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Best HVAC Schools in Idaho (2026)

Edited by Taylor Rupe, B.S., B.A.

Published · Last updated

Both accredited HVAC programs in Idaho are associate degrees, at Lewis Clark State College in Lewiston and the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls. Either carries more weight than schooling does in any other state here. Completing 576 hours of a board-approved course cuts the journeyman requirement from 16,000 hours to 8,000, so about a year of class removes roughly two years of work. Your apprentice registration has to stay active throughout.

The Boise, Idaho skyline
Boise skyline. Photo by Tamanoeconomico, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
2 Accredited HVAC schools
$56,240 Median wage, ID
4,550 Jobs in ID
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HVAC programs

Accredited HVAC schools and programs in Idaho

Idaho has 2 accredited HVAC schools, each of them accredited by HVAC Excellence or PAHRA. Ranks are national: an HVAC program shown at 6th sits 6th among all accredited HVAC programs in the country, not 6th in Idaho. Of the 2, none name EPA Section 608 preparation where they describe the program and none hold both accreditations. These HVAC programs list their length, cost and credential wherever the school publishes them.

#1

Lewis Clark State College/Schweitzer CTE Center

Lewiston, ID · Post Secondary

77/100 ranking score
Credential Associate's
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group
Apprenticeship

Two credentials are on offer at Lewis-Clark State College's Schweitzer Career and Technical Education Center in Lewiston: a 68-credit associate degree and a 55-credit certificate in Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Technology. The program sits within the Technical and Industrial Division of the college's School of Career and Technical Education, and coursework pairs classroom theory with shop practice modeled after real working conditions.

Instruction covers basic electricity, motors, refrigeration, duct systems, gas heating and resistive heating, with emphasis on developing a logical approach to servicing, troubleshooting and repairs through practice and classroom theory. The program publishes a tool list for students. The college also flags that the field carries physical requirements that can affect a student's ability to perform the work, and points applicants to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and O-Net for details.

Beyond the classroom credentials, the college lists a Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Apprenticeship in Lewiston for people who want to advance while working in the trade. The program targets careers as HVACR mechanics and installers. It sits alongside related trade programs at the college, including welding technology, industrial maintenance and millwright technology, and industrial electronics technology, so students weighing several trades can compare options within the same division.

Sources: Idaho HVAC school program, BLS OEWS, IPEDS.

HVACR program details
#2

College of Southern Idaho

Twin Falls, ID · Post Secondary

63/100 ranking score
Credential Associate's
Accreditation HVAC Excellence , a program of the ESCO Group

Limited enrollment is the first thing to know about the Air Conditioning, Refrigeration, and Heating program at the College of Southern Idaho. Seats are capped, and the college directs prospective students to a separate Admission Steps page for entry requirements. The program itself is built to teach the skills needed to work on refrigeration and heating systems, sitting within CSI's Trade and Industry Department.

Three credential levels are available: an Associate of Applied Science in Air Conditioning, Refrigeration and Heat, plus Basic and Intermediate Technical Certificates in the same field. The college does not publish credit counts or program length on the program page, so applicants will need the catalog or an advisor for those details. The stated mission is to give students leadership, guidance, entry level skills and field related experience for their chosen career path.

CSI publicly recruits industry advisors to join its Technical Advisory Committee and help shape career programs to meet real workforce needs. An employment opportunities listing accompanies the program's credential options, and instruction comes from faculty in the college's Air Conditioning, Refrigeration and Heat area. Given the enrollment cap, reviewing the admission steps and talking with the program before applying is the practical first move.

Sources: Idaho HVAC school program, IPEDS.

HVACR program details

Willing to travel? Compare these Idaho HVAC programs against the best HVAC schools and programs nationally, or browse HVAC programs in another state.

What 576 hours buys

How much experience does HVAC school replace in Idaho in 2026?

HVAC school replaces 8,000 hours of experience in Idaho, which is half the requirement. The rule gives two routes to a journeyman certificate: 8,000 hours of apprentice work experience together with satisfactory completion of 576 hours of a board-approved course of instruction, or 16,000 hours of HVAC experience with no schooling. At 2,000 hours a year, that is the difference between roughly four years and roughly eight.

Two further provisions add to it. Time spent doing lab work inside a board-approved course may be credited toward the 8,000-hour requirement, so the classroom hours are not purely additional. And you may sit the examination after showing either the 576 hours or the 16,000 hours, though the certificate itself is not issued until you provide proof of the 8,000 hours of supervised installation work.

The board publishes the approved programs, and the list is broad: the College of Southern Idaho, College of Western Idaho, College of Eastern Idaho, Idaho State University, Lewis-Clark State College and North Idaho College all appear, alongside several apprenticeship training committees and private providers. Confirm your specific program against the current list before enrolling on this basis.

Replaced by 576 course hours Work experience required Journeyman certificate, in hours
With 576 course hours 8000 years 8000 years No approved course 16000 years

Sources: IDAPA 24.39.70, Idaho HVAC Board.

Register first

Do you need to register as an HVAC apprentice in Idaho in 2026?

Yes, you need to register as an HVAC apprentice in Idaho, and failing to is the mistake most likely to cost you years here. State law requires an apprentice to register with the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses and to maintain that registration during the entire period in which work experience is accrued. Hours worked while unregistered do not count toward the 8,000.

The journeyman application asks the question directly, whether you held an active Idaho HVAC apprentice registration while completing the required hours. There is no discretion to accept unregistered time. Someone who works for two years and then decides to pursue the certificate has not banked those hours; they start counting from the day the registration takes effect.

So the order matters more here than in most states: register before you start accumulating hours, not when you are ready to apply. An apprentice may not perform HVAC work except under the supervision of a journeyman or a contractor, so the registration and the supervised work go together anyway.

Sources: Idaho Code title 54 chapter 50, Idaho HVAC Board.

The four tiers

What HVAC licenses does Idaho issue in 2026?

Idaho issues four HVAC licenses, classifications of competency: apprentice, journeyman, HVAC contractor and HVAC specialty contractor, with specialty counterparts at the apprentice and journeyman levels. It is a genuine individual licensing scheme rather than a contractor-only one, which puts Idaho in the minority nationally.

A journeyman installs, improves, extends, alters and repairs HVAC systems while working in the employ and under the direction of a contractor. Fees are $35 to apply, $150 for the licence and $75 to renew. An HVAC contractor is the business entity, requiring a passed board examination and a $2,000 compliance bond effective for the certificate period, at $35 to apply, $225 for the licence and $150 to renew.

The specialty tiers cover narrower work such as gas piping, gas appliances and decorative gas-fired appliances. A specialty journeyman needs 2,000 hours of specialty-related experience and then either passes the examination or shows a minimum of 60 hours of education in fuel gas code and piping installation methods. That is one of the few places anywhere that schooling substitutes for an exam rather than for experience.

Cities

Can Idaho cities require their own HVAC license in 2026?

Idaho cities cannot require their own HVAC licence, and the statute says so about as plainly as any on this site. No local jurisdiction has authority to require additional certification or registration, or to require payment of any fees, for an HVAC contractor, specialty contractor, journeyman, specialty journeyman, apprentice or specialty apprentice to work in the trade within that jurisdiction.

One narrow carve-out survives: nothing in the chapter restricts a city or county from imposing stricter public safety rules. That is about how work is done rather than who may do it, so it does not reopen local licensing.

Certificates run on a multi-year cycle, and an expired one may be revived within a year on payment of a $35 revival fee plus the renewal fee. There is no continuing education requirement in the statute, the rules or on the division's pages. Exemptions are broad and include homeowners working on their own single or duplex dwelling, farm buildings on agricultural land, and employers who regularly employ licensed journeymen maintaining their own systems.

Sources: IDAPA 24.39.70, Idaho Code title 54 chapter 50.

Idaho pay

How much do HVAC techs make in Idaho in 2026?

HVAC techs in Idaho make a median of $56,240 a year, about $4,800 below the national median of $61,010. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 4,550 HVAC technician jobs in the state in its May 2025 wage survey, a solid workforce for Idaho's population and one supported by sustained residential construction around Boise.

The bottom 10 percent earn $38,190 or less and the top 10 percent earn $80,240 or more, with the middle half between $46,280 and $69,140. The ceiling sits about $15,000 under the national 90th percentile of $95,210. Set against the licensing rules above, Idaho is a state where the credential is comparatively quick to earn with schooling and the pay is moderate. The survey reports current earnings without projecting hiring.

Idaho United States Annual wage by percentile
10th $38,660 $40,050 25th $47,250 $48,360 Median $56,240 $61,010 75th $67,030 $77,060 90th $80,780 $95,210

Sources: BLS OEWS.

Pay detail

Idaho HVAC pay, top to bottom

Idaho HVAC pay runs from the bottom tenth to the top in the table below, and the median is only one number in that range. The state sits below the national median of $61,010. All figures are annual, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release of May 2025 for occupation 49-9021.

PercentileIDUnited States
10th $38,660 $40,050
25th $47,250 $48,360
Median $56,240 $61,010
75th $67,030 $77,060
90th $80,780 $95,210

4,550 HVAC jobs in ID. OEWS is a wage survey and carries no employment projections

Sources

Where our Idaho HVAC school and program data comes from

Our Idaho HVAC school and program data comes from the sources listed below, each one linked so you can check it: the state's own board or statute for licensing, federal filings for the schools, the Bureau of Labor Statistics for wages, and each school's own published program page. Licensing research was verified 2026-07-30.

Idaho HVAC Board, Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses
dopl.idaho.gov
IDAPA 24.39.70, rules governing installation of HVAC systems
adminrules.idaho.gov
Idaho Code title 54 chapter 50, HVAC licensing
legislature.idaho.gov
DOPL HVAC journeyman application and approved course list
dopl.idaho.gov
Wages
BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 49-9021
Idaho HVAC school programs
Each school's own published program, linked on its card

Licensing research verified 2026-07-30. Rules change, so confirm with the state board before enrolling

Other states

HVAC schools and programs in other states

HVAC schools and programs in other states are worth comparing, because licensing changes at the state line and a program that shortens the route to a license in Idaho may count for nothing one state over. Each page below covers that state's own rules, its pay, and the accredited HVAC schools in it.

Alabama HVAC Programs 7 Alaska HVAC Programs 1 Arizona HVAC Programs 1 Arkansas HVAC Programs 4 California HVAC Programs 4 Colorado HVAC Programs 2 Delaware HVAC Programs 1 Florida HVAC Programs 6 Georgia HVAC Programs 7
Idaho HVAC Programs (the page you are reading) 2
Illinois HVAC Programs 7 Indiana HVAC Programs 1 Iowa HVAC Programs 1 Kansas HVAC Programs 1 Kentucky HVAC Programs 1 Louisiana HVAC Programs 10 Massachusetts HVAC Programs 2 Michigan HVAC Programs 2 Minnesota HVAC Programs 3 Mississippi HVAC Programs 2 Missouri HVAC Programs 3 Montana HVAC Programs 1 Nevada HVAC Programs 3 New Jersey HVAC Programs 2 New Mexico HVAC Programs 2 New York HVAC Programs 1 North Carolina HVAC Programs 3 Ohio HVAC Programs 8 Oklahoma HVAC Programs 8 Pennsylvania HVAC Programs 7 South Carolina HVAC Programs 2 South Dakota HVAC Programs 2 Tennessee HVAC Programs 11 Texas HVAC Programs 4 Virginia HVAC Programs 8 Washington HVAC Programs 1 West Virginia HVAC Programs 3 Wisconsin HVAC Programs 6

A state appears here once its licensing rules have been read from that state's own board or statute. See all HVAC schools and programs by state or the national ranking.