Technician · General · Extra — the U.S. ham exams, made simple

Get your ham radio license. In plain English.

No engineering degree. No fear-mongering about the math. Just the concepts explained like a person talking to you — and the memory tricks that actually make them stick.

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01 — The Magnet

Free Study Tool Free

Flashcards, full practice exams, and a study guide drawn straight from the official question pool. Works offline. Saves your progress. Costs nothing, forever.

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02 — Quick Reference

Cheat Sheets Free

The phonetic alphabet, Ohm's-law triangles, the “× 300” wavelength trick, band privileges. Printable one-pagers — download them, no strings.

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03 — Go Deeper

The Technician Guide July 2026

The whole exam, taught the way this site teaches — every concept explained, every question with a one-line “why.” Timed to the new 2026–2030 pool.

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Why this exists

The guide I wish I'd had when I studied for my own license.

When I studied, the free apps drilled me on answers without ever explaining them, and the official manual read like a college textbook. I passed — and understood almost none of it.

So everything here works the opposite way: explain the idea first, in plain language, then show you the exact questions it covers. The math gets demystified, not dodged. And nobody talks down to you.

If you've been put off by the jargon or the “you need to be an engineer” myth — this was built for you.

— Mike T. Parsons
About the author
Mike T. Parsons
Licensed amateur radio operator · plain-English writer
  • A licensed ham who came to this as a regular person, not an engineer
  • Believes the exam is easy once someone explains it like a human
  • Writes the guides he couldn't find when he started
  • No fear-mongering, no gatekeeping, no jargon for its own sake
The path

Three licenses. Start with the first one.

Nearly half of all U.S. hams hold only the entry-level Technician license — and every operator starts there. Get on the air first; upgrade when you're ready.

Start here
License 01

Technician

Your entry to the airwaves: local repeaters, emergency comms, satellites, and digital modes. 35 questions, no Morse code.

License 02

General

Opens up worldwide HF communication and most of the bands. The natural next step once you're hooked.

License 03

Amateur Extra

Full privileges and the deep end of the theory. For when “good enough” isn't.

Start here

Free guides for the questions everyone asks first.

You're a few hours of study away from your callsign.

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