Ham Radio General Study Guide 2026

The General license and exam

The General class gives you most of the HF bands. You need credit for Element 2 (Technician) and Element 3. Element 3 has 35 questions, and you need 26 correct to pass.

• A team of at least 3 accredited VEs gives the exam at a VEC-coordinated session.
• Element 3 must be prepared by a VE who holds an Advanced or Amateur Extra license.
• A passed element on a CSCE counts for 365 days.
• Until your upgrade appears in ULS, add AG after your call sign when you use General privileges.

The current pool is effective from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2027. Several errata have withdrawn questions, most recently on February 4, 2026. Each exam takes one question from each of 35 topic groups.

General HF privileges

In ITU Region 2, which includes the United States, a General operator may use these HF segments. CW is allowed anywhere you have privileges. Phone is allowed only in the phone parts of each band.

Generals may also use the 2200 m and 630 m bands. Before using them, you must notify the Utilities Telecom Council of your call sign, bands and antenna location. You may start after 30 days unless the UTC says you are too close to a power line carrier system.

Power, antennas, VEs and other rules

• The general limit is 1,500 W PEP, and you must use the minimum power needed.
• On 30 m the limit is 200 W PEP output for everyone.
• On 60 m, power is measured as effective radiated power (ERP) compared to a half-wave dipole, and no signal may be wider than 2.8 kHz. Rules adopted in 2026 added the 5351.5 to 5366.5 kHz segment, which has a lower power limit than the four channels. Check section 97.313 for the current numbers.
• Antenna structures more than 200 feet high may need FAA notice and FCC registration.
• Beacons may not use more than 100 W.
• No station may send third-party messages while under automatic control, except RTTY or data.

Volunteer Examiners

A VE must be at least 18, accredited by a VEC and properly licensed. A General VE may only prepare and give Element 2. Element 3 needs an Advanced or Amateur Extra VE, and Element 4 needs an Amateur Extra VE.

HF operating practice

• Use lower sideband for voice on 160, 75 and 40 meters, and upper sideband on 20 meters and up.
• Listen first. On CW, send QRL? to ask if the frequency is in use.
• To join a contact, say your call sign once during a pause.
• Keep about 3 kHz between SSB signals. CW signals need much less space.
• QRS means send slower. QRQ means send faster.
• Full break-in (QSK) lets you hear between your own CW elements.
• CQ DX asks for distant or foreign stations; nearby stations should let them answer.

Digital modes

FT8 uses timed 15-second periods, so your computer clock must be accurate to about one second. Digital modes have their own customs, so check the usual frequencies in the band plan before you transmit.

Rules and emergencies

The Volunteer Monitor Program uses trained amateurs to listen for rule problems and send friendly advisory notices. In a real emergency, when normal systems are down, an amateur may use any means needed to protect life and property.

HF propagation

• The sunspot cycle lasts about 11 years. Higher sunspot numbers usually improve the higher HF bands.
• The K-index shows short-term geomagnetic activity. The A-index is a daily average. High values mean poor conditions.
• The MUF is the highest frequency that reaches a place by the ionosphere. The LUF is the lowest usable one.
• The D region absorbs lower HF signals in daylight, then fades after sunset.
• The F2 region is the highest and gives the longest single hops.
• NVIS sends 80 and 40 meter signals almost straight up for short-range contacts.

Reading conditions

The solar flux index measures radio energy from the sun. Higher values usually mean better conditions on the upper HF bands. A geomagnetic storm can disturb the ionosphere and make HF signals weak and fluttery for a day or more. Signals can also travel the long path, the long way around the Earth, when the short path is closed. Listening to beacons and watching for signals from distant stations is a simple way to judge what a band is doing right now.

Station practices and test equipment

• ALC limits drive to prevent distortion. A speech processor raises average SSB power.
• One S unit is about 6 dB.
• On LSB, keep your carrier at least 3 kHz above the lower band edge.
• A two-tone test checks SSB linearity. An oscilloscope shows the waveform.
• An antenna analyzer checks SWR and impedance without the transmitter.
• A noise blanker cuts impulse noise. A notch filter removes a steady carrier.

Interference, mobile and portable power

If your signal gets into a stereo or TV, put ferrite chokes on its cables and bond your station equipment together. For a 100-watt mobile HF radio, run heavy wiring to the battery instead of using the accessory socket. With a solar panel, a series diode stops the battery from draining back through the panel at night.

Electrical principles, components and circuits

• Capacitive reactance falls as frequency rises. Inductive reactance rises.
• Resonance happens when the two reactances are equal.
• RMS voltage of a sine wave is about 0.707 x peak.
• Power: P = E x I, or P = E squared / R.
• Equal resistors in parallel: divide one value by the number of resistors. Series resistors add.
• Transformer voltage follows the turns ratio.

In a superheterodyne receiver, the mixer moves signals to a fixed intermediate frequency. DSP filters can be adjusted in software.

Signals and emissions

• SSB removes the carrier and one sideband from an AM signal.
• FM deviation is how far the carrier shifts with the audio.
• A mixer produces sum and difference frequencies.
• Intermodulation creates unwanted signals when strong signals mix in a non-linear stage.
• A link budget adds all gains and losses on a path. Link margin is the extra signal above the minimum needed.
• FT8 uses 8-tone frequency shift keying.

Antennas and feed lines

• SWR for a resistive load is the larger impedance over the smaller. A 200-ohm load on 50-ohm line is 4:1.
• High SWR raises feed line loss. Coax loss also rises with frequency.
• A half-wave dipole in feet is about 468 / MHz. At 14.2 MHz that is about 33 feet.
• In a Yagi, directors are shorter and the reflector is longer than the driven element.
• Front-to-back ratio compares forward power to backward power.
• A log-periodic antenna covers a wide frequency range.
• A folded dipole has a feed point of about 300 ohms.
• For NVIS, use a horizontal dipole mounted fairly low.

Electrical and RF safety

Station licensees must make sure their station meets the FCC's RF exposure rules before transmitting. Limits for an uncontrolled environment (the public and neighbors) are stricter than for a controlled one. Exposure is averaged over time, so duty cycle and time on the air matter.

• Never run a generator indoors: it produces carbon monoxide.
• A GFCI cuts power when current leaks to ground.
• An interlock removes power when a high-voltage cabinet is opened.
• Use a climbing harness and a helper for tower work, and keep antennas clear of power lines.

Study tips

• Study the current 2023-2027 pool and check the NCVEC page for its errata. Withdrawn questions will not appear on your exam.
• Make your own chart of the General phone and CW segments, then draw it from memory until it is easy.
• Practise the math by hand: Ohm's Law, power, RMS, SWR, decibels and dipole length.
• Learn the reasons behind each rule. It is easier to remember why the 60-meter band has tight width and power limits (it is shared with other services) than to memorize a number alone.
• Take full 35-question practice exams and aim well above 26 correct before you book.
• Find a session through a local VE team or one of the FCC-certified VECs.