- ETA International does not publish a pass rate for the Photovoltaic Installer/Designer (PV2) exam, so any specific percentage you see is unverified.
- The PV2 written exam has 100 questions, a two-hour limit, and a 75% passing score.
- Candidates must clear eligibility first: 60 training hours, OSHA 10, CSS certification, and 150 attested experience points.
- One free retake is allowed within one year of your first examination attempt.
Why There Is No Official PV2 Pass Rate
If you searched for the pass rate of the Photovoltaic Installer/Designer (PV2) certification, you probably wanted a single reassuring or intimidating number. Here is the honest answer: ETA International, the certifying body, does not publish one. Its Renewable Energy Certifications listing gives the exam fee, question count, time limit, passing score, and certification term, but no cohort pass percentage, no first-attempt success figure, and no annual candidate volume.
That matters because pass-rate numbers circulate widely for other credentials that happen to share the "PV2" acronym. This article is only about the ETA Photovoltaic Installer/Designer (PV2) credential, and nothing from any similarly named certification applies here. If a webpage quotes a crisp percentage for "the PV2 exam" without naming ETA and without citing a source you can verify, treat it as noise.
What the Published Numbers Actually Tell You
Even without a pass rate, ETA's published exam parameters let you reason about what you are up against. These are the facts that are documented:
| Exam Parameter | PV2 Detail |
|---|---|
| Certifying body | ETA International (ETA) |
| Examination fee | $155 |
| Questions | 100 |
| Time limit | Two hours (written) |
| Passing score | 75% |
| Certification term | Four years |
| Retake policy | One free retake within one year of the first examination |
| Delivery | Arranged through an ETA Certification Administrator; Trapeza online testing or paper |
Doing the arithmetic, 75% of 100 questions means you need 75 correct answers, which allows 25 misses. At two hours for 100 questions, you have an average of roughly 72 seconds per question. That is comfortable for recall questions but tighter for the calculation-heavy ones in array sizing and wiring. Our PV2 passing score breakdown goes deeper on what that threshold means in practice.
What a 75% cut score implies
A 75% threshold is a mastery-oriented standard. It does not tell you the exam is easy or hard, but it does tell you that guessing your way through weak domains is not viable. With 15 competency areas and no published weighting, a gap in even two or three areas can consume most of your 25-question margin.
The Real Filter Happens Before Exam Day
The most useful way to think about PV2 outcomes is that the credential has a heavy front-end gate. Before you ever sit for the written exam, ETA requires you to assemble a documented package. Per the ETA PV2 certification process and experience checklist, candidates must:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Complete 60 contact hours of ETA-approved or equivalent photovoltaic training (current PVI1 certification credits 40 of those 60 hours).
- Complete OSHA 10 construction safety or an equivalent jurisdictional course.
- Hold ETA Customer Service Specialist (CSS) certification.
- Document at least 150 attested experience points, including every compulsory task and at least two reference contacts.
- Show compulsory installation experience that includes at least three systems of 2 kW or larger.
- Agree to ETA's Code of Conduct and pass the written examination.
The overview lists no separate hands-on examination, but that does not waive the documented installation experience on the checklist. In other words, the practical side is verified through paperwork and attestations rather than a skills test.
Where Prepared Candidates Lose Points
ETA states that examination questions derive from the certification competencies. The 15 competency headings are unweighted, official objectives. There is no published percentage blueprint, so no one can honestly tell you "Domain 8 is 20% of the exam." What you can do is identify which areas demand the most deliberate preparation based on how the competency headings are structured.
Calculation-driven domains
Array Sizing and Wiring the System
These two areas reward candidates who can work numbers cleanly under time pressure, which is why they are common stumbling points for people with strong field instincts but less comfort on paper.
- Translating customer energy use into an array size
- Working through string configuration and voltage and current considerations
- Conductor and overcurrent protection reasoning tied to code requirements
- Practicing with a nonprogrammable calculator, which ETA's general testing FAQ permits
Code and standards domain
Codes and Standards
Installers who work from habit and local practice can underestimate how much exam content depends on precise code language. Note that ETA's general FAQ does not establish PV2-specific book permissions, so confirm what, if anything, is allowed in the room before relying on reference material.
- Know how code requirements shape system design decisions
- Connect safety rules to array, wiring, and storage topics
- Do not assume local jurisdiction habits match the exam's expectations
The "soft" front-of-sequence domains
Domains such as History and Background of Photovoltaics, Determining Customer Needs, and Project Management can feel like free points. Because the domains are unweighted and the exam draws from all competencies, treating them as afterthoughts is a quiet way to burn through your 25-question margin. Customer needs and project management questions are often scenario-based, which means reading carefully matters as much as recall.
Domains that bridge installation and operation
Energy Storage Systems and Testing and Troubleshooting
Storage has become a standard part of residential and commercial PV work, and troubleshooting rewards methodical thinking over memorization.
- Understand how storage changes system design and wiring considerations
- Practice diagnostic reasoning: what a symptom implies and what to check first
- Link Commissioning the System and Maintaining the System to the test-and-verify mindset
For a domain-by-domain walkthrough of all 15 areas, use our complete PV2 exam domains guide.
Retake Policy and What It Means for Risk
ETA allows one free retake within one year of the first examination. The practical effect is that your financial exposure on a first attempt is limited: the $155 fee covers an initial try and a second chance inside that window. Our PV2 certification cost breakdown covers the full pricing picture, including the pieces outside the exam fee.
Key Takeaway
The free retake is a safety net, not a strategy. Use your first attempt as a real attempt, and if you do miss, spend the gap before the retake on the specific domains where you felt least certain, not on re-reading everything.
Because you will not receive a published pass rate to benchmark against, the best predictor of readiness is your own performance on realistic practice questions. Scoring consistently above the 75% line across all domains, not just in your strong ones, is a more reliable signal than any outside statistic. You can test yourself with the PV2 practice tests on our main site.
A Domain-Ordered Prep Sequence
Generic study advice is everywhere; what is more useful is deciding which PV2 domains to tackle when. Here is one sequencing approach that front-loads the material you will lean on for later topics. Adjust the pacing to your own schedule and experience.
Foundations and safety
- History and Background of Photovoltaics
- Additional PV Project Safety (builds on your OSHA 10 coursework)
- How the Grid Works, since later design topics depend on it
Planning and compliance
- Determining Customer Needs
- Codes and Standards
- Conducting a Site Survey
Design and calculation
- Components Selection
- Array Sizing
- Wiring the System, with calculator practice every session
Storage, structure, and delivery
- Energy Storage Systems
- PV Mounting Systems
- Project Management
Verification and lifecycle, then full review
- Testing and Troubleshooting
- Commissioning the System
- Maintaining the System
- Timed 100-question practice runs in a two-hour window
The logic is simple: grid fundamentals and codes come before sizing and wiring because those calculations only make sense inside a code and grid context, and commissioning and troubleshooting come last because they synthesize everything before them. For a fuller plan, see the PV2 study guide, and keep the PV2 cheat sheet handy for last-week review.
How to Read Pass-Rate Claims You See Online
Because ETA does not publish a PV2 pass rate, any figure you encounter is coming from somewhere else. Use this quick filter before letting a number shape your confidence:
- Check the credential name. Does the page explicitly say ETA International and Photovoltaic Installer/Designer (PV2)? Several unrelated credentials share the "PV2" label, and their data does not transfer.
- Look for a primary source. A genuine statistic points to ETA or to a named dataset. Vague phrases like "most candidates pass" or "around X percent" without attribution are unverifiable.
- Ask who is being counted. First attempts versus retakes, candidates who finished training versus all registrants, and different testing years all produce different numbers.
- Prefer the documented parameters. The 75% passing score, 100 questions, and two-hour limit are confirmed. They are better planning inputs than a rumored percentage.
Planning around the renewal question
Pass rate is only the first hurdle; keeping the credential is the second. ETA's sources conflict on PV2 maintenance: the PV2 checklist specifies 24 continuing-education hours over four years and $25 annual maintenance, while ETA's general policy describes a standard route of 40 hours over four years (or employer verification) and a hands-on route of 24 hours plus employer verification, both with $25 annual maintenance. Do not assume one route applies; confirm the correct PV2 pathway directly with ETA before you plan your renewal.
PV2 Pass Rate FAQ
ETA International does not publish a pass rate for the Photovoltaic Installer/Designer (PV2) exam. The documented standard is a 75% passing score on a 100-question, two-hour written exam. Any specific percentage you see online without an ETA source should be treated as unverified.
With 100 questions and a 75% passing score, you need 75 correct answers, so you can miss up to 25. Because the 15 domains are unweighted and the exam draws from all competencies, weak spots in several areas can consume that margin quickly.
ETA allows one free retake within one year of your first examination. Use the time between attempts to target the domains where you were weakest, then schedule the retake through your ETA Certification Administrator.
There is no published data to say how many fail. What is documented is that candidates must first meet significant prerequisites, including 60 training hours, OSHA 10, CSS certification, and 150 experience points, and then score 75% across 15 competency areas. See our difficulty guide for a qualitative assessment.
ETA's general testing FAQ permits a nonprogrammable calculator. It does not establish PV2-specific rules on reference books, so confirm the details with your ETA Certification Administrator before test day. If you are still learning the credential's scope, start with what PV2 certification is.