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Plumber/Washington/Licensing

Washington State Department of Labor & Industries

How to become a plumber in Washington

$77.21Journey rate, per hour · the top of 7 registered apprenticeships on the state's registry

To work as a plumber in Washington, you need your own state license. It's yours, not your employer's, and it stays with you when you change jobs.

If you're starting with no experience, the usual path is a trainee job. You get hired as a plumber trainee and get paid while you build the hours your certificate requires. When your hours are in, you take the exam.

Washington issues four certificates for people doing the plumbing work, and one license for the business. Early on, focus on the certificates. The contractor license matters later, if you ever run your own plumbing business.

Where are you today?

Pick where you are to see your first steps. The full details follow.

1

Get hired as a plumber trainee

Your first move is a job, not a form. You start as a plumber trainee with a plumbing contractor, or join a registered apprenticeship; either way you're paid while you build hours. 7 registered programs are on the state registry, starting at $15.68 to $36.36 an hour.

2

Build the hours your certificate requires

4,000 hours on the job for the residential service or pump and irrigation certificates, 6,000 for residential, or 8,000 for the journey level certificate. Your hours count when they're worked as a trainee under a certified plumber, so keep your own record from day one.

3

Take the exam

Before the journey level exam you need 16 hours of classes, at least 4 of them electrical. The exam costs $202.10, paid to the department, and the testing company bills its own fee on top. Once you pass, you're invoiced $242.70 for the certificate. At full-time hours, the journey level path takes roughly four years.

See the 7 apprenticeships →Jump to certificate details
01

At a glance

The job you start inPlumber trainee (you get hired first, then build hours)
Residential service (PL04) or pump and irrigation (PL03)4,000 hours on the job
Residential (PL02)6,000 hours on the job
Journey level plumber (PL01)8,000 hours on the job
Rough time to journey levelabout 4 years at full-time hours
The exam$202.10 to the department, plus the testing company's separate fee
The certificate$242.70, invoiced once you pass the exam
Registered apprenticeships7, with starting rates of $15.68 to $36.36 an hour
02

The licenses, in detail

Washington has four certificates for people doing the plumbing work and one license for the business. Each is separate, with its own hours, supervision rules, and fees.

Journey level plumber (PL01) certificate of competency

Held by the worker · issued by the state

8,000 hours on the job. 16 hours of classes are required. $242.70 for the certificate, invoiced once you pass.

Worth knowingYou need both: the work hours and the class hours. At least 4 of the 16 class hours have to be electrical, and 16 is the whole classroom requirement for this certificate.

The hours are four years or more working as a plumber trainee under a certified journey level plumber. 4,000 of the 8,000 must be commercial plumbing under direct supervision, and no more than half of the total can come from a training school.

Renewing: every 3 years, for $242.70, with 24 hours of approved continuing education.

Residential (PL02) specialty plumber certificate of competency

Held by the worker · issued by the state

6,000 hours on the job. 16 hours of classes are required. $242.70 for the certificate, invoiced once you pass.

Worth knowingThe hours are three years or more working in the specialty, under the supervision of a certified residential or journey level plumber.

Renewing: every 3 years, for $242.70, with 24 hours of approved continuing education.

Residential service (PL04) plumber certificate of competency

Held by the worker · issued by the state

4,000 hours on the job. $242.70 for the certificate, invoiced once you pass.

Worth knowingThe first 2,000 hours have to be under a journey level or residential specialty plumber. Only the second 2,000 can be under a residential service plumber.

Renewing: every 3 years, for $242.70, with 24 hours of approved continuing education.

The state doesn't list classroom hours for this certificate. The other three each require 16.

Pump and irrigation (PL03) specialty plumber certificate of competency

Held by the worker · issued by the state

4,000 hours on the job. 16 hours of classes are required. $242.80 for the certificate, invoiced once you pass.

Worth knowingThis trade needs an electrical certificate as well.

The certificate costs $242.80 here and $242.70 for the other three. The two fees sit on adjacent lines of the same rule, and the state doesn't explain the extra dime.

Renewing: every 3 years, for $242.80, with 24 hours of approved continuing education.

Two different things

A plumber trainee and a registered apprentice are not the same thing. The state certifies you as a trainee; an apprenticeship is a program that hires you, trains you, and pays you while you build the same hours. Hours from either count toward your certificate.

If you want to run a plumbing business

Plumbing contractor license

Held by the business · issued by the state

$148.10 to apply. One figure covers issuing, renewing, and reregistering. The business must employ a full-time plumber who holds a journey level certificate, or a specialty certificate covering the work it takes on.

Renewing: every 2 years, for $148.10.

The published renewal requirements do not list any additional hours requirement.

03

What it pays

In a registered apprenticeship

Washington's registry lists 7 plumbing apprenticeships, with published starting rates of $15.68 to $36.36 an hour and journey rates of $33.73 to $77.21.

Seven registered plumbing apprenticeships pay you while you earn these hours.

See all 7 programs and what they pay →

Across the whole trade

Among the plumbers on a payroll in Washington, half earn more than $38.96 an hour and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the annual figure at $81,030. Apprentices and people decades into the trade are both in those numbers. Neither is a starting wage.

  1. $23.79The bottom tenth earn this or less
  2. $28.86The bottom quarter earn this or less
  3. $51.64The top quarter earn this or more
  4. $68.20The top tenth earn this or more
04

The exam

Washington publishes the official names of its plumber exams, but it does not name the testing company that administers them. Each of the four plumber certificates has its own exam. The state charges $202.10 per attempt, paid to the department, and the testing company bills its own fee on top of that. Washington does not publish the company's name or its fee. Use the official exam names when you search for testing information or contact the department.

Journey level plumber (PL01) certificate of competency
Washington state plumbers' competency examination — journey level
Residential (PL02) specialty plumber certificate of competency
Residential specialty plumber examination
Residential service (PL04) plumber certificate of competency
Residential service plumbing examination
Pump and irrigation (PL03) specialty plumber certificate of competency
Domestic pump specialty plumbers examination
05

Moving states

Moving to Washington? The state recognizes an Idaho license toward the journey level certificate. From any other state, you can present a comparable license, or equivalent experience in the U.S. military, for consideration. Contact the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries before you move and ask. Leaving Washington? Ask the licensing authority in the state where you plan to work.

Journey level plumber (PL01) certificate of competency: Washington accepts a license toward it from Idaho

06

The licensing office

Every plumber license Washington issues comes from one office: the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. When you apply, renew, or have a question about your hours, that's who you contact.

Washington State Department of Labor & Industries

https://lni.wa.gov/licensing-permits/plumbing/plumber-certification/index

07

Questions people ask

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

Washington counts hours, not years: 8,000 on the job for journey level, 6,000 for residential, or 4,000 for residential service or pump and irrigation. At full-time hours that's roughly four years for journey level and two for the 4,000-hour certificates. Your actual pace depends on how much you work, and the state publishes only the hours, not a timeline.

Can you become a plumber with no experience?

Yes. You start as a plumber trainee or a registered apprentice, and the hours you work are the experience. The question to ask an employer is who verifies your hours, not whether they'll train you.

How much does a plumber license cost in Washington?

$202.10 to the department for the exam, plus the testing company's separate fee, which the state doesn't publish. Once you pass, you're invoiced $242.70 for the certificate itself, or $242.80 for pump and irrigation. Renewing costs the same figure every 3 years.

08

Sources

Checked against these documents through 2026-08-16.

Your next step is a job, not a form.

Get hired as a plumber trainee with a plumbing contractor, or compare the 7 registered apprenticeships that pay you from day one.

See the 7 apprenticeships →