Journeyman Plumber Exam (ICC) Pass Rate, Format & Study Guide

The ICC Journeyman Plumber exam is a national written trades examination from the International Code Council, delivered by PearsonVUE and accepted by many state and local licensing authorities for journeyman plumber licenses. The exam has 70 multiple-choice questions, is open book, and you are given 4 hours.

Plumbing work is licensed by state or local law, and many jurisdictions use the ICC journeyman plumber exam as the written test. Passing the exam is a required step before the licensing authority issues the license.

Plumbers preparing for a journeyman license in a jurisdiction that uses the ICC exam, and candidates retaking it. Experience and application requirements are set by the licensing authority; check them before you register.

The certifying body does not publicly publish an official pass rate for this exam. Be wary of third-party sites citing a specific number here — treat any pass-rate claim you see elsewhere for this exam as unverified.

The ICC bulletin states you must wait 10 days before retaking a failed exam; the exam fee applies again.

Passing standard: The Code Council lists the passing score for each exam in its online exam catalog rather than in the national bulletin; the catalog entry was not read, so no passing score is quoted here. The exam has 70 multiple-choice questions, is open book, and you are given 4 hours. No official pass rate for this exam was available in the sources we reviewed, so none is quoted here.

The exam has 70 multiple-choice questions, is open book, and you are given 4 hours. Format: 70 multiple-choice questions · open book · 4 hours. Passing standard: The Code Council lists the passing score for each exam in its online exam catalog rather than in the national bulletin; the catalog entry was not read, so no passing score is quoted here.

• Administration General Regulations40%
• Plumbing Fixtures17%
• Water Supply and Distribution14%
• Sanitary Drainage13%
• Plumbing Vent Requirements7%
• Traps, Interceptors, and Separators7%
• Storm Drainage2%

The content outline spreads questions across 7 areas: Administration General Regulations (40.0%); Plumbing Fixtures (17.0%); Water Supply and Distribution (14.0%); Sanitary Drainage (13.0%); Plumbing Vent Requirements (7.0%); Traps, Interceptors, and Separators (7.0%); Storm Drainage (2.0%).

The Code Council does not issue the license: your state or local licensing authority sets the experience, application and fee requirements and decides whether it accepts the ICC exam; confirm with the authority that will license you before you register.

The ICC National Contractor/Trades Bulletin lists a PearsonVUE fee of US$120. License application fees and any experience or apprenticeship requirements are set by the licensing authority and are separate.

After you are licensed, your licensing authority sets renewal and continuing education requirements; check it for the current hours and deadlines.

Start with the heaviest areas of the content outline: Administration General Regulations (40.0%); Plumbing Fixtures (17.0%); Water Supply and Distribution (14.0%). Then work through the remaining areas, practise jurisdiction-specific rules separately from the general content, and finish with timed full-length practice runs of 70 questions in 4 hours.

Content outlines, fees and passing standards change; this guide follows the materials listed under Verification as of October 2026. Check the licensing authority and test administrator before you register.