The short answer
Take OSHA 10 if you are a worker. Take OSHA 30 if you supervise people or carry safety responsibility. That is how OSHA itself puts it in its Outreach FAQ: the 10-hour class gives workers "awareness of common job-related safety and health hazards," and the 30-hour class "is more appropriate for supervisors or workers with some safety responsibility."
Two things can override that default:
- Somebody with authority over your job asks for a specific card. That could be your employer, the general contractor, the union, the project owner or a state law. Their requirement wins, because OSHA itself does not require either course. The Outreach Training Program is voluntary.
- Your state or city has a statute. Nevada requires OSHA 10 for construction workers and OSHA 30 for construction supervisors within 15 days of starting on a site. New York City requires a Site Safety Training (SST) card on many sites, and an OSHA 30 less than five years old counts for 30 of the 40 hours a worker needs.
The picker above walks through those checks in order. It does not store your answers.
OSHA 10 vs OSHA 30 at a glance
| OSHA 10 | OSHA 30 | |
|---|---|---|
| Intended for | Entry-level and non-supervisory workers | Supervisors, foremen, safety leads, anyone with safety duties |
| Minimum contact hours | 10 | 30 |
| Minimum days (7.5 hrs/day cap) | 2 | 4 |
| Versions | Construction, General Industry, Maritime | Construction, General Industry, Maritime |
| Card expires? | No federal expiration | No federal expiration |
| Typical online price | Roughly $59–$90 | Roughly $160–$200 |
| Common legal triggers | NV workers, CT/MA/MO/NH/RI/NY public works, Philadelphia sites | NV supervisors, NYC SST credit, Philadelphia contractor license |
Contact hours are capped at 7.5 per day, so no legitimate 10-hour class finishes in a single day. If a provider promises the card in one sitting, check it with our online course checker before paying.
What each course covers
OSHA 10
The 10-hour course is an orientation. In construction it spends most of its time on the Focus Four hazards (falls, caught-in or between, struck-by and electrocution), because those account for most construction deaths. It also covers an introduction to OSHA, worker rights and how to file a complaint, PPE, and a few electives the trainer chooses, such as scaffolds, excavations or materials handling.
The General Industry version swaps the Focus Four for walking-working surfaces, exit routes and fire protection, electrical, and hazard communication, with electives like machine guarding, lockout/tagout and bloodborne pathogens.
OSHA 30
The 30-hour course covers the same ground in more depth and adds topics a supervisor actually needs: managing safety and health programs, recordkeeping, the hierarchy of controls, and hazard-specific modules like cranes and rigging, concrete and masonry, steel erection, confined spaces and health hazards like silica and noise. A supervisor who has finished OSHA 30 should be able to spot a hazard and know which standard applies. Just as important, they should know what authority they have to fix it.
How to decide in practice
Start with the people who will check your card:
- Your employer or GC. Many general contractors write OSHA 10 for all workers and OSHA 30 for foremen into their subcontracts or site rules. Ask for the site rules or the subcontract exhibit.
- The project. Public works in several states require OSHA 10 for every worker on site. Use the state requirement checker to see whether one applies.
- Your next role. If you expect to run a crew in the next year or two, taking OSHA 30 now saves you a second course. OSHA allows a trainer to upgrade a 10-hour student to a 30-hour card by adding 20 hours, but the same trainer has to deliver all of it within six months, and you hand back the 10-hour card.
If none of these apply, OSHA 10 is the sensible starting point for a worker. It costs less, takes two days instead of four, and it is what most job sites ask for.
Construction or General Industry?
Pick the version that matches the work you do, not your employer's industry code:
- Construction covers building, renovation, roofing, electrical and plumbing installation on job sites, demolition, road work and excavation.
- General Industry covers warehouses, manufacturing, healthcare, retail, restaurants, maintenance and service work in existing buildings.
An HVAC technician who installs systems in new buildings takes Construction. One who services rooftop units at a shopping center may be better served by General Industry. When in doubt, look at what your customers and GCs ask for. State public-works laws ask specifically for the construction course.
State rules that change the answer
- Nevada (NRS 618.9911): construction workers need OSHA 10 and supervisors need OSHA 30 within 15 days of starting on a site. Unlike the federal card, the Nevada card expires after 5 years. You renew it by retaking the course or with continuing education: 5 hours for OSHA 10, 15 hours for OSHA 30. See the Nevada guide.
- New York City (Local Law 196): workers on many sites need a 40-hour SST card and supervisors need a 62-hour one. OSHA 30 counts toward it only if it is under five years old. See the NYC SST card guide.
- Philadelphia: every worker on a permitted site needs OSHA 10, and a licensed contractor needs at least one supervisor with OSHA 30 completed within five years. See the Philadelphia guide.
- Public works in CT, MA, MO, NH, RI and New York State: OSHA 10 Construction for workers on covered projects, with different thresholds and deadlines.
Does either card expire?
No. OSHA says plainly that student course completion cards in Construction, General Industry, Maritime and Disaster Site "do not have an expiration date." What does have a clock:
- the Nevada state card (5 years),
- NYC SST cards (5 years),
- employer or GC policies that only accept cards issued in the last 3–5 years,
- replacement eligibility: a trainer can only replace a lost card if the class was within the last 5 years.
That last point is a good reason to keep a photo of every card on file. If you run a crew, the OSHA card tracker stores the photo, the trainer and the issue date, and reminds you before any of those windows close.
Getting ready for the course
Most online courses end with a final exam that you can retake a limited number of times. Our free OSHA 10 practice test and OSHA 30 practice test use original questions based on the actual standards, with an explanation and a regulation reference for every answer.
Cost and time compared
Plan for the real cost, not just the course price. An online OSHA 10 often costs somewhere around $59–$90, and an online OSHA 30 around $160–$200. Prices vary by provider, so check current pricing. The bigger cost is usually paid time: ten hours versus thirty. For a crew of eight, OSHA 30 for everyone means roughly 160 extra hours away from production. That is why most contractors give OSHA 10 to the crew and OSHA 30 to the people who direct work.
Career value
For a worker, OSHA 30 is a common line on foreman and superintendent job postings. It is also the course listed as a prerequisite for OSHA's trainer courses. If someone on your crew is moving into supervision in the next year or two, the 30 is the better investment. A worker who will stay on the tools is well served by the 10.