How to Become a CNA: Steps, Requirements, and How Long It Takes

The path is short because federal rules count training in clock hours, not semesters, so the requirement lands in weeks rather than years. Cost varies widely by school and state, and a nursing facility cannot charge a nurse aide it employs for training. CNAs typically earn $42,260 a year, according to the latest government wage data (May 2025).

A CNA provides hands-on daily care under the supervision of licensed nurses. The work is bathing, dressing, feeding, and moving patients, plus taking vital signs on a schedule. It includes turning and repositioning bedbound patients and assisting with toileting. CNAs also report changes in a patient's condition to the nurse, which is often how a problem gets caught early.

Most CNAs work in skilled nursing facilities, hospitals, assisted living communities, and home health. A licensed nurse supervises the work and decides what to do with what a CNA reports. The job is physical and personal: lifting, long hours on your feet, close contact with patients for the whole shift. It is commonly the first clinical role people hold before nursing school.

Full-time programs commonly finish in 4 to 12 weeks. The spread comes from state hour requirements. They start at the federal floor of 75 hours and reach 175 hours in Missouri, with a typical state near 90. Part-time and evening tracks stretch the same hours across more weeks. Exam scheduling adds time after coursework ends.

22 states sit at the federal floor of 75 hours, among them Wyoming, Wisconsin, Vermont, Tennessee, and South Dakota. 15 states require more than 100 hours, and 12 require 120 hours or more. The highest totals are Missouri at 175 hours, California at 160, Alaska and Virginia at 140, and Maine at 130. The table below lists every state.

The exam has two parts. The written test is commonly 60 to 70 multiple-choice questions, and some states offer it orally instead. The skills test asks candidates to demonstrate about 5 randomly selected skills, always including hand hygiene, while an evaluator watches. Exact counts, time limits, and passing scores vary by state and vendor.

States contract different testing vendors. Prometric, Pearson VUE, Credentia, and Headmaster/D&S Diversified are the common ones, so fees and scheduling depend on where you test. Candidates typically get a limited number of attempts before retraining is required. Most people prepare with practice questions for the written part and a skills checklist for the hands-on part, rehearsing each task in order.

CNAs typically earn $42,260 a year, or $20.32 an hour, according to the latest government wage data (May 2025). Entry-level pay runs around $33,940, and the top of the range reaches $51,980. The workforce numbered 1,448,910, which makes this one of the larger occupations in health care.

Employment is projected to grow 2.6 percent over the coming decade, a modest rate. About 196,200 openings are still projected each year. Most come from turnover rather than new positions, since the work is demanding and many CNAs move on into nursing programs.

The certification is a common starting point for other clinical roles. LPNs and LVNs typically earn $64,400 a year, and practical nursing programs run about 12 months. Registered nurses typically earn $97,550, with an associate degree in nursing taking about 2 years and a BSN about 4. Nurse practitioners, at $132,300, need a graduate degree. Many nursing programs count CNA work as clinical experience.

Start with your state's hour requirement and its nurse aide registry, one of 51 kept across the country because there is no federal registry. 40 states publish approved-program lists, covering 6,858 programs in all; the largest lists are Illinois with 634, California with 570, Georgia with 470, and Ohio with 455. Then ask nearby nursing facilities whether they run free training.

Becoming a CNA means meeting the basic requirements, finishing a state-approved training program, passing the two-part competency exam, and getting listed on the state registry. Full-time programs commonly take 4 to 12 weeks and cost a few hundred to a couple of thousand dollars, though a nursing facility cannot charge a nurse aide it employs. CNAs typically earn $42,260 a year. Look up your state's required training hours first.