Florida General Contractor Exam: Contract Administration and Project Management

The Florida general contractor exam is three separate tests: Business and Finance, Contract Administration (CA) and Project Management (PM). This guide covers the two GC trade tests. They are open book, but the books are thick, the clock is real, and most questions require you to find a specific table, clause or section quickly. Knowing what each outline weights, and which book answers which kind of question, is most of the preparation.

Format at a glance

The exams may include unscored pilot questions, which DBPR says are not identified and come with extra time. You get an official result report at the test center as soon as you finish.

Contract Administration outline

From the January 2020 ECI. Weights may vary by plus or minus 3%.

What the ECI lists under each area:

• A. Preconstruction: cost estimates from take-offs (material, labor, equipment, overhead), evaluating sub and supplier bids, unit price vs lump sum bids, profit margins, fixed and variable costs, break-even, square foot (systems) estimating, liquidated damages and regulatory costs such as impact fees.
• B. Project contracts: lump sum, cost-plus, guaranteed maximum price and unit cost contracts; general, supplemental and special conditions; lien law; the Residential Recovery Fund; Chapter 558, F.S.; subcontract agreements and insurance certificates; change orders, field orders and construction change directives; payment procedures, schedules of values, stored materials, partial and final releases of lien; substantial completion, retainage, warranties, punch lists and the certificate of occupancy.
• C. Licenses and permits: which license each scope of work needs under Chapter 489 and Chapter 61G4, F.A.C.; permit triggers and exemptions; inspection sequence and special inspections such as threshold inspections.
• D. Procedures and operations: submittals and lead times, CPM scheduling and look-aheads, scheduling software, meetings, daily logs, inventory controls, and sustainability programs such as LEED and Green Globe.

Area B alone is 40% of the exam, and much of it is answered from AIA A201, A401 and A701 and the lien law chapter of the Contractors Manual. If you know where the A201 articles on payments, changes, completion and termination start, you have a large share of the test covered. Our construction lien law and retainage guides cover the statutory side.

Project Management outline

• E. Methods and materials: site layout, benchmarks, FEMA elevations, setbacks; soils, compaction and proctor tests; earthwork, cut and fill, shoring and dewatering; concrete placing, testing, forming and reinforcement; masonry and grouting; wood framing, truss bracing and span tables; metal framing, pre-engineered buildings and welding; tilt-up, SIPs, ICF and slip forming; energy efficiency, R-values and U-values, blower door testing; gypsum, stucco, moisture control and firestopping; cranes, hoisting and lift plans.
• F. Safety: OSHA 1926 topics including scaffolding, trenching, fall protection, formwork and shoring, GFCI and recordkeeping, plus asbestos, lead paint, hazardous waste and mold.
• G. Plans and specifications: sections and views, symbols, shop drawings and submittals, applying the building code, and ADA requirements.

Both ECIs also expect basic math: area and volume, fractions, decimals, percentages, right triangles, square roots, powers and simple algebra. In PM, expect concrete and excavation volumes, slopes and unit conversions.

Reference books

The 2026 list (valid January through December 2026):

The 2027 list keeps the same titles and says the 2026 Florida Building Code and the July 1, 2026 OSHA edition will be used beginning August 1, 2027. The list also names suggested study books (such as Walker's Building Estimator's Reference Book and Placing Reinforcing Bars) that may not be brought into the room.

Tabbing and using open-book references

DBPR's rules for the testing room:

• Only original editions are allowed, except references the list marks as PDFs. PDFs must be bound with rings, brads, snap binders, spiral binding or screw posts, not staples.
• Materials must be permanently bound and stay bound.
• Underlining and highlighting are allowed. Handwritten and typed notes are not; existing notes must be blacked out or removed.
• Permanently attached tabs showing only normal chapter or page headings are allowed. Post-it flags, pull-off labels and removable tabs are not, and if a tab can be removed without damaging the page it counts as removable.
• You may not mark your references during the exam.

A practical approach:

1. Tab by structure, not by topic you memorized. Tab each AIA document at its articles, OSHA 1926 at its subparts (scaffolds, fall protection, excavations, concrete and masonry), and each FBC volume at its chapters.
2. Highlight the index terms you look up most rather than writing anything. You cannot add notes, but a highlighted index entry speeds the next lookup.
3. Answer what you know first. The interface lets you mark questions for review and shows answered and unanswered counts and time remaining. Do a first pass, then go back to lookups.
4. Budget time. 4.5 hours for 60 questions is 4.5 minutes per question. Long lookups are fine if the easy questions are banked.

Common trouble areas

These come from the outline, not from score data:

• PM Area E is broad. At 63%, it covers everything from soils and concrete to cranes and energy codes. Candidates with mostly residential or mostly commercial backgrounds tend to have gaps on the other side.
• AIA timing and notice rules under Area B. Payment, change, claim and completion provisions are detailed, and questions often turn on who must act and within what period.
• Lien law and closeout (releases of lien, final payment affidavits, retainage, substantial completion).
• Estimating math in Area A: take-offs, markups, margins vs markups, and break-even.
• OSHA specifics in Area F, where the answer is a number from Part 1926.

Scheduling and retakes

1. Register with Professional Testing, Inc. at floridaexam.com ($135). PTI does not take phone registrations.
2. Schedule with Pearson VUE online or at 1-888-204-6230 within 72 hours after PTI approval; book up to one calendar day ahead.
3. Arrive 30 minutes early with two forms of signature ID, one government issued.
4. To cancel or reschedule without penalty, do it two full calendar days before the appointment.
5. If you fail, you may request a review of the questions you missed within 21 days ($35). To retake, reapply with PTI and wait 21 days.
6. Pass all parts within four years of your first scheduled exam; attempts are unlimited within that window.

Exam volume

Pearson VUE exam performance reports for the Florida DBPR construction exams:

FAQ

How many questions are on the Florida general contractor exam?

The trade portion has 60 Contract Administration and 60 Project Management questions. Business and Finance adds 120 more, for 240 scored questions across three exams.

Can I take CA and PM on the same day?

They are separate 4.5-hour exams, each booked as its own appointment with Pearson VUE. Check seat availability for the dates you want, and plan your energy: that would be 9 hours of testing.

Which is harder, CA or PM?

By 2025 first-time pass rates in the Pearson VUE reports, PM (51%) was harder than CA (63%).

Do I need to buy every book on the list?

Only listed references may be brought in, and the questions are based on the listed editions. You can bring other editions at your own risk. Buying the full list is the safe choice.

Are the exams offered in Spanish?

PTI's 2026 instructions say exams are offered in Spanish on request.

Related

See the general contractor license requirements. The CA and PM prep course is in development; join the waitlist on this page. Business and Finance is available now: Florida Business and Finance Exam Prep, 90 days of original practice for $99.