Course and practice test
Free boating license: where the free course counts
A free online course is approved for the card in most states that require one. Pick your state: approved or not, and what remains to pay.
The free route in your state
Cheapest legal cost, Georgia
free course; fee not published
| Free BoatUS course | accepted |
| State fee | none published |
| Required for | Born on or after January 1, 1998 |
The BoatUS Foundation, which describes itself as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, gives an online boating safety course it marks "Free*" and has it approved state by state. Of the 46 verified states that require boater education, the course is approved in 32. In 5 of those the state still charges its own fee for the card, so "free" means a free course plus that fee; the tool shows it. On its own state pages the Foundation also states a payment in some states: collected at enrollment in Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, and a state card to buy after the course in New York and Oregon. In 12 states the free course is not approved for the state card: Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota and Missouri and others; there you take a course the state approves, sometimes free when the state or a volunteer group gives it in a classroom, often paid online. In Alabama and Arkansas the free course is not available at all, because the state credential works differently. Paid online courses are not a better legal option where the free one is approved: the card is the same. This page reads the Foundation's own state list and links each state's free course page.
Total cost: course + state fee
Legal minimum, Michigan
$40
| With the paid course | $40 + not confirmed |
| State fee | none published |
| Free BoatUS course | not accepted |
State rules read and practice questions written by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How each state is checked
State by state
"Free course" links to the Foundation's page for the state when it is approved. "State fee" is what the state itself charges for the credential, read on its official page. "BoatUS payment" is what the Foundation's state page says is collected at enrollment, must be bought, or is optional; the amount can differ from the state fee read on the state's page.
| State | Free course | State fee | BoatUS payment | Credential |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | not available | $41.25 | – | Vessel operator license (class V) |
| Arkansas | not available | not confirmed | – | Boating education certificate |
| California | accepted | $10 | – | California Boater Card |
| Colorado | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating safety course certificate |
| Connecticut | not accepted | $50 | – | Safe Boating Certificate (SBC) / Certificate of Personal Watercraft Operation (CPWO) |
| Delaware | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Delaware Boating Safety Certificate |
| District of Columbia | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating Safety Certificate |
| Florida | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating Safety Education Identification Card |
| Georgia | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boater education card |
| Hawaii | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating safety course certificate (+ thrill craft operator certification for PWC) |
| Illinois | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Illinois Boating Safety Certificate |
| Indiana | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boater education certificate |
| Iowa | accepted | $5 | $15 (optional card) | Iowa boater education certificate |
| Kansas | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boater safety education certificate |
| Kentucky | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Kentucky Safe Boating Certificate |
| Louisiana | accepted | $0 | – | Boater education certificate |
| Maine | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boating Safety Education Card |
| Maryland | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Certificate of boating safety education |
| Massachusetts | not accepted | $0 | – | Boater safety certificate |
| Michigan | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating safety certificate (boater education card) |
| Minnesota | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Watercraft operator's permit |
| Mississippi | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boater education card |
| Missouri | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating safety identification card |
| Montana | accepted | $0 | – | Montana Motorboat Operator's Safety Certificate |
| Nebraska | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Boater Education Card (boating safety certificate) |
| Nevada | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boater education card |
| New Hampshire | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Safe Boater Education Certificate |
| New Jersey | not accepted | not confirmed | – | New Jersey Boating Safety Certificate |
| New Mexico | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | New Mexico boater education card |
| New York | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (card to buy) | Safe Boating Certificate |
| North Carolina | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boating safety certification card |
| North Dakota | accepted | $0 | – | Boat North Dakota boater education card |
| Ohio | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Ohio Boater Education Card / certificate |
| Oklahoma | accepted | $0 | – | Boating safety education card |
| Oregon | accepted | $20 | $20 (card to buy) | Oregon Boater Education Card |
| Pennsylvania | accepted | $10 | $17 (at enrollment) | Boating Safety Education Certificate |
| Rhode Island | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Certificate of boating safety education |
| South Carolina | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | South Carolina boating safety certificate |
| Tennessee | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating Safety Certification of Completion (wallet card) |
| Texas | accepted | not confirmed | $11 (at enrollment) | Boater Education Certificate |
| Utah | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boating safety certificate (PWC youth course); from 2027 also proof of the annual watercraft operator safety course |
| Vermont | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Certificate of boating safety education |
| Virginia | accepted | not confirmed | $15 (optional card) | Boating safety education card (Virginia Lifetime Boater's Card available) |
| Washington | accepted | $10 | $10.50 (at enrollment) | Washington State Boater Education Card |
| West Virginia | accepted | not confirmed | – | Boater education card (certificate of boating safety education) |
| Wisconsin | not accepted | not confirmed | – | Boating safety certificate |
What "approved" means
A course is approved when the state's boating agency accepts it for its card, which usually requires the course to meet the national standard and to include the state's own law. Approval is decided by each state, so the same free course can count in Georgia and not in Connecticut. The Foundation keeps the list current; when a state changes its position, the list changes and so does this page at its next update.
Cost with a paid course
If your state does not approve the free course, or you prefer another format, enter the price of the course you found: the mini-tool adds the state fee and compares with the free route.
Total cost: course + state fee
Legal minimum, New Hampshire
$40
| With the paid course | $40 + not confirmed |
| State fee | none published |
| Free BoatUS course | not accepted |
Free does not mean temporary
The card earned through a free approved course is the same lifetime credential as any other in states where the card does not expire. It is not a "temporary" or "rental" certificate, which several states sell at rental counters for short stays. If you will boat more than once, the full free course is the better deal in the 32 states that approve it.
Before you start
Check first whether you need the card at all: if you were born before your state's cut-off date, or your motor is below its power threshold, no course is required. The check on the home page answers in a few seconds. Then use the practice test to prepare the course exam.