Salesperson vs broker, what the license changes

What a salesperson can and cannot do

The salesperson license is the working license: you take listings, show homes, write offers and earn commission. What you cannot do is work for yourself. Each state's rules say so in their own words:

• Arizona: you are paid only through the broker you are licensed to, apart from a narrow W-2 exception.
• Tennessee: an affiliate broker hands any trust money to the principal broker right away.
• Alabama: the application for the temporary license names the qualifying broker who sponsors you.
• Georgia: an active license needs a Sponsoring Broker Statement; only an inactive license can be held without one.

A broker license removes that tie. A broker can open a firm, hold earnest money in the firm's trust account and supervise the salespeople who work under the license. Not every broker does: in Florida a broker who keeps working under another broker is a broker associate, as the Florida broker requirements explain, and Tennessee separates the broker from the principal broker who runs a firm (Tennessee's three license levels).

The salesperson license, state by state

The license is not always called salesperson.

• Tennessee: the entry-level license is the affiliate broker license, and the broker license is a separate exam.
• Florida: the same level is the sales associate, and the broker exam asks for 24 months of active licensing as one.

So the word broker in a Tennessee license name does not mean you can open a firm.

What a broker license takes, by state

Experience is the real gate: every state in the table wants years of active licensed work before the broker exam, so in these states a broker license is never a first license. Texas asks the most: 4 years active in the last 60 months, 720 experience points, plus 900 hours of education. Alabama's broker route is on its licensing page, and Florida's three ways to count the experience are on the Florida broker requirements.

Same state, two exams: Tennessee

The broker exam is not the salesperson exam again. In Tennessee the state portion grows from 40 to 50 questions, and the pass mark rises from 70% each to 75% each. PSI's broker scenario questions also work differently: they offer more than four options and score 0, 1 or 2 points, so a partly right choice can still earn a point.

Arizona shows the other change. The salesperson takes two exams, General and State, while the broker sits one exam of 180 scored questions in 315 min. National topics for both levels are explained once, on the national portion.

Agent vs realtor

Agent is the everyday word for a licensed salesperson, or for a broker acting for a client. Realtor is not a license at all. It is a collective membership mark owned by the National Association of Realtors (NAR): only NAR members may use it, and members agree to NAR's Code of Ethics (NAR membership marks manual, checked Oct 24, 2026). A salesperson or a broker can be a member; no state exam tests for membership, and no state license requires it.

Exams on this site

• National portion →What the national portion is, who builds it, how each state scores it
• Georgia salesperson →Two portions, the Georgia Supplement, fees, and what PSI does not publish
• Tennessee affiliate broker →Two portions scored separately, nine state-law areas on four pages, pass mark and fees
• Arizona salesperson →Two exams since 2026, General and State, with fees, scoring and practice by area
• Alabama salesperson →One exam in two parts, one overall scaled score, the HB382 changes (Oct 2025)
• Florida broker →One state-written exam: format, the points split, content areas, fees and sample questions