Colorado Master Electrician Exam Day: What PSI Hands You and How to Pace It

Colorado Master Electrician Exam Day: What to Expect

The master exam runs the same way as every Colorado electrical exam: PSI, 4 hours, a code book you do not bring. If you sat the journeyman exam a few years ago, two things may have changed — the code edition and the book in front of you.

Scheduling and cancellation

• Schedule with PSI online or by phone once the State Electrical Board approves your application. Centers include Denver, Wheat Ridge, Centennial, Englewood, Broomfield, Lakewood, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Pueblo, Grand Junction and Durango.
• Cancel or reschedule at least two days before the exam date. A voicemail is not a cancellation.
• No-shows, late cancellations, late arrivals and missing ID all forfeit the $78 fee.

Arrival and ID

Arrive 30 minutes early with one valid, unexpired photo ID that carries your signature — driver's license, state ID, U.S. passport or military ID — in exactly the name you scheduled under.

The code book

PSI supplies the 2026 NEC and a formula page. You may not write in, highlight, underline or tab them, and you may bring nothing else. Find rules through the index and table of contents — practice that way, especially for Chapters 5 and 6, which carry 18 of the master exam's items.

A 2023 book is available on request until December 1, 2026. An online calculator is built into the exam.

Pacing

90 scored questions in 4 hours, plus up to 10 unscored pretest questions with 30 minutes added — about 2 minutes 40 seconds each.

• Bank the quick definition and rule questions first. Flag hazardous-location lookups and multi-step calculations for a second pass.
• Answer every question; a blank scores zero.
• Aim for about 50 answered by the 2-hour-10-minute mark.

Scoring and retests

You need 70% — 63 of 90, scored as a total across all areas, and you get your score as soon as you finish. After a failed attempt you can schedule the $73 retest from the next day.

Before you go

Sit a full-length practice exam first. Our free practice test gives you 10 questions weighted like the master outline, and the full exam prep has a timed 90-question practice exam on the 2026 NEC. For eligibility, see Colorado Master Electrician requirements.