Alabama HVAC license requirements at a glance
- Issued by
- Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors (HACR)
- License required
- Yes, state certification for HVAC or refrigeration installation, service, and repair unless you are a Board-registered apprentice
- Experience
- 3,000 supervised hours (≈2 yrs)
- Exam
- Alabama HVAC Contractor Examination and Alabama Refrigeration Examination (Board-administered)
- State fees
- $175 exam per class plus $220 annual active certification ($110 inactive)
- Renewal
- Every year, with active status renewing by December 31
- Avg. AL HVAC salary
- $48,370/yr (2024)
- Federal
- EPA Section 608 required
How do you get an HVAC license in Alabama?
- Register as an apprentice with the HACR Board, or enroll in a Board-approved HVAC or refrigeration curriculum, before you start counting experience
- Accumulate two calendar years of Board-registered apprenticeship within the past five years, or 3,000 hours (about 18 months) under a HACR licensee, or finish the approved curriculum
- Apply for and pass the Board exam for your class, HVAC or refrigeration, at $175 per exam with 70% to pass
- Choose active status, post the $20,000 performance bond on form BF-1 with the Board as obligee, and pay the $220 annual active certification fee
- To go independent, register the business name, hold the certification in that business name, and keep the bond and your 4 hours of annual continuing education current
What license tiers does Alabama offer?
Alabama keeps the structure flat. A registered apprentice works under a licensed contractor while accumulating experience, and above that sits the certified contractor, issued separately for heating and air conditioning and for refrigeration. There is no journeyman or master ladder, so certified contractor is the top credential in both classes. Each certification carries active or inactive status, and inactive costs $110 a year to hold without contracting.
What is the Alabama HVAC exam like?
The Board administers its own exams rather than routing through PSI or Prov. The HVAC exam runs 80 questions in four hours and the refrigeration exam 60 questions in three hours, with 70% to pass on each. The fee is $175 per exam, so certifying in both classes means $350 in exam fees. Older board PDFs and several competing guides still quote $150, but the Board's current page governs. Expect the Board to approve your experience before it clears you to sit.
How much does an HVAC license cost in Alabama?
One certification runs about $450 to $600 in the first year: $175 exam, $220 active certification, roughly $100 in bond premium for the $20,000 performance bond, and $50 to $100 in continuing education. Add the same $175 and $220 again for the second class if you certify in both HVAC and refrigeration. Fees are non-refundable and card payments carry a 4% surcharge. Inactive status drops the annual fee to $110.
How long does it take to become an HVAC tech in Alabama?
The clock is the 3,000 supervised hours, roughly 2 years of full-time paid work. Alabama certifies HVAC and refrigeration contractors through its own board, with a registered apprenticeship as the entry tier. Exam eligibility takes two calendar years of Board-registered apprenticeship within the past five, or 3,000 hours under a HACR licensee, or an approved curriculum, so most people reach certification in about two to two and a half years.
Is HVAC a good career in Alabama?
Alabama figure is the BLS state median for HVAC mechanics and installers (May 2024). National median from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2024). Verify current figures with BLS.
What does it take to start your own HVAC business in Alabama?
Contracting in Alabama means the certification held in the business name, a registered business name, and the $20,000 performance bond on form BF-1 with the Board as obligee. Foreign corporations also register with the Alabama Secretary of State. Workers compensation applies once you have five or more employees. No dollar threshold exempts small jobs, so the certification is required from the first paid HVAC or refrigeration job you take.
What most guides get wrong about Alabama
Alabama's numbers moved and most of the web did not follow. The performance bond rose from $15,000 to $20,000 and the active certification fee from $190 to $220 around October 1, 2024, yet surety blogs and the large software directories still publish the old figures. The second trap is procedural rather than financial: you cannot simply sign up for the exam. The apprentice registration has to be issued by this Board specifically, and the Board pre-approves your experience before it lets you test, so people who worked two legitimate years without registering first find themselves starting the clock over.
Alabama HVAC license: frequently asked questions
Do you need an HVAC license in Alabama?
Yes. Alabama requires certification from the state HACR Board for HVAC or refrigeration installation, service, and repair. The only way to work without it is as an apprentice registered with that Board and working under a licensed contractor. Heating and air conditioning and refrigeration are separate certifications, each with its own exam and its own annual fee.
How long does it take to get certified in Alabama?
About two to two and a half years for most people. Exam eligibility takes two calendar years of Board-registered apprenticeship within the past five years, 3,000 hours of documented work under a HACR licensee, or graduation from an approved program. Board approval of your experience and the exam itself add a few weeks on top of the field time.
How much does an Alabama HVAC license cost?
Around $500 in the first year for one certification: $175 for the exam, $220 for active certification, and roughly $100 a year in premium for the required $20,000 performance bond. Continuing education runs another $50 to $100. Inactive status costs $110 a year if you step away from contracting but want to keep the credential alive.
Do you need separate HVAC and refrigeration certifications in Alabama?
Yes, and this is where budgets break. The Board issues heating and air conditioning contractor and refrigeration contractor as distinct classes. Each carries its own $175 exam and its own $220 annual active certification fee, so a contractor covering both scopes pays twice, every year, not once.
HVAC licensing in every state
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