Success 10 min read November 11, 2026

InterNACHI vs ASHI: Credentials, Dues and Standards

InterNACHI vs ASHI side by side: dues, the CPI and ACI requirements, continuing education, standards of practice versions and member benefits, as published.

Binsr Team

InterNACHI vs ASHI: Credentials, Dues and Standards

Short answer: InterNACHI and ASHI are both membership associations for home inspectors, and both list annual dues of $499 as of September 2026. They differ in how you earn their credentials: InterNACHI's CPI uses its own free online exam and mock reports, while ASHI's ACI requires the National Home Inspector Examination and at least 250 fee-paid inspections. Neither replaces a state license.

InterNACHI (the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors) and ASHI (the American Society of Home Inspectors) are the two names new inspectors meet first. This page sets out what each one publishes about itself: dues, credentials, continuing education, standards of practice and benefits. Every figure is attributed to the association's own page, as of September 23, 2026. We do not say which is better, because the answer depends on your state, your stage and what you want from membership.

At a glance

	InterNACHI	ASHI
Full name	International Association of Certified Home Inspectors	American Society of Home Inspectors
Founded	1994, per InterNACHI's About page	1976, per the introduction to ASHI's Standard of Practice
Organization type	InterNACHI describes itself as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit membership trade organization, headquartered in Boulder, Colorado	ASHI describes itself as a not-for-profit professional society with voluntary membership
Annual dues	$499 a year	$499.00 a year
Monthly option	$49 a month, "No contract (cancel at any time)"	$49.16 a month, first 3 months due at the start. Includes a $91 fee, which ASHI puts at "about $7.58 per month"
Main credential	Certified Professional Inspector (CPI)	ASHI Certified Inspector (ACI)
Exam for the main credential	InterNACHI Online Inspector Examination (free)	National Home Inspector Examination (NHIE), run by EBPHI
Experience for the main credential	Four mock (simulated) inspection reports	At least 250 fee-paid home inspections
CE for credential holders	24 hours a year	20 ASHI-approved hours a year
Standards of practice	InterNACHI Home Inspection Standards of Practice, last revised October 2022	ASHI Standard of Practice. A revised version was approved in January 2026, with no implementation date announced as of November 11, 2026

Dues and what they cost you

Both associations list the same annual figure. The monthly plans differ in how they are billed.

InterNACHI: "$49/mo. or $499/yr." The monthly plan is marked "No contract (cancel at any time)". Twelve monthly payments come to $588.
ASHI: $499.00 a year, or $49.16 a month, with "First 3 months due at beginning of membership". ASHI says the monthly plan includes a $91 fee to cover card fees and the cost of processing 12 payments. Twelve monthly payments come to $589.92.

ASHI's levels page also publishes its refund policy: "There are no membership dues or fee refunds except for multi-inspectors." Check InterNACHI's current terms at sign-up.

The NHIE is a separate cost. EBPHI lists it at $225 in most states. You need it for ASHI's ACI and, in states without licensing, for the ASHI Inspector level. Many licensing states require it anyway. See our NHIE guide.

Credentials and how to earn them

InterNACHI: Certified Professional Inspector (CPI)

InterNACHI says the CPI is "optional and 100% free to members". Its requirements page lists six steps:

Pass the InterNACHI Online Inspector Examination.
Join InterNACHI.
Complete the Code of Ethics course.
Complete the Standards of Practice course.
Submit four mock (or simulated) inspection reports.
Sign the enrollment affidavit.

To keep the CPI, InterNACHI lists: a set of 12 free online courses within 12 months, continual membership, adherence to its Standards of Practice or the standard required by law in your jurisdiction, 24 hours of CE a year, an online CE log, and passing the online exam every three years with 80% or better.

ASHI: three levels, ending in the ACI

Every new ASHI member starts as an Associate, whatever their experience.

ASHI level	Requirements, as ASHI publishes them
Associate Member	Online application; pass the ASHI Standard of Practice and Code of Ethics modules; current dues; 20 ASHI-approved CE hours a year after the first full year
ASHI Inspector	Associate requirements; a state license where required, or the NHIE where the state does not license; at least 50 fee-paid inspections; five reports passed through ASHI's report verification; a notarized affidavit; 20 CE hours a year
ASHI Certified Inspector (ACI)	Inspector requirements; agree to the Standard of Practice and Code of Ethics; pass the NHIE; reports verified; proof of at least 250 fee-paid inspections

ASHI says the ACI is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA).

The practical difference

The CPI can be earned before your first paid job. The ACI cannot, because it counts fee-paid inspections. That is a difference in design, and which one suits you depends on where you are in your career.

The exams are different tests

The InterNACHI Online Inspector Examination and the NHIE are separate exams. Do not treat one as a substitute for the other.

InterNACHI exam. InterNACHI says it is free and open to everyone, including non-members, and that a proctored version is available.
NHIE. EBPHI describes 200 multiple-choice questions (175 scored), four hours, a scaled score with 500 as the pass point, and a $225 fee in most states.

Which one your state accepts is a separate question. EBPHI says the NHIE is used in 35 states and several Canadian provinces for home inspector regulation. North Dakota's statute accepts an exam from ASHI, InterNACHI, EBPHI or the ICC. Florida's DBPR lists the InterNACHI Florida Home Inspector Licensing Examination among its approved exams, alongside the NHIE. Check your regulator, using our license requirements guide.

Continuing education

	InterNACHI (certified members)	ASHI
Hours	24.0 hours every year	20 ASHI-approved hours a year (Inspector and ACI levels)
First-year rule	Newly certified inspectors need no CE for the first year after certification	Associates begin the 20 hours after one full year as an Associate
Rollover	Up to 24 extra hours can roll to the following year only	Not stated on the levels page
What counts	InterNACHI says "If you learn, you earn": inspection-related education from many sources, at one credit per hour	ASHI-approved CE, including through its ASHI Edge platform, live online classes and in-person classes
Cross-credit	InterNACHI's policy page says it stopped accepting ASHI CE credits in December 2021	Not stated on the pages we read

State CE is separate. If you hold a state license, your state sets its own hours, and association CE only counts toward it if the state approves the course. Our continuing education guide has the state-by-state table.

Standards of practice: which version is current

A standard of practice sets the minimum an inspection must cover and what the inspector is not required to do. Where your state has its own standard, that standard is the legal minimum for your inspections. InterNACHI's own rule, for example, is to follow its standard "or the standard required by law in your jurisdiction".

InterNACHI. The Home Inspection Standards of Practice page shows "Last revised October 2022". InterNACHI publishes it on the web, as a PDF, and in Spanish and French, and offers a free online course on it.

ASHI. ASHI's Standard of Practice page says members voted on a proposed revision in a vote that closed on January 8, 2026, and that "the SOP was approved, with a majority of the membership voting in favor". ASHI says it will announce the implementation date later, and "Until the implementation date, the Standard of Practice below is the current version." As of November 11, 2026, the page showed no implementation date.

If you build a report template around a standard, watch ASHI's page for the implementation date, because the sections your template must cover may change.

Member benefits, as each association lists them

These lists repeat what each association publishes. We have not tested them and we do not score them.

Benefit area	InterNACHI (membership page)	ASHI (join and levels pages)
Education	"4,600+ hours" of free continuing education; 2,000+ pre-licensing practice questions	The ASHI Edge online education platform, with free courses for members; webinars; live events
Certifications	"80+ Certifications", free with membership	ACI credential, NCCA-accredited per ASHI; advanced education badges for ACIs
Insurance	Discounts on E&O insurance	ASHI Advantage Insurance Program through InspectorPro; "first-year inspectors can save $250"
Discounts	Software, tools and equipment, and other members-only discounts	ASHI Discount Program
Directory	Find a Certified Home Inspector listing	"Find an Inspector" profile, searchable at the Inspector and ACI levels
Business tools	E-signed inspection agreements, legal documents, report hosting, checklists, fee and scheduling calculators	Templates, tools and business resources; a Multi-Inspector Program
Marketing	For CPIs: logo rights, free logo and marketing design, lead-generation websites, certification seals	Logo use for each membership level
Guarantees	For CPIs: the $25,000 Honor Guarantee and the "We'll buy your home back" Guarantee	None listed on the pages we read
Governance	Not listed on the membership page	Voting rights and eligibility for chapter and national roles at the Inspector and ACI levels
Community	Members-only forum, home inspector mentoring	Chapters and events

Joining both

Nothing on either association's pages we read stops you from holding both memberships. InterNACHI states one condition: members of other associations are welcome, but "InterNACHI must be given equal prominence" in your marketing materials. Budget for two sets of dues and two CE requirements, and note InterNACHI's policy on ASHI CE credits above.

How to decide

Work through these in order:

Your state first. If your state licenses inspectors, get the license. Association membership is on top of it, not instead of it. In Iowa, Pennsylvania, Montana and Utah, check exactly which association credentials the law recognizes.
Your stage. If you have no paid inspections yet, compare what each association lets you earn now. If you have hundreds, the ACI's experience requirement may already be met.
The standard you will follow. If your state has no standard of its own, read both standards and choose the one you will build your report around.
The benefits you would use. Match each list above against what you would otherwise buy.
The total cost. Dues, the NHIE if needed, and any courses outside the membership.

Whichever you choose, your report template should follow your standard section by section. Binsr's templates are fully configurable, and its library of 12,000+ comments and templates written by inspectors gives you a starting point to edit into your own wording.

Frequently asked questions

We do not rank them. They publish the same annual dues and different routes to their main credentials. The better fit depends on your state's rules, how many paid inspections you have done and which benefits you would use.

InterNACHI's membership page listed $49 a month or $499 a year as of September 2026. It says the CPI credential is free to members.

ASHI's join page listed $499.00 a year, or $49.16 a month with the first three months due at the start, as of September 2026. ASHI says the monthly plan includes a $91 fee.

No. InterNACHI's CPI uses its own Online Inspector Examination. ASHI's ACI requires the NHIE. Your state may require the NHIE for a license whichever association you join.

The one required by law in your state, if there is one. InterNACHI's rule is to follow its standard or the standard required by law in your jurisdiction. ASHI's ACI level requires agreeing to follow ASHI's Standard of Practice. Where your state has no standard, the association you belong to sets the one you follow.

Not as of November 11, 2026. ASHI says the revision was approved by a member vote that closed on January 8, 2026, and that the current version stays in force until an implementation date it has not yet announced.

Neither association's pages we read prohibit it. InterNACHI requires that it be given equal prominence in your marketing materials if you belong to other associations.

Sources and verification

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