Guides · The exam
Texas's journeyman exam costs $40. The industry built around that $40 exam charges a great deal more. Here is the fee, and then the stack.
| State | Exam | License | Vendor / note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | $40 | $40 | TSBPE |
| Minnesota | $50 | Not published | Minnesota DLI (written exam developed under Plumbing Board rules) |
| Washington | $202.10 | $242.70 | PSI |
| Maryland | $65 | Not published | PSI |
| Indiana | Not published | $30 | PROV (registration via provexam.com per PLA; a PLA FAQ also names ICC as the exam administrator — the page is internally inconsistent) |
| Connecticut | Not published | $90 | State examination vendor (DCP: separate fees are due to the exam vendor at exam registration) |
| Oregon | Not published | $100 | Oregon Building Codes Division |
| Illinois | $175 | $150 | Illinois Department of Public Health (state-administered examination) |
| Virginia | $100 | $150 | PSI |
| North Carolina | Not published | Not published | Board examinations at seven North Carolina testing centers (scheduling through the Board's exam provider after approval) |
Application processing for Texas alone is sold at $149.99 — nearly four times the exam fee — by a national prep company. State exam courses run $296.99 and up; bundles pass $700. Retakes are a new exam fee each time. None of this is illegitimate; all of it is optional, and all of it is spent best after eligibility is confirmed — because a course bought for an exam you cannot yet sit is the most expensive item in the stack.
Order of operations: eligibility first, fees second, courses last.
