ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Exam: A Practical Study Guide
The ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) exam tests the rules and the reference books behind the work. This guide lays out the job: the key facts from the official bulletin, what the exam covers, the books you need, sample questions with answers, and how to get ready. Pearson VUE gives the exam.
The ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Exam at a Glance
Here's the rundown from the official bulletin:
| Questions | 80 questions |
| Time limit | 4 hours |
| Passing score | 70% correct |
| Books in the exam room | Open book |
| Exam fee | $120 |
On exam day
- The exam uses four-option, multiple-choice questions with one correct answer per question.
- Any copyrighted, bound book may be used at a test site. Exam questions will only come from the listed approved references, and exam appeals may only be based on the listed approved references.
References you may bring
- National Electrical Code (NEC) (2023)
- Ugly's Electrical Reference (any edition)
Scheduling, changes and retakes
- Exams are scheduled through PearsonVUE at www.pearsonvue.com/ICC, where candidates can create an account, schedule an exam, locate a test center, purchase vouchers and request accommodations.
- Results for examinations taken electronically are available immediately after the examination is completed.
- You must wait 10 days before retaking a failed exam.
- After passing, contact the jurisdiction in which you wish to be licensed for any other requirements, because ICC is not a licensing agency.
Source: National Contractor/Trades Examination Information Bulletin, PUBLISHED June 30, 2026; ICC Exam Catalog, checked September 27, 2026. Check the bulletin before test day: fees and rules can change.
What the ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Exam Covers
The official content outline breaks the exam into 9 topics:
| Topic | Questions | Share of the exam |
|---|---|---|
| General Knowledge | 5 | 6% |
| Services and Service Equipment | 9 | 11% |
| Feeders | 3 | 4% |
| Branch Circuits and Conductors | 15 | 19% |
| Wiring Methods and Materials | 21 | 26% |
| Equipment and Devices | 10 | 12% |
| Control Devices | 3 | 4% |
| Motors and Generators | 5 | 6% |
| Special Occupancies, Equipment, and Conditions | 9 | 11% |
Services and Service Equipment: Services and Fault Current; Service Load Calculations; Service Equipment & Service Conductors; Transformers; System Grounding and Bonding; Temporary Service Wiring; Service disconnecting means requirements and ratings; Overcurrent protection for services and ground-fault protection of equipment.
Wiring Methods and Materials: Raceway Installations; Underground Wiring Methods; Boxes and Enclosures; Cabinets, Panelboards, & Switchboards; Clearance and Guarding; Flexible Cords and Cables; Cable Wiring Methods (NM, AC, MC, MI, SE, UF, TC, ITC, and specialty types) — Uses Permitted and Not Permitted; Conduit Bending Calculations and Techniques.
Special Occupancies, Equipment, and Conditions: Special Occupancies; Swimming Pools and Similar Installations; Mobile Home and RV Parks; Data Processing Equipment; Miscellaneous Special Equipment; Emergency Systems; Signaling and Fire Alarm Systems; Hazardous Location Classification (Classes, Divisions, and Zones).
How to Get Ready for the ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Exam
Treat your reference books like your tools. On an open-book exam you don't need every rule memorized. You need to know which book holds it and where to find it.
Buy the books the bulletin lists, in the editions it names. An older or newer edition can put the answer on a different page, or change it.
Learn your way around each book before you study anything else. The table of contents and the index are your layout.
Highlight what you look up most. The exam facts above list the bulletin's rules on tabs and markings, so follow them exactly.
Do the big jobs first. Wiring Methods and Materials and Branch Circuits and Conductors make up 45% of the exam.
Put in the reps with timed practice exams. The clock trains you to find answers at the pace the real exam needs: about 3 minutes per question.
Measure twice. When you miss a practice question, find the section in your book, read it and mark it. Keep at it until you pass practice exams consistently.
The Books for the ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Exam
The references listed for the R17 exam are the 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC) and Ugly's Electrical Reference (any edition).
Where to get them:
Working the Exam on Test Day
Work the exam in two passes. On the first pass, answer everything you know and bookmark the rest. Every exam lets you come back to bookmarked questions. On the second pass, go back to your bookmarks and take them one at a time.
Don't get hung up on one question. You have 4 hours for 80 questions, which is about 3 minutes per question. Before you finish, make sure nothing is left blank.
Study Tips
On an open-book exam, the winners aren't the smartest people in the room — they're the fastest at finding answers. Buy the required book, practice with it open, and tab and highlight each section the first time a question sends you there. Learn the index and table of contents until you can land on any topic in seconds. That speed is what separates a pass from a fail.
Know your way around each book's index and table of contents. Open-book exams reward speed: you need to find specific items quickly.
On an open-book exam, work through every question once: answer the ones you know and skip the ones you don't. Then go back to the ones you flagged. You can bookmark questions for later review, just like on our exams — and don't sink too much time into any single question. The clock is still running.
Give yourself at least three to six weeks. Use your exam's candidate bulletin as your roadmap for what's tested, and spend your time on finding-it-fast skills over rote memorization. In practice, aim for three clean passes at 80% or higher — setting your practice bar above the real cut score gives you a comfortable margin on test day.
Practicing against a ticking clock is the best way to beat exam-clock anxiety. Use these timed tests to build your pacing, so you learn to move steadily and never burn too long on a single question. By test day, the format feels routine.
This practice exam mirrors the real Pearson VUE exam — the same number of questions, drawn from the same topics. Practicing in that format now means no surprises when you sit for the real thing.
Sample ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) Questions
These come from our practice question bank, each with its answer and the reference behind it.
Sample 1 — Services and Service Equipment
Question: A 400 A service uses 600 kcmil copper service conductors. What is the minimum size of a copper grounding electrode conductor that runs only to a concrete-encased electrode?
- A. 2 AWG
- B. 4 AWG
- C. 3/0 AWG
- D. 1/0 AWG
Correct Answer: B
Table 250.66 would require a 1/0 AWG copper grounding electrode conductor for 600 kcmil copper service conductors, but 250.66(B) says a grounding electrode conductor (or bonding jumper) that runs only to a concrete-encased electrode is not required to be larger than 4 AWG copper. So the minimum size required here is 4 AWG copper.
Reference: NEC 2023 Section 250.66(B), Table 250.66
Sample 2 — Special Occupancies, Equipment, and Conditions
Question: In crane installations, what percentage of the combined short-time ampere rating of motors must the disconnecting means rating be at minimum?
- A. 100 percent
- B. 25 percent
- C. 75 percent
- D. 50 percent
Correct Answer: D
Per Article 610.33, the continuous ampere rating of the switch or circuit breaker required by 610.32 shall not be less than 50 percent of the combined short-time ampere rating of the motors or less than 75 percent of the sum of the short-time ampere rating of the motors required for any single motion.
Reference: NEC 2023 Section 610.33
Sample 3 — General Knowledge
Question: According to the NEC, the minimum unit load for dwelling units used in load calculations shall be not less than ______ volt-amperes per square foot.
- A. 1.5
- B. 2.0
- C. 3.0
- D. 5.0
Correct Answer: C
Per NEC 220.41, in one-family, two-family, and multifamily dwellings, the minimum unit load shall be not less than 3 volt-amperes per square foot (33 volt-amperes/m²).
Reference: NEC 2023 Section 220.41
Sample 4 — Motors and Generators
Question: To calculate amperes for a three-phase motor when horsepower is known, the formula is: I = HP × 746 ÷ (E × %EFF × PF × ______).
- A. 1.73
- B. 1.41
- C. 2.0
- D. 3.0
Correct Answer: A
According to Ugly's Electrical References (Page 18), the formula for three-phase amperes when HP is known is I = (HP × 746) / (E × %EFF × PF × 1.73). The factor 1.73 (√3) is used in all three-phase calculations.
Reference: Ugly's Electrical References 2020, Pages 15-18
Why Practice Online Instead of With a PDF
A PDF is like reading about a job instead of doing it. Our practice exams are timed and on a screen, so you practice finding answers with the clock running. Each attempt draws a new set of questions from our bank, and your results break your score down by topic so you know where to put in more work.
Get Started
Take the free ICC R17 Journeyman Electrician (2023 NEC) practice exam to see where you stand, then put your time into the topics that need it. For the official rules, read the exam bulletin, and see the licensing board's website.