alabama Legislature, Code of Ala. 1975, §34-37-9, "Fees; Reissuance Fees; Exceptions"
  9. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing, license names
  10. Alabama Legislature, Code of Ala. 1975, §34-37-8(b), "Renewals; Acceptance and Inspection of Certificate; Continuing Education"
  11. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, Journeyman Plumber, exam
  12. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, Master Plumber, exam
  13. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, Master Plumber, licenses from other states
  14. Mississippi State Board of Contractors, Master Plumber, licenses from other states
  15. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing, license names (second page)
  16. Alabama Legislature, Code of Ala. 1975, §34-37-7, "Reexamination"
  17. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-7-.01, "Administration Of Examinations"
  18. Prov, plumber licensing
  19. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-9-.01, "Penalty For Late Renewal Of Certificate Or Registration"
  20. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-11-.01, "Work Permitted By Apprentice Plumber/Gas Fitters"
  21. Prov, plumber licensing (second page)
  22. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing
  23. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-21-.10, "Initial Certification Continuing Education Exemption"
  24. Alabama Administrative Code, Ala. Admin. Code r. 720-X-21-.09, "Over 65 Years Of Age Exemption From Continuing Education Requirements"
  25. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing (second page)
  26. Alabama Plumbers and Gas Fitters Examining Board, plumber licensing (third page)
  27. U.S. Department of Labor national apprenticeship data, extract of August 17, 2026

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