- The Core Fee Stack: $125 + $375
- Every Published Fee at a Glance
- The Cost Before the Application: Training and OSHA 10
- Hidden Cost: Documenting Your Sales Credits
- Test Center vs. Remote Proctoring and the Outside-US Fee
- What a Failed Attempt Costs
- How Eligibility Windows Turn Into Money
- Renewal Costs Every Three Years
- Building a Realistic Budget
- Cost vs. Value: What the Evidence Supports
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The published PVTS fees total $500: a $125 application plus a $375 examination, before any training costs.
- A retake costs $275, and recertification every three years costs $390.
- The testing vendor adds $75 for candidates testing outside the United States and Canada.
- Training is the largest variable: 58 advanced PV hours, including at least 40 PVTS-JTA hours, are required.
The Core Fee Stack: $125 + $375
The PV Technical Sales Certification (PVTS), issued by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP), has a simple published fee structure for the initial attempt. You pay a $125 application fee and a $375 examination fee, for a total of $500 USD. That number does not include training, the OSHA 10 requirement, or the effort of assembling your sales documentation, all of which we cover below.
If you are still deciding whether this credential fits your career, start with What Is PVTS Certification? and then come back to the pricing. If you want the full eligibility picture before spending anything, the PVTS requirements guide walks through qualification step by step.
Every Published Fee at a Glance
The table below collects every PVTS-specific charge documented in the issuer sources. No fee outside this list is established for PVTS, so treat any other figure you see quoted elsewhere with caution.
| Cost Item | Amount (USD) | When It Applies |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $125 | Initial application |
| Examination fee | $375 | Initial exam attempt |
| Initial total | $500 | Before training costs |
| Retake fee | $275 | Each retake after an unsuccessful attempt |
| Testing vendor surcharge | $75 | Testing outside the United States and Canada |
| Recertification fee | $390 | Every three years |
The Cost Before the Application: Training and OSHA 10
For most candidates, the largest expense is not the $500 in fees. It is the training required to become eligible in the first place. PVTS requires 58 advanced PV training hours completed within five calendar years. Of those, at least 40 must be advanced PVTS-JTA hours delivered through an accepted accredited or recognized provider, and up to 18 hours can come from permitted additional sources.
The issuer sources checked do not publish a standard tuition price for these hours, because course pricing is set by individual training providers. That means your training cost depends entirely on which provider you choose, whether you attend in person or online, and whether your employer reimburses it. Budget by requesting quotes from accepted providers rather than relying on a generic number. Our overview of PVTS training explains what the coursework typically covers.
OSHA 10 Construction
You also need OSHA 10 Construction or a government equivalent. If you already hold a current card from earlier field or sales work, this may cost you nothing extra. If not, it is a separate expense charged by the OSHA-authorized trainer, not by NABCEP. The issuer sources do not set a price for it.
Hidden Cost: Documenting Your Sales Credits
PVTS is unusual because eligibility depends on proven sales history rather than only coursework. You qualify through one of two routes. Category A requires 8 Sales Credits. Category B requires 4 Sales Credits plus one of the following: an accredited science or engineering bachelor's or master's degree, a solar or renewable-energy associate degree, a current master or journeyman electrician license, or a current government-issued solar contractor license.
Under the 2025 handbook, projects earn credits by size: 2 credits for 1-24 kW, 3 credits for 25-999 kW, and 4 credits for 1 MW or more. All qualifying projects must have been sold within the preceding two years, and at least half must be both sold and installed.
None of this carries a fee to NABCEP beyond the application, but it carries real administrative cost in staff time and company cooperation:
- A signed letter on company letterhead from senior management for each sale
- Final permits or inspection documentation for completed installations
- Fully signed customer and contractor contracts for sold but uninstalled projects
- No more than one relative or same-address project may count, and it must be sold and installed
If your employer is slow to produce letters or locating old permits takes weeks, that delay can push you against the two-year sales window. It is worth gathering this paperwork before you pay anything. The PVTS requirements article details exactly how credits are counted.
Test Center vs. Remote Proctoring and the Outside-US Fee
Exams are delivered through Meazure Learning. The 2025 handbook delivery table allows either computer-based testing at a test center or live remote proctoring for both initial PVTS examinations and retakes. The exam fee itself does not change based on which format you choose, according to the published fee structure.
Where cost does change is geography. The testing vendor adds $75 for candidates testing outside the United States and Canada. If you are an international candidate, plan on $575 for the initial attempt in application, exam, and vendor fees combined, before training. Note that the exam is English-language only.
Remote proctoring may save travel costs if your nearest test center is far away, but it requires a compliant testing environment. Review the scheduling details in our PVTS exam dates and scheduling guide before choosing.
Exam-Day Cost You Do Not Pay
You do not need to buy a calculator or reference books. The exam is closed book, and an on-screen basic scientific calculator is provided. Personal calculators, notes, and study books are not permitted. Approved accommodations are available if you need them.
What a Failed Attempt Costs
A retake costs $275, which is $100 less than the original $375 examination fee. That is meaningful, but it is not trivial, and it does not account for the time and stress of rescheduling. If you also test outside the United States and Canada, expect the $75 vendor surcharge to apply again.
The exam consists of 70 multiple-choice questions, of which 60 are scored and 10 are unidentified unscored pilot items, each with four answer options, over 4 hours. The passing score is 75 on a scaled 0-99 range, which is not the same as 75 percent correct. See the PVTS passing score article for how scaled scoring works.
We cannot give you a pass rate to estimate your retake odds, because the retrieved issuer sources do not establish a credential-specific pass rate. Our PVTS pass rate analysis explains what is and is not known. What we can say is that the exam covers six weighted domains, and paying $275 to retake is a strong signal to prepare against those weights the first time.
Where Your Prep Money Is Best Spent: Official Domain Weights
The 2018 PVTS Job Task Analysis (V.08.18) publishes six weighted domains. These are exam objectives, not a training syllabus, and the published values total 100.10% because of rounding.
- Qualifying Prospects: 30.00%
- Site Analysis: 21.70%
- Conceptual Design: 16.70%
- Costs, Incentives, Savings, and Returns: 16.70%
- Proposal Preparation and Presentation: 8.30%
- Performance Analysis: 6.70%
Because Qualifying Prospects and Site Analysis together account for 51.70% of the outline, a failed attempt that neglected those two areas is especially expensive. The PVTS exam domains guide breaks each one down.
How Eligibility Windows Turn Into Money
Your exam eligibility lasts one year from application approval. The scheduling instructions also mention a six-month deadline, but they anchor it inconsistently, sometimes to application approval and sometimes to the Notice to Schedule. The practical rule is to follow the deadline stated in your own candidate notice, since it controls your attempt.
The cost implication is straightforward. If you pay the $125 and $375 and then let your window lapse without testing, you risk paying again. Do not submit your application until your training is complete, your documentation is assembled, and you can realistically study and sit the exam within the allowed period.
Pre-Application Checklist
- Confirm 58 training hours fall within five calendar years
- Verify OSHA 10 Construction or equivalent
- Collect letterhead letters, permits, and contracts for each sale
- Confirm all qualifying sales fall within the preceding two years
Protect Your Window
- Read the candidate notice for your exact scheduling deadline
- Choose test center or remote proctoring
- Study Qualifying Prospects and Site Analysis first, since they carry the most weight
- Schedule early so a conflict does not cost you a retake
Our PVTS study guide offers a structured way to use that window efficiently, and the exam difficulty guide helps you judge how much preparation time to budget.
Renewal Costs Every Three Years
PVTS certification is valid for three years. You apply for recertification during year three, and the fee is $390. That is the direct charge, but renewal also carries indirect costs that many candidates overlook.
The 30 Continuing Education Hours
You need 30 CE hours per cycle, split into 18 PVTS JTA hours and 12 renewable energy hours. Within those 12, 2 hours must cover building or fire codes. Course fees for continuing education vary by provider and are not set by NABCEP.
Proving Continued Industry Involvement
You must also document ongoing industry involvement on signed company letterhead. Qualifying options include:
- A decision-making role in proposals for at least three completed installations during the cycle
- 120 qualifying teaching hours
- One year of qualifying business or training leadership
- 36 hours of qualifying industry leadership
Follow handbook section 9.7.2 for the proposal wording. Do not substitute the generic renewal page's installation wording, and note that an older announcement links an involvement document whose filename refers to PVIP/PVIS rather than PVTS. It is not a substitute for the PVTS-specific proposal requirements.
Key Takeaway
Treat the true cost of holding PVTS as $390 every three years plus 30 CE hours and a documented involvement record. Track CE and project involvement as you go, rather than reconstructing it in year three.
Building a Realistic Budget
Because training prices and employer reimbursement vary, the sensible approach is to separate fixed costs, which are published, from variable costs, which you must quote yourself.
| Budget Category | Fixed or Variable | What to Do |
|---|---|---|
| Application + exam ($125 + $375) | Fixed | Plan on $500 total |
| Outside US/Canada vendor fee | Fixed ($75) | Add only if testing internationally |
| Advanced PV training (58 hours) | Variable | Request provider quotes; ask about employer coverage |
| OSHA 10 Construction | Variable | Skip if you hold a current card |
| Retake contingency ($275) | Fixed, if needed | Set aside as a precaution |
| Recertification ($390) | Fixed, every three years | Plan ahead for year three |
| Renewal CE (30 hours) | Variable | Spread across the cycle |
Ask your employer early. Many solar sales professionals hold this credential partly because their companies want credentialed staff on proposals, so reimbursement of fees and training is common to ask about, though the issuer sources do not establish that any given employer will pay. For a look at where credentialed professionals work, see our PVTS jobs overview.
Cost vs. Value: What the Evidence Supports
Whether $500 plus training is a good investment depends on your situation, and we want to be careful not to overstate. The retrieved issuer sources do not establish a certification-only salary premium, and we will not invent one. Any earnings claim you read should be checked against its source. Our PVTS salary guide and the ROI analysis go through what can and cannot be supported.
What can be said is that PVTS signals documented sales experience and technical training to employers and customers. The credential is not a sales-presentation or practical performance assessment; it is a multiple-choice knowledge exam layered on top of a verified sales track record. The 2018 outline also covers financial-incentive analysis, but it does not establish that any historic incentive remains available in 2026, so do not count on specific incentives when estimating your payback.
To test the exam against your own knowledge before paying, try the free practice questions on the main PVTS practice test site. A short diagnostic can reveal whether you are prepared enough to justify scheduling, or whether more training would save you a $275 retake.
Frequently Asked Questions
The published initial cost is $500: a $125 application fee plus a $375 examination fee. This excludes the required training hours and OSHA 10 Construction. Candidates testing outside the United States and Canada pay an additional $75 vendor fee.
A retake costs $275. If you are testing outside the United States and Canada, the $75 testing vendor surcharge may apply again. Both test center and live remote proctoring are allowed for retakes under the 2025 handbook.
Recertification costs $390 and is applied for during year three of the three-year certification period. You also need 30 CE hours (18 PVTS JTA plus 12 renewable energy, including 2 building or fire-code hours) and documented continued industry involvement.
No. The $500 covers only the application and examination. You must separately complete 58 advanced PV training hours, including at least 40 advanced PVTS-JTA hours from an accepted provider, plus OSHA 10 Construction. Prices are set by the individual providers.
No. The exam is closed book and provides an on-screen basic scientific calculator. Personal calculators, notes, and study books are not allowed, and PVTS is not listed as granting NEC-reference access, so there is nothing to purchase for exam day itself.
For a deeper dive into the full process beyond pricing, the PVTS certification cost resource pairs well with the PVTS cheat sheet as you finalize your plan, and you can sharpen your readiness any time with the practice questions at PVTS Exam Prep.