What's on the Alabama Journeyman Electrician Exam? All 14 Areas and the 2026 NEC Switch

What's on the Alabama Journeyman Electrician Exam?

The Alabama Electrical Journeyman exam is 80 questions in 240 minutes, and you need 75% to pass. Prov publishes how many questions come from each area, so you don't have to guess at the weights.

The outline (80 questions)

These counts are published, not estimated. They come from section 5.3 of Prov's candidate bulletin, document AL CIB 2026.10.31.

We sorted the table by count. The bulletin lists the areas in a different order.

Which references?

The bulletin lists two, both open book:

• NFPA 70, the National Electrical Code
• American Electrician's Handbook, 17th edition

The bulletin does not say how many questions come from either book. Ugly's Electrical References is not on the list for this exam.

Which NEC edition?

This is the part to get right, because the answer depends on when you test.

• The current bulletin lists the 2023 NEC. The October 31, 2026 bulletin names that edition and does not mention any change.
• The Board has voted to move to the 2026 NEC. On June 2, 2026, its Education Committee voted to set go-live of the 2026 NEC for testing on January 1, 2027. The Board accepted that on June 3, 2026.
• The transition is not spelled out. Nothing published says whether candidates approved in 2026 who test in 2027 stay on the 2023 edition.

If your test date is near the switch, call the Board at (334) 679-1020 and ask which edition your exam will use. The bulletin also says older and newer editions are always permitted in the room, so being allowed to bring a book doesn't tell you which edition your questions follow.

What changed that you should study

Some rules moved or changed between the two editions. One example is load calculations, which moved to Article 120 in the 2026 NEC. Dwelling general lighting is 2 VA per square foot in 2026, compared with 3 VA in 2023.

If you test under one edition, study these changes in that edition's book. Our practice questions won't teach them for you, because rules that changed between editions are deliberately kept out of our question pool until the switch is confirmed.

Where the weight is

• Wiring is the core. Raceways and Boxes, Conductors and Cables, and Service, Feeders, and Branch Circuits add up to 29 of the 80 questions, more than a third of the exam.
• Add grounding and overcurrent and you reach 42 questions, over half the exam.
• General Electrical Knowledge is tied for the largest area at 10 questions. The outline doesn't break it down further.
• Safety Information is 5 questions, the same as Overcurrent Protection.
• The small areas add up. Lighting, Low Voltage, Electrical Power, Illuminated Signs, and Fire Detection and Alarm Systems total 11 questions. That is more than any single area, so don't skip them.

A study plan built on the weights

1. Settle your edition first. Work out which NEC your test date falls under before you start studying, and confirm with the Board if you are close to January 1, 2027.
2. Start with the 29 wiring questions. Raceways and boxes, conductors and cables, then services, feeders and branch circuits.
3. Move to grounding and bonding, then overcurrent protection. Together they are 13 questions.
4. Spend real time in the American Electrician's Handbook. It is one of only two listed references, so learn how it is organized as well as the NEC.
5. Cover motors, special occupancies and safety, which are 17 questions between them.
6. Finish with the small areas, in proportion to their counts.
7. Sit a timed, full-length exam. 80 questions in 240 minutes is 3 minutes each, so practice using your books at that pace.

Try our free sample test to get a feel for the questions. In the full exam prep, NEC questions are checked against both the 2023 and 2026 editions and show citations for both. For the day itself, see Alabama Journeyman Electrician exam day.