How to Become a Real Estate Agent in 2026

A real estate agent helps clients navigate property transactions within the authority of the agent’s license and brokerage relationship. O*NET’s sales-agent profile covers work with buyers and sellers, property information, and transaction-related tasks. A successful course purchase therefore starts with the state licensing route, not with a national-looking school brand. O*NET.

Learning the examination material is only part of preparing for practice. Client communication, document handling, deadlines, property research, and knowing when to involve the broker or another professional matter once licensed. Plan for that supervised transition instead of treating a passed course exam as the end of training.

Real estate sales is a state-licensed activity, and the relevant commission or department determines your route. Confirm the state’s required education, approved course providers, examination, application, background review, and any brokerage requirements. Do not assume approval in one state applies in another or that a continuing-education course counts as prelicensing.

California provides a specific example. Its DRE requires applicants to be at least 18 and generally requires three qualifying college-level courses for the salesperson examination: Real Estate Principles, Real Estate Practice, and an approved elective. The page describes exceptions and acceptable schools, and expressly says continuing education does not satisfy these examination-course requirements. Passing the exam is followed by a license application that must be approved. California DRE.

Use that example to understand the sequence, not to estimate another state’s hours. A general test-prep product such as Mometrix is not automatically approved prelicensing education. Verify the exact state, course, and purpose before treating any catalog entry as a route to legal practice.

1. Choose the licensing jurisdiction. Start with the official regulator for the state where you intend to work. If moving or already licensed elsewhere, investigate the applicable transfer or additional-license rules instead of assuming reciprocity.
2. Select approved prelicensing education. Match the exact package to the regulator’s requirements. Check whether it contains required courses, optional exam preparation, or continuing education, because those products are not interchangeable.
3. Complete the coursework and retain the required documentation. Follow the school’s assessment process and keep acceptable completion documentation. Verify access deadlines and extension terms before your study schedule becomes tight.
4. Apply for and pass the required examination. Use the state’s instructions for eligibility, scheduling, identification, and testing. A school’s final exam or pass guarantee is not the state licensing decision.
5. Complete the license and brokerage steps. Follow the regulator’s application requirements and confirm when you may lawfully begin the intended activities. Ask prospective brokerages how they support new licensees and what responsibilities and expenses you would assume.
6. Prepare for ongoing practice. Learn the brokerage’s transaction workflow, document review, supervision, and deadlines. Note any postlicensing or continuing-education obligations from the regulator rather than relying on a school’s general renewal reminder.

Compare state packages line by line

Create a checklist from the regulator’s requirements, then place each school’s proposed package beside it. Mark required education, school exams, state-exam practice, instructor help, access length, and any extension charge. This reveals whether a cheaper package is missing support you need or whether a more expensive one includes extras you will not use.

Ask what a refund or pass guarantee actually covers. A reimbursement of tuition after specified attempts does not necessarily pay state fees or compensate for time away from work. Read the conditions before treating the guarantee as a reduction in your total risk.

Before choosing a brokerage, ask how the brokerage checks a new agent’s work and how transaction questions are escalated. Compare the practical support as well as the compensation arrangement. A license authorizes a defined role; it does not eliminate the need to learn the brokerage’s procedures.

Verify the package before enrollment

Ask the school to identify the regulator approval attached to the exact state course you are buying. Save the package description and access terms with your receipt. If the package includes exam preparation or a refund guarantee, keep those terms separate from the required educational component. This makes it easier to resolve a question about what was purchased without relying on a changing promotional page.

Packages differ by state, and several prices are unavailable; a single national licensing total would conceal those differences. Aceable’s starting prices span $169 to $799 by state. Colibri gives variable pricing and an approximate order figure, which is not a binding tuition quote for your required package.

Separate education from examination, application, background processing, brokerage, and optional professional expenses. Course duration depends on the state’s required education and the package’s access rules. Ask for the exact state quote and a list of included services before comparing a low starting price with a larger bundle.

Colibri Real Estate Pre-Licensing. Tuition varies by state and package. The provider’s average-order figure of around $200 is an example, not a quote for your selection. Study must cover the prelicensing hours required by your state, so compare the package with that requirement first.

AceableAgent Real Estate Pre-Licensing. State packages advertise starting prices from $169 to $799, depending on the state. The required prelicensing hours also vary by jurisdiction. Check the price for your state and the exact package, rather than budgeting from the lowest figure in that range.

The CE Shop Real Estate Pre-Licensing & CE. A usable current tuition quote and dependable completion schedule are unavailable here. Request both for your state’s prelicensing package, and distinguish it from the provider’s postlicensing and continuing-education products.

Kaplan Real Estate Education. Current tuition and a dependable study schedule are unavailable for the specific licensing package you may need. Ask Kaplan to identify the state course, delivery format, and access period before comparing its exam preparation or CE options.

Mometrix Test Preparation. Neither a usable current price nor a dependable completion schedule is available for the relevant test-preparation product. Confirm the exact exam covered and verify any claimed prelicensing approval separately with your state regulator.

• Colibri Real Estate Pre-Licensing is a large, established online school with optional livestream classes in many states for aspiring agents.
• AceableAgent Real Estate Pre-Licensing uses a mobile-friendly, gamified format for future agents completing prelicensing education.
• The CE Shop Real Estate Pre-Licensing & CE brings prelicensing, postlicensing, and continuing education for real estate and mortgage professionals onto one online platform.
• Kaplan Real Estate Education offers licensing education, exam preparation, and CE through a well-known brand serving candidates and existing licensees.
• Mometrix Test Preparation sells study guides, flashcards, and online courses across certification, nursing, teaching, and admissions examinations; identify the relevant real estate product before purchase.

Review the state-specific choices in the Real Estate License comparison, using the linked reviews to check each package’s purpose.

Do not buy continuing education when you need first-time prelicensing. The same provider may sell both, and the most visible discount can be for the wrong product. General exam prep also should not be assumed to fulfill approved education requirements.

Avoid converting a starting price into a total startup budget. State and brokerage costs remain separate unless expressly included. Finally, do not perform licensed activities because you passed a class; confirm the regulator has issued the required authorization.