Food manager certification by state: what your state actually requires
There is no national food manager certification law. Your state decides, and in several states your county or city decides — which is why the only useful answer is the one that cites your own jurisdiction's rule. We have verified eight jurisdictions against their own rules — they are in the table below, with citations. Everywhere else, we say so plainly and tell you who to call.
The federal baseline, and why it is not federal law
Most state rules trace back to one sentence in the FDA Food Code. Section 2-102.12(A): "The PERSON IN CHARGE shall be a certified FOOD protection manager who has shown proficiency of required information through passing a test that is part of an ACCREDITED PROGRAM." The sentence that costs money is a different one. Section 2-101.11 requires a person in charge "present at the FOOD ESTABLISHMENT during all hours of operation." Put the two together and the certificate stops being one piece of paper on the office wall. It becomes a staffing requirement: two shifts, seven days, means more than one certified person. Now the part nobody says out loud.
The Food Code is a model code, not federal law. FDA writes it; states and localities adopt it, amend it, or decline it. "The Food Code says so" is never the final answer to "do I need this." The newest edition is the 2026 Food Code, which FDA published on 17 September 2026, and states adopt it on their own timetable. The ServSafe® Manager exam is still built on the 2022 Food Code (10th edition), as amended by the Supplement of 4 November 2024.
One more distinction, because it drives most of the bad information online. Food Code §2-102.11 gives a person in charge three routes to demonstrate food safety knowledge; certification is only one. That duty is close to universal. A certification mandate is not. Merge the two and you get the claim that every state requires a certificate.
So we publish no count of states requiring a certified manager. The totals in circulation disagree with each other, one contradicts its own list, and none cites a statute.
Manager certification and a food handler card are not the same thing
Getting this wrong is the most expensive mistake on this page, and the free practice-test sites push people into it daily.
A Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) certification is what the rules above are about. It is for the person in charge: a proctored exam from an accredited program. The ServSafe® Manager exam — one of those programs — presents 90 questions, scores 80 of them, and passes at 70% (56 of 80). The certificate runs five years, with the ServSafe® note telling you to check your state and local laws renewing a five-year certificate.
A food handler card is for everyone who touches unpackaged food. Short course, short test, often unproctored, cheap. The ServSafe® Food Handler product is 40 questions, not proctored, 75% to pass, valid three years, $15 — and the ServSafe® materials call the result a Certificate of Achievement, not a certification. Where we have verified handler rules, cards run two to three years.
Two tests. Two clocks. Two prices. And the part that matters if you are studying tonight: many free "ServSafe® practice tests" ranking on Google are 40-question handler tests. If you are sitting the 90-question manager exam, those are practice for a different exam. Take a food handler practice test if handler is your test, and a ServSafe® Manager practice test if it is not.
Which exam do I actually need?
Almost no state rule names a brand. They name the category — "accredited," "ANSI accredited," "an accredited program." Thirteen manager programs hold that accreditation from the ANSI National Accreditation Board, under the Conference for Food Protection standard. The ServSafe® Manager program is one of them; the others include NRFSP, Learn2Serve, StateFoodSafety/Certus, Trust20, Always Food Safe and seven more. If your regulator says "accredited," any of the thirteen satisfies it — and prices across that field are not the same.
They are also not the same exam. Accredited manager exams differ in length, timing and pass mark — one runs 80 questions, one runs 75 questions and scores them on a points scale rather than a percentage, one passes at 75%. (The ServSafe® Manager mark is 70% — here is the working.) Buy prep for the exam you are booked to sit, not for the category.
If you work in New York City, read this before you buy anything
New York City does not use the accredited-program system. It runs its own Food Protection Certificate under NYC Health Code Article 81, §81.15, and a supervisor holding it "must be on duty during all hours of operation." It costs $114 in person, or a free online course plus a $24 exam. The city's guidance for that certificate never mentions the ServSafe® program or ANAB accreditation. So, plainly: if you work in the five boroughs and your inspector wants the NYC certificate, our simulator is not what you need. Go to the city's course and its exam. We would rather lose the sale than have you study the wrong material.
The eight jurisdictions we have verified
Every row below was read against that jurisdiction's own rule or its health department's guidance. No aggregators. No copied 50-state table.
| Jurisdiction | What the rule requires | Clock and validity | Rule cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| California (statewide) | "There shall be at least one food safety certified owner or employee at each food facility." Exam from a provider "accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)" — the statute names no brand. | Recertify every 5 years. 60 days to get someone certified when the certified person changes. | Health & Safety Code §113947.1 |
| Texas (statewide) | "One certified food manager must be employed by each food establishment permitted under Texas Health and Safety Code, §437.0055" (25 TAC §229.177(b)). Exemptions cover prepackaged-only operations, child care, establishments with no exposed TCS food, and nonprofits. A local health jurisdiction "may not require a food manager who holds a food manager certificate issued under this subchapter to pay a fee for or to hold a local food manager card" (§438.1055). | The Texas rule sets no term of its own. §229.176(i)(2) ties the certificate to the CFP accreditation standard, which caps validity at "no more than five years" — so five years is the ceiling, and a provider may issue shorter. Beware: the "two-year" language in §229.176(l) and (n)(1) is the exam provider's licence, not the candidate's certificate. | 25 TAC §229.176(i)(2) (certificate period) and §229.177(b) (one per establishment), under Tex. Health & Safety Code Ch. 438, Subch. G; headcount authority §437.0076 |
| Florida (statewide, DBPR) | "Each licensed establishment shall have a minimum of one certified food protection manager responsible for all periods of operation." Presence is a separate rule: "When four or more employees, at one time, are engaged in the storage, preparation or serving of food… there shall be at least one certified food protection manager present at all times" — with three or fewer, no manager need be on site. Temporary vendors and vending operators are exempt (61C-4.023(2)). | 30 days from employment, and the certificate is "valid for a period of five years from the date of issuance." | Rule 61C-4.023(1)–(2), F.A.C.; Fla. Stat. §509.039 |
| Illinois (statewide) | Establishments must be "under the supervision of a certified food protection manager," holding "an ANSI accredited Certified Food Protection Manager certification." | "Certificates are valid for five years." | Illinois DPH CFPM guidance; PA 100-0954 (19 Aug 2018) | | Washington (statewide) | Since 1 March 2023: "at least one certified food protection manager on staff as evidenced by a valid certificate available from an accredited program." | Replace a departed certified manager within 60 days. Food worker card: $10, 2 years first card, 3 on renewal. | WAC 246-215-02107; WA DOH | | Arizona — Maricopa County only | No statewide CFPM rule. In Maricopa County: "Each food establishment shall have at least one (1) Certified Food Protection Manager on staff." | Certificate expires after 5 years; county food handler card 3 years. | Maricopa County Environmental Health Code Ch. VII, Reg. 2(e) | | Nevada — Southern Nevada Health District (Clark County) only | No statewide rule. SNHD wants two things: an ANSI/ANAB-accredited manager certificate and a local 10-question SNHD exam. 13 accepted providers — the accredited exam alone does not get you the card. | SNHD card $25 first-time and renewal, effective 1 Jan 2026; valid up to 5 years, matched to your certificate's expiry. | Southern Nevada Health District, Certified Food Safety Manager card program | | New York City — five boroughs only | Its own certificate, not an accredited-program one. A supervisor holding it "must be on duty during all hours of operation." | $114 in person, or a free online course + $24 exam. | NYC Health Code Art. 81, §81.15 |
One detail the table cannot hold: California's handler card has county carve-outs. The statewide rule (H&S Code §113790 et seq., 30 days from hire, valid three years) does not apply in Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego, which run their own programs. Ask the county there.
free full-length run — if your rule says "accredited" and you are booked for the ServSafe® Manager exam, sit one full 90-question timed run before you pay anyone.
Every other state: we have not verified it yet
We have not read the rule for these, so we are not going to tell you what it says: Alabama · Alaska · Arkansas · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · District of Columbia · Georgia · Hawaii · Idaho · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · North Carolina · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Utah · Vermont · Virginia · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming
Three more are only partly done: Arizona outside Maricopa County, Nevada outside the Southern Nevada Health District, and New York State outside New York City. Do not assume Maricopa's or SNHD's rule travels. Statewide New York requires no food handler card; we have not verified what it asks of managers.
What to do instead. Call your county or city environmental health department first, your state agency second. County is usually where the real answer lives, and county is who inspects you. Ask four questions:
- Do we need a certified food protection manager, a food handler card, or both?
- Which programs do you accept — any ANSI or ANAB accredited program, or a specific list?
- How long is the certificate valid here?
- How many days do I have from hire, or from the day my certified manager leaves?
Write the answers down. That is your compliance record, and it beats anything on the internet — this page included.
Tell us which state to verify next. We add a state when we have read its rule, not before. If yours is on the list above, say so through the contact link in the footer.
FAQ
Does every state require a certified food manager? No. The near-universal duty is the Food Code's demonstration of knowledge by the person in charge (§2-102.11), and certification is one of three ways to satisfy it. A hard certification mandate (§2-102.12) is narrower and varies state by state. Be wary of any site that hands you a tidy total.
Is a ServSafe® certificate accepted in my state? ServSafe® product materials say the Manager certification is "Accepted in all 50 states" — the administrator's claim, not your regulator's. Southern Nevada Health District accepts an accredited certificate and still requires a local 10-question exam and a card. New York City runs its own certificate instead.
Does one certified manager cover the whole restaurant? Usually not. Food Code §2-101.11 asks for a person in charge present "during all hours of operation," and New York City requires its certificate holder "on duty during all hours of operation." Open at 7am, close at 11pm, and one person cannot cover it.
My state is not on your list. What now? Call your county environmental health department and ask the four questions above, then tell us which state to check. We publish a state when we have read its rule, and not a day earlier.
This is information, not legal advice. Rules change, counties amend them, and fees move. Confirm with your state or county regulator before you book an exam or rely on anything here.
Ready to sit the ServSafe® Manager exam? Start with the free run — one full 90-question form, free account, no card, and every answer explained with its Food Code section. Two Runs is $19 for a second full form. Full Prep is $34 — unlimited runs, all ten chapter drill sets, and the edition-change questions. One-time, 30-day money-back. The real exam runs $38.99 to $108.99, and a failed attempt costs the fee again: what the real exam costs.
How we verify every rule on this page, and what we do when we cannot: how we source every rule on this page.
Figures pending
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LineCheckPrep results screen showing a score out of 80 scored questions against the 70% pass band.