Sonographer license by state: which states require one
A sonographer license is required in 5 of the 50 states and DC. Pick your state: the answer, the agency and its sonography programs.
Example: Texas· change any figure to see your own result
Texas: state license for a sonographer
No
Employers usually ask for an ARDMS or ARRT credential instead
| Sonography license | No state license |
| States and DC that license sonographers | 5: District of Columbia, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon |
| ARDMS exams (SPI + one specialty) | $575 |
| Sonography programs in the state (IPEDS) | 37 |
Rule from the ASRT state table, checked against the page of Texas Medical Board on November 13, 2026.
Compiled by Radif Partners · How the rules were read
The American Society of Radiologic Technologists keeps a state-by-state table of imaging regulation; read on November 13, 2026, it lists a state credential for sonography in only 5 jurisdictions: District of Columbia (license, DC Health); New Hampshire (license, New Hampshire Board of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy); New Mexico (certified, New Mexico Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Program); North Dakota (license, North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board); Oregon (license, Oregon Board of Medical Imaging). Everywhere else, no state license exists for sonographers, and employers rely on the national credentials: ARDMS (RDMS, RDCS, RVT) or ARRT sonography. Those five are also among the states that license nearly every imaging modality, from radiography to MRI. Some claims seen online, such as “all states require ultrasound techs to have a license”, do not match the table; others name four states and forget the District of Columbia.
Sonographer license by state: the five jurisdictions
| Jurisdiction | Sonography credential | Agency | Our reading of its page |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | License | DC Health | Read November 13, 2026 |
| New Hampshire | License | New Hampshire Board of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy | Refused our reader |
| New Mexico | Certified | New Mexico Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Program | Read November 13, 2026 |
| North Dakota | License | North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board | Read November 13, 2026 |
| Oregon | License | Oregon Board of Medical Imaging | Read November 13, 2026 |
New Mexico and North Dakota say more on their own pages: New Mexico’s Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Program mails certificates in 15 to 20 business days, and North Dakota offers a conditional license to sonography students.
The national exams first: your ARDMS fees
Example: SPI once and 1 specialty exam· change any figure to see your own result
ARDMS exam fees in total
$575
SPI $275 × 1 + specialty $300 × 1
| SPI exam (Sonography Principles and Instrumentation) | $275 × 1 |
| Specialty exams | $300 × 1 |
| Time limit | SPI and the specialty passed within 5 years of each other |
| Then | Annual renewal: every year, fees due by December 31 (renewal opens in September) |
States without a sonographer license
In the other 46 states, there is nothing to file with the state. Some of them license radiographers (see the rad tech license by state); that license does not cover ultrasound. Each state page of this site gives both answers, and the comparison of the two careers puts them side by side.