Ham Radio Technician Study Guide 2026

The Technician license and exam

The Technician class is the entry-level US amateur radio license. You earn it by passing Element 2, a written exam of 35 questions. You need 26 correct to pass. Each question has four answer choices.

• A team of at least 3 accredited Volunteer Examiners (VEs) gives the exam at a session coordinated by a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (VEC).
• VEs grade your exam right after you finish. If you pass, they give you a certificate of successful completion (CSCE).
• A passed element on a CSCE counts for 365 days toward a license.
• The VEC sends your details to the FCC. You may operate once your grant shows in the Universal Licensing System (ULS).
• A license normally lasts 10 years. After it expires, you have a 2-year grace period to renew, but you may not transmit until it is renewed.
• Keep your mailing address on your license current, so FCC mail can reach you.

How the questions are spread

The current pool is effective from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2030. Each exam takes one question from each of the 35 topic groups, so the spread is fixed.

FCC rules and your privileges

Part 97 of the FCC rules governs the Amateur Radio Service. Every transmitting station needs a control operator: the licensed person responsible for its transmissions. The station licensee decides who that is.

Where a Technician may operate

Common bands above 50 MHz include 6 m (50 to 54 MHz), 2 m (144 to 148 MHz), 1.25 m (222 to 225 MHz) and 70 cm (420 to 450 MHz). Every station must use the minimum power needed for the contact.

Identification

• Give your call sign at the end of each contact and at least every 10 minutes during it.
• When you identify by voice, do it in English. A standard phonetic alphabet is encouraged.
• No station may send signals without identifying.

What you may not send

• Messages for pay or for your employer's business, with narrow exceptions such as some emergency drills.
• Music on a voice transmission, obscene language, or false or deceptive signals.
• Messages coded to hide their meaning.
• Broadcasts to the general public.

You may mention equipment for sale now and then, as long as you do not do it on a regular basis. Third-party messages to another country are allowed only where that country has an agreement with the US, or for emergency and disaster relief.

A station can be under local control (you at the radio), remote control (you adjust it through a control link) or automatic control (no operator at the control point, allowed only for certain station types such as repeaters).

Operating procedures and public service

Good operating habits make the bands work for everyone. Before you transmit, listen to make sure the frequency is clear. A band plan is a voluntary guide that goes beyond the FCC rules.

Repeaters

• A repeater receives on one frequency and transmits on another. The difference is the offset.
• The usual offset is 600 kHz on 2 meters and 5 MHz on 70 centimeters.
• Many repeaters need a sub-audible CTCSS tone, or a DCS code, before they will respond.
• If you hear a repeater but cannot open it, check your offset and tone settings.
• The 2-meter FM simplex calling frequency is 146.520 MHz.

Digital voice

On DMR, your radio needs the repeater's color code and the talkgroup you want to join. These settings live in a file called a code plug. A hotspot links nearby radios to a digital network over the internet.

Q signals

Emergencies and nets

In a directed net, the net control station runs the frequency. Unless you have emergency traffic, transmit only when net control calls you. ARES volunteers register their skills and equipment for public service. RACES operators must be enrolled and certified by a civil defense organization. Part 97 rules still apply in both. In a real emergency, when normal systems are down, an amateur may use any means needed to protect life and property.

How radio waves travel

Radio waves travel at the speed of light. To find the wavelength in meters, divide 300 by the frequency in MHz. Higher frequency means shorter wavelength.

• VHF and UHF usually travel by line of sight. The radio horizon is a little farther than the visual horizon because the air bends the waves slightly.
• The ionosphere bends HF signals back to Earth, which allows long-distance contacts.
• Sporadic E gives sudden, strong openings on 10, 6 and 2 meters.
• Tropospheric ducting, often from a temperature inversion, can carry VHF and UHF a few hundred miles.
• Meteor scatter works best on 6 meters.
• Multipath can make a signal rise and fall when you move the antenna only a few feet.
• Antennas at both ends should use the same polarization. Weak-signal SSB and CW on VHF and UHF usually use horizontal polarization.

Electrical principles and components

Voltage (volts) pushes current (amperes) through a resistance (ohms). Power is measured in watts and frequency in hertz. Impedance, also in ohms, is the opposition to AC current.

Two formulas to know

• Ohm's Law: E = I x R, so I = E / R and R = E / I. Example: 12 V across 4 ohms gives 3 A.
• Power: P = E x I. Example: 13.8 V at 10 A is 138 W.

Prefixes and decibels

• Milli means one thousandth (1,000 mA = 1 A). Kilo means 1,000 and mega means 1,000,000.
• To change kHz to MHz, divide by 1,000. 14,250 kHz is 14.250 MHz.
• Doubling power is about +3 dB. Ten times the power is +10 dB.

In a series circuit the same current flows through every part. In a parallel circuit every branch has the same voltage.

Common components

A bipolar transistor has an emitter, base and collector. A field effect transistor has a gate, drain and source. An inductor and capacitor together form a resonant circuit.

Station equipment and practical circuits

• Mobile radios run on about 13.8 V DC. Use short, heavy power leads to limit voltage drop.
• Battery run time is about the amp-hour rating divided by the average current.
• Sensitivity is how well a receiver hears weak signals. Selectivity is how well it separates close signals.
• A transverter moves a radio's signals to another band. A mixer changes a signal from one frequency to another.
• RIT shifts only the receive frequency to correct an SSB voice.
• A dummy load lets you test a transmitter without putting a signal on the air.
• A voltmeter connects in parallel. An ammeter connects in series. Measure resistance only with the power off.

SWR and interference

An SWR of 1:1 is a perfect match. High SWR means power is reflected, and many radios cut their output to protect themselves. Over-deviation on FM is fixed by talking farther from the microphone. Too much microphone gain on SSB causes distortion. A ferrite choke can stop RF from getting into audio cables.

Signals, digital modes and satellites

SSB is a form of AM. Upper sideband is used on 10 meters and above. FT8 works with very weak signals. APRS sends position, short messages and weather data. DMR fits two voice signals on one 12.5 kHz channel using time slots.

Satellites

• Doppler shift makes a satellite's frequency seem to change as it passes.
• In mode U/V, the uplink is on 70 cm and the downlink is on 2 m.
• Use only enough uplink power; too much can block other users.
• Tracking software uses Keplerian elements to predict passes.

Antennas and feed lines

• A quarter-wave 2-meter vertical is about 19 inches long.
• A half-wave dipole radiates most strongly broadside to the wire.
• A beam such as a Yagi focuses the signal in one direction.
• Most coax and radios use 50 ohms impedance.
• Coax loss increases with frequency. Air or foam dielectric cable has lower loss.
• Water inside coax is a common cause of failure. Seal outdoor connectors.
• An antenna tuner matches the radio to the antenna system; it does not fix a poor antenna.

Electrical, tower and RF safety

• Replace a fuse only with the same rating. A bigger fuse can let wiring overheat.
• Bond all station grounds together with short, direct connections for lightning protection.
• Charge lead-acid batteries where there is good ventilation, since they can release hydrogen gas.
• Wear a climbing harness, hard hat and safety glasses on a tower, and never climb alone.
• Keep antennas far from power lines so they cannot touch them if they fall.

RF energy is non-ionizing. At high levels it heats body tissue. Exposure depends on power, frequency, distance and duty cycle. Station licensees must make sure their station meets the FCC's RF exposure rules.

Study tips

• Study the current 2026-2030 pool, not an older one. Check the NCVEC page for errata.
• Learn the privileges table and the identification rules until you can recall them easily.
• Practise Ohm's Law and power sums by hand, using different numbers each time.
• Take full 35-question practice exams. Aim well above 26 correct before you book.
• Find a session through a local VE team or one of the FCC-certified VECs. Some VEC teams also hold remote sessions.