Guide · checked October 22, 2026
Community colleges sit at the low end (~$500–$1,200); private schools and the Red Cross run higher (~$1,250–$1,700+). Add the quiet stack: books, uniforms, background check, physical, CPR card — typically $75–$350 more before the exam.
First-attempt combined fees from the vendors' own tables run from $97 (Montana) to $216 (Hawaii — $241 in total once its one-time $25 application processing fee is added). Retakes are charged per failed part — written roughly $30–$55, skills $65–$150. Failing skills in Florida costs another $120; in North Carolina, $100. And a late reschedule inside 5 business days forfeits the whole fee (see the exam-day guide).
Work-based renewals are often free. Calendar states charge (Florida's tiers run to $160 delinquent; Washington $95 every year). The real price of staying certified is not the fee — it's the cost of not staying certified: a retest at best, a $500–$2,500 retraining at worst.
Endorsement fees by destination run from free (23 states in our dataset) to Alaska's $275 — before background-check and fingerprint charges, which several states bill separately.
If a nursing facility hires you within 12 months of your completing training, federal law requires your training costs to be reimbursed pro rata. For a self-paid aide, that can zero out this entire page. Compute yours.
