How to become a plumber in Texas

To work as a plumber in Texas, you need your own license from the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE). The license belongs to you and not to your employer.

See your steps Find an apprenticeship

Your ladder

Dates if you start in Nov 2026 and work 40 hours a week.

You
Plumber's ApprenticeStart here
Journeyman Plumber8,000 hours on the job
Master PlumberThe next license up
Responsible Master PlumberRun your own business

First: start as an apprentice.

Find an apprenticeship

Dates are estimates, worked out from the hours on the job each license requires and the hours a week you pick.

Your steps

Steps for: New to the trade. The dates follow your ladder. Change where you are, your start month or your hours a week 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. Texas has 83 registered plumber apprenticeship programs. The median wage is $19.42 an hour at the start and $29.24 an hour at the end.
The programs with the most active apprentices
See all 83 programs
Step 2,
Get your Plumber's Apprentice registration
Apply to TSBPE for the Plumber's Apprentice registration.
The application fee is $15.
You renew the Plumber's Apprentice registration every year. The renewal costs $15.
Step 3,
Complete 8,000 hours on the job
To qualify for the Journeyman Plumber license, you need 8,000 hours on the job and 48 classroom hours.
Step 4,
Apply for your Journeyman Plumber license
Apply to TSBPE for the Journeyman Plumber license. You must pass the Journeyman Plumber Examination. Pearson VUE gives the exam.
Hours on the job
8,000
Exam
$40
You must be registered as a Plumber's Apprentice or licensed as a Tradesman Plumber-Limited in Texas, or licensed as a Journeyman Plumber or Master Plumber in another state. You need at least 8,000 hours of experience in the plumbing trade. You must also complete a 48-hour training course that TSBPE approves, or be enrolled in or have completed a training program approved by the United States Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship.
The Journeyman Plumber license costs $40.
You must pass the Journeyman Plumber Examination. The exam costs $40.
You renew the Journeyman Plumber license every year. The renewal costs $40. You need 6 hours of continuing education for each renewal.
Step 5,
Renew your license
You renew the Journeyman Plumber license every year.

Other plumber licenses

Tradesman Plumber-Limited

Hours on the job: 4,000
Exam: $36

You need at least 4,000 hours of experience in the plumbing trade. You must also complete a 24-hour training course that TSBPE approves, or be enrolled in or have completed a training program approved by the United States Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship.

The Tradesman Plumber-Limited license costs $35.

You must pass the Tradesman Plumber-Limited Examination. The exam costs $36.

You renew the Tradesman Plumber-Limited license every year. The renewal costs $35. You need 6 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

Master Plumber

Exam: $175
Fee: $25

You must have held a Journeyman Plumber license in Texas or another state for at least 2 years. If you completed a training program approved by the United States Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship, you need at least 1 year. If you're a Master Plumber in another state, the same 2 years or 1 year apply to the Journeyman Plumber license you held before.

The application fee is $25. The Master Plumber license costs $75.

You must pass the Master Plumber Examination. The exam costs $175.

You renew the Master Plumber license every year. The renewal costs $75. You need 6 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

TSBPE calls this fee an exam processing fee. You pay it to TSBPE, and it's separate from the fee you pay the testing company.

The $175 is the exam fee in the rule from TSBPE. The TSBPE website lists $25 paid to TSBPE and $128.50 paid to Pearson VUE for the same exam, a total of $153.50. Ask TSBPE which amount you will pay.

Plumbing Inspector

Hours on the job: 500
Exam: $55

You need a high school diploma or a General Equivalency Diploma (GED) and 500 hours of training and experience in the plumbing industry. You can also qualify with a Texas Master Plumber, Journeyman Plumber, Professional Engineer or Architect license. A Plumbing Inspector license from another state also qualifies if that state's licensing requirements are substantially equivalent to the TSBPE requirements.

The Plumbing Inspector license costs $55.

You must pass the Plumbing Inspector Examination. The exam costs $55.

You renew the Plumbing Inspector license every year. The renewal costs $55. You need 6 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

You need the 500 hours only if you don't hold a Texas Master Plumber, Journeyman Plumber, Professional Engineer or Architect license.

To run a plumbing business

This is the license for running a plumbing business.

Responsible Master Plumber

You must hold a Master Plumber license in Texas and be in good standing with TSBPE. You also need proof of at least $300,000 of commercial liability insurance.

The application fee is $225. The Responsible Master Plumber license costs $300.

You renew the Responsible Master Plumber license every year. The renewal costs $300. You need 6 hours of continuing education for each renewal.

The $225 application fee is separate, so the first year costs $525 and each year after costs $300.

Take the exam

License	Exam
Tradesman Plumber-Limited	Tradesman Plumber-Limited ExaminationPearson VUE gives the exam.
Journeyman Plumber	Journeyman Plumber ExaminationPearson VUE gives the exam.
Master Plumber	Master Plumber ExaminationPearson VUE gives the exam.
Plumbing Inspector	Plumbing Inspector ExaminationPearson VUE gives the exam.

You take the exam for the license you apply for.

What plumbers earn in Texas

$28.77an hour

$59,840 a year, full time

Half of the plumbers on a payroll in Texas earn more than $28.77 an hour, and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the yearly figure at $59,840.

These figures cover everyone on a payroll as a plumber in Texas, from apprentices to people with decades in the trade, so they aren't a starting wage. The survey counts 44,090 jobs. The figures don't include self-employed plumbers.

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

Median$18.40Lowest 10%$22.78Lowest 25%$35.63Highest 25%$39.37Highest 10%

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 Texas.

Texas license	Recognized from
Journeyman Plumber license	Arkansas and Louisiana

These states recognize a license from Texas.

Texas license	Recognized by
Journeyman Plumber license	Louisiana

Questions

How long does it take to become a plumber in Texas?

If you work full time, you reach the 8,000 hours for the Journeyman Plumber license in about 4 years.

Can you become a plumber with no experience?

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

Texas plumber apprenticeships

How much do most plumbers earn in Texas?

Half of the plumbers on a payroll in Texas earn between $22.78 and $35.63 an hour. These figures don't include overtime pay.

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

The highest-paid 10% of plumbers on a payroll in Texas earn more than $81,890 a year before overtime, so most plumbers earn less than $100,000 a year from regular hours.

Contact the licensing office

Texas State Board of Plumbing Examinerstsbpe.texas.gov

Check a licenseLook up a license

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.
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.
Pearson VUE: A company that runs licensing exams at its own test centers.
Median: The middle figure. Half of the workers earn more, and half earn less.

Sources

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Alerts for: Plumber in Texas