Rapid Study System · Built for busy tradesmen

Unlock the California contractors exam.
20 minutes a day. Guaranteed.

Durable study cards and a powerful app loaded with practice questions, study guides, progress trackers, and more. You don't need to re-learn the trade, just how to pass the exam. 

One Payment · One System · No Subscriptions · 30-Day Returns

Get License Ladder · from $99 Try the free demo
Save up to $100 · Launch price
99% pass rate guarantee
Made in California
The system

License Ladder helps you study, and shows when you're ready to pass.

Stop studying like it's still 2006. License Ladder tells you exactly what to study next, so your time goes where it matters most. When your readiness score turns green, you're ready to pass.

See how it works
Your readiness score
Projected pass · Readiness
Getting There.
Keep going, you're close.
Your decks
Law & Business96 / 142
General Building (B)88 / 177
Remodeling (B-2)Coming soon
PlumbingComing soon
Next session · 12 cards
Lien deadlines & notices
We help you focus where it matters most
53
Exam date
Nov 6, 2026 · 8:00 AM
CSLB · Sacramento

License Ladder showing a CSLB exam readiness score climbing to green.

what's in the bundle

Everything you need to ace the contractors exam.

Study anywhere · Ready now

Mobile App

Your whole study system in your pocket. Five minutes between jobs, twenty on lunch: every session counts.

  • Readiness score and exam countdown up front.
  • Smart sessions put what you’re still learning first.
  • Drills and practice tests with full explanations.
  • English or Spanish, your choice.
Tour the Mobile App Android is coming to Google Play. Until then, try the free demo in your phone’s browser.
Your command center · Ready now

Online System

The full study system on any computer. Big screen, full keyboard, nothing to install.

  • Big-screen card reader with exam hints.
  • Timed mock exams that feel like test day.
  • Study guides, chapter by chapter.
  • One account, always in sync with your phone.
  • AI Exam Coach built in, for any question.
Tour the Online System Includes a free demo: 15 real exam cards, no credit card.
A License Ladder study card held next to the deck box, a tape measure and a pencil
Built for the jobsite · Ships free

Flashcards

The deck that goes where you go. Every exam topic, one card at a time, in plain language with the exact numbers the test asks for.

DecksLaw & Business · 142 cardsGeneral Building (B) · 177 cardsComplete package
  • Big, tough cards: 5 by 7 inches, in a jobsite box.
  • Built for the exam, with a tip on every card.
  • Numbered to match both apps.
  • Free shipping, and the cards are yours to keep.
See the cards
All three, in every bundle.Printed study cards, the mobile app and the online system always come together, for every deck in your package. You never have to choose.
  • One payment
  • No add-ons
  • Nothing sold separately
Thousands of practice questions

A practice-question bank that won’t waste your time.
Updated and organized for 2026.

Stop drilling on the same outdated question banks. License Ladder gives you a deep, current set of CSLB practice questions. Sorted by topic, up to date with the latest codes, and wired directly into the learning app, where your tests lean toward the topics you're still learning.

Adaptive test builder 10,000+ questions
Pick your categories
Law & Business
General Building
Electrical
Plumbing
How many questions?
5 25 50 100 250 500
Focus where it matters most
Generate test
Every answer feeds your readiness score and sharpens what you drill next.

Practice the way you learn best.

  • Depth, not repetition. A question bank deep enough that you're never memorizing the same recycled set.
  • Sorted by topic. Every question is categorized, so you can build custom tests around exactly the subjects you want to work on.
  • 5 to 500 at a time. Take a quick 5-question warm-up or a full 500-question marathon, right in the learning app.
  • Constantly improving. Your scores feed the system, so your next session focuses where it matters most.
Updated for the latest building codes
319
printed flashcards across both decks, plus the full question bank in the app.
10,000+
categorized questions you can slice into custom tests of 5 to 500.
2026
codes and rule updates: every question kept current, no stale material.
Now in the online system · Included with every bundle

AI Exam Coach

Ask it anything about the exam, your study plan, or your application. Get clear answers in English or Spanish, or let it plan your study week.

  • Exam questions answered in plain language.
  • Application help, step by step.
  • A study plan built around your week.
Try the free demo Ask Exam Coach your own questions in the free demo, in English or Spanish.
Launch price

CA Law & Business

$99
$189 after the launch Save $90 at launch

Law & Business on its own: the printed deck every applicant needs, yours to keep, shipped to you and ready in the app. Plus practice questions, timed exams, study guides, and your readiness score, for a full year. One payment. No subscriptions, no auto-renewals, and no hidden fees. Free shipping.

Law & Business Flashcard Deck (142 cards)Included
Study GuidesIncluded
Mobile App: Practice Tests & Readiness ScoreIncluded
Desktop AppIncluded
Get Law & Business · $99
Launch price

CA Law & Business + General Building (B)

$149
$249 after the launch Save $100 at launch

The complete bundle: both printed decks, 319 cards that are yours to keep, shipped to you and ready in the app. Plus thousands of practice questions, timed exams, study guides, drill cards, and your readiness score, for a full year. One payment. No subscriptions, no auto-renewals, and no hidden fees. Free shipping.

(B) General Building Flashcard Deck (177 cards)Included
Law & Business Flashcard Deck (142 cards)Included
Study GuidesIncluded
Mobile App: Practice Tests & Readiness ScoreIncluded
Desktop AppIncluded
Get the complete bundle · $149

$99 for Law & Business, or $149 with General Building, while the launch lasts (going to $189 and $249 when it ends). Every new question and update we ship during your year is included.

Free shipping · 30-day returns · Pass or you don’t pay

Success Stories

Real results. From real builders.

Stories from experienced California tradespeople, added as they come in.

"I'd failed Law & Business twice with a big-name school. Two weeks drilling the cards and the lien and contract questions finally clicked. I passed both exams the same morning."

Marcus Delgado
Marcus Delgado · General Building (B) · Bakersfield

"The deck rides in my truck. I run cards at lunch and between calls, then the app hammers whatever I keep missing. Passed on the first try."

Annika Ramirez
Annika Ramirez · General Building (B) · Fresno

"The readiness score is the whole thing for me. When it turned green I scheduled the exam, walked in calm, and passed. No more guessing whether I was ready."

Earnest Carter
Earnest Carter · General Building (B) · Sacramento
License Ladder FAQ

Common questions. Straight answers.

The California exam

Two, booked separately, on the same day or on different days: the Law & Business exam, which every applicant takes, and a trade exam for your classification, like C-36 Plumbing or C-10 Electrical. Law & Business is in every package, and the complete bundle adds General Building (B) to prepare you for both.
CSLB doesn't publish a fixed passing score. A passing report just says you passed; only a failing report shows your score. Plan on clearing 70–80% comfortably. Our practice tests target an 80% readiness score so you walk in with margin to spare.
Each exam is multiple choice, roughly 115 questions, and CSLB gives you 3.5 hours to finish it. CSLB Examination FAQ (3.5 hours; CSLB does not publish a question count)
CSLB generally requires four years of journey-level experience in your trade within the last 10 years. Apprenticeship, schooling, or running your own crew can count toward it. CSLB, Before Applying for a License (four years within the preceding ten)
California issues three main classes: Class A (General Engineering), Class B (General Building), and Class C (Specialty), with 40-plus C classifications like C-10 Electrical and C-36 Plumbing, plus B-2 Residential Remodeling as a classification of its own. CSLB, Licensing Classifications
In California, work where labor and materials total $1,000 or more generally requires a CSLB license. Smaller jobs may fall under the minor-work exemption, but it disappears the moment the job needs a building permit, you hire anyone to help, or you advertise yourself as a contractor. Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §7048
After you apply, CSLB reviews it before you can schedule your exam. CSLB publishes which received-date each unit is working on, updated weekly, on its processing-times page. How fast you pass is the part you control, and the part we help with.

The bundle & studying

The printed Law & Business deck, study guides, and full access to the app on your phone or computer with practice tests, timed exams, and your readiness score. The complete bundle adds the printed General Building (B) deck. See what's inside.
Yes. The free demo opens the first 15 cards of each exam right in your browser, with their practice questions, drills, study guides and the AI Exam Coach. Enter your name and email to start: no account, no password, no credit card. It works on a computer or an Android phone and ends when you end it, after 30 minutes without use, or after 2 hours. On an iPhone, our free app has the same free cards. Try the free demo.
License Ladder is not a classroom course. It is an adaptive system built for how you actually live: five-minute bursts on the job, plain English, a readiness score that tells you when you're ready, and a package for exactly the exams you are taking, with nothing held back for an upsell. $99 for Law & Business, or $149 for the bundle with General Building, one payment.
Yes. The study system uses machine learning to measure your progress card by card, so you don't spend time on what you already know and your study time goes where it matters most. Every bundle also includes the AI Exam Coach in the online system: ask it anything about the exam, your study plan or your application. You can try it in the free demo.
We're launching with General Building (B) and the Law & Business deck every applicant needs, both available now. Residential Remodeling (B-2), Plumbing (C-36), and Electrical (C-10) are coming soon, and we're building those decks now.
Yes. We prioritize California rules, Cal/OSHA, CSLB classifications, and state contract law over federal where they differ, because that is what the CSLB exam tests.
Most people study in short bursts over a few weeks. There is no fixed number, because the app keeps your readiness score up to date and tells you when you have hit 80% card mastery and an 80% practice score, which is your signal to schedule.
That is the point. The app is built for five-minute bursts on a lunch break, in the truck, or between calls, and you can pick up on a computer at home right where you left off. Carry the physical cards when you would rather be off your phone.
Download your decks once and drill without a signal. Your progress syncs the next time you are online.

Price & guarantee

$99 for the Law & Business package, or $149 for the complete bundle with General Building. Both are launch prices; they go to $189 and $249 when the launch ends. One payment, no subscription. See pricing.
No. One payment for your whole package: physical cards, guides, and app access. No recurring charge, and app access is included, not a separate fee.
It is a launch price. The product is ready, but we are still growing the question bank. $99 for Law & Business, or $149 with General Building, while the launch lasts (going to $189 and $249 when it ends). Buy in now and you lock that price, with a full year of app access and every update we ship in that year.
Study the bundle, reach a green readiness score, and if you do not pass, we refund you. Read the full guarantee.
No. License Ladder is independent study material. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the Contractors State License Board or the State of California. Always confirm official requirements at the CSLB.

See the full FAQ

The exam doesn’t just test how well you build.
It tests how well you prepare.

Most people put this exam off for years. Some walk in with a hope and a prayer. Three things trip up most applicants, and License Ladder takes on all three.

  • Problem: Dense legal text

    Contracts, liens and indemnification, written by lawyers for lawyers.

    Solution: Plain English

    Every rule rewritten so you actually remember it.

  • Problem: Misleading answers

    Wording designed to trip you up.

    Solution: Trap patterns, drilled

    Thousands of updated practice questions, so you spot the trap before it spots you.

  • Problem: Time-wasting sinkholes

    Night classes and a binder you never finish.

    Solution: Five-minute sessions

    On the truck, at lunch, or between jobs.

Walk in confident and ready. Your readiness score won’t go green until you’re truly ready.

Becoming your own boss starts with one step: getting your own license.

Leer esta página en español

From $99
Choose your package