Electrical Contractor Practice Test

100 questions over six hours, matching the published North Carolina contractor exam format.

310 questions · free · no sign-up

Matches the published North Carolina exam format
Technical electrical content, with sources cited
Untimed mode too, if you want to work at your own pace

Questions: 100
Time: 6 hours
Pass mark: 70
Open book: Yes

Contractor licensing differs sharply between states

There is no single electrical contractor exam in the United States — some states examine the contractor directly, and others, including Texas, require no contractor examination at all. Knowing which model your state uses is the first thing to establish, because it changes what you need to sit.

Texas does not examine contractors. The TDLR FAQ states directly that contractor licences do not require examinations; an electrical contractor instead designates a Master Electrician of Record, and it is that master electrician who sits an examination. If you are working toward contracting in Texas, the master electrician exam is your target.

North Carolina examines the contractor. Its Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors issues ten licence classifications and runs a single 100-question examination covering the Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited classifications, with shorter specialty exams for the restricted classifications. The simulation on this page is built to that format.

Because the two models are so different, do not assume a practice exam labelled "electrical contractor" matches your jurisdiction. Read your own board's candidate information before you start preparing.

North Carolina exam formats

North Carolina electrical contractor exam formats
Exam	Questions	Time
Limited, Intermediate & Unlimited	100 multiple-choice	6 hours
Fire Alarm / Low Voltage	50 multiple-choice	3 hours
Special Restricted classifications	40 multiple-choice	3 hours
Swimming Pool	25 multiple-choice	1 hour

A minimum grade of 70 is required to pass, the fee is $125 per exam, and all exams are open book and computer based. Source: the North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors.

A gap we will not paper over: the North Carolina Board does not publish a per-category content outline. Six hours for 100 questions is generous pacing — well over three minutes per question — but we cannot tell you how those questions are distributed across subject areas, because the Board does not say. The topic mix in this simulation is our own judgement based on the published study materials, not a Board-published distribution.

What to study, and what this page does not cover

North Carolina publishes four study references: the state electrical contractor licensing law in G.S. 87-4 and Title 21-18b, the 2020 NEC, the 2013 edition of NFPA 72, and the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management in its North Carolina Electrical Edition.

This practice test covers the technical electrical content only. We do not test state licensing law, business and project management, or NFPA 72 fire alarm content, because those are jurisdiction-specific and copyrighted material we have no verified public source for. For those you need the NASCLA guide and the Board's handbook. Treat this page as preparation for the electrical half of the job.

Which code edition these questions use

Code-specific questions here are written to the 2017 edition of the National Electrical Code, because that is the most recent edition published as a citable public document, through Public.Resource.Org's publication of standards incorporated by reference. Every such question is tagged with its edition and cites the article or table it comes from.

Your examination may use a different edition. Texas examinations have been referenced to the 2026 NEC since 1 September 2026, and the North Carolina Board publishes the 2020 NEC for its exams. Confirm the edition in your licensing authority's candidate bulletin, and verify any value you intend to rely on against that edition.

How much does the edition actually change?

Most of what is tested here has been stable across recent editions: ampacity, standard device ratings, conduit fill percentages, box fill allowances and motor full-load currents. Article numbering and specific requirements do change, and we do not claim otherwise. No NEC table is reproduced on this site; where a question needs a table value, that single value is supplied in the question itself.

Technical topics to drill

Six hours is generous pacing, but only if you know the material. Work these topics until your accuracy is high.

Electrical contractor exam questions and answers

How many questions are on the electrical contractor exam?

In North Carolina, the Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited classifications share one examination of 100 multiple-choice questions with a six-hour limit. The specialty exams are shorter: Fire Alarm and Low Voltage is 50 questions in 3 hours, the Special Restricted classifications are 40 questions in 3 hours, and Swimming Pool is 25 questions in 1 hour.

What is the passing score for the electrical contractor exam?

The North Carolina Board states that a minimum grade of 70 is required to pass. The Board does not publish whether that 70 is a raw percentage or a scaled score, so we do not claim one way or the other. Our simulation uses 70 percent of the questions answered correctly as the practice threshold.

Is the electrical contractor exam open book?

Yes in North Carolina. Candidates may refer to their NEC book, their NFPA book and the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, North Carolina Electrical Edition. Candidates bring their own books; calculators and other necessities are provided at the test center. All exams are computer based and scores are given the same day.

Which NEC edition does the North Carolina contractor exam use?

The Board publishes the 2020 edition of the NEC as the exam code, along with the 2013 edition of NFPA 72 for fire alarm work. Our code questions are written to the 2017 NEC because that is the most recent edition available as a citable public document, so verify anything you intend to rely on against the 2020 edition.

Does the contractor exam cover business and law as well as technical content?

North Carolina lists the NASCLA business, law and project management guide among its study materials and permits it in the exam room, so business and law content is part of the preparation. This practice test covers the technical electrical content only. For the business and law portion you will need the NASCLA guide itself.

What are the North Carolina contractor licence classifications?

There are ten, and the main three are distinguished by project value: Limited is capped at a single project not over $60,000 with equipment rated not more than 600 volts, Intermediate at a single project not over $150,000, and Unlimited has no value cap. The remaining seven are special restricted classifications covering residential dwellings, fire alarm and low voltage, plumbing and heating, swimming pools, groundwater pumps, electric signs and elevators.

Does the Board publish sample questions?

No. We checked the examinations page, the FAQ and the forms index, and the Board publishes no free sample questions or practice exams. The only review of real items is a paid in-person session available once to candidates who have failed. Every question here is original.

How long must I wait to retake a failed contractor exam?

North Carolina requires a three-month, or ninety-day, wait before retaking the same classification. You may apply for a different classification immediately if you meet its experience requirements. The exam fee is $125 and is non-refundable.