What is ASHI?

Every new member starts at the Associate level, however long they've been inspecting. ASHI's levels of membership step up from there:

The Inspector and ACI levels carry voting rights and a listing in ASHI's Find an Inspector search. A fourth level, Retired, is for inspectors who held the ACI for at least five full years and have stopped inspecting.

The ACI is ASHI's certification. Its application checklist asks for a passed NHIE, 250 fee-paid inspections, five reports that comply with ASHI's Standard, and a $449 application fee. To keep it, you earn 20 ASHI continuing education credits a year.

ASHI says the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) first accredited the ACI in 2009, and that the current accreditation runs until 2029. It counted 1,758 ACIs as of December 2025. An ACI whose certification lapses for more than six months reapplies under the current process, according to ASHI's 2024 ACI handbook.

ASHI says anyone can take the NHIE, and that the fee is $225 in most states. It also says the Buros Center for Testing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln accredits that exam. For training, ASHI names AHIT as its partner school. The Associate modules sit on ASHI Edge, its online learning center. For more on the exam rule, see does ASHI require the NHIE?

ASHI dues are $499 a year paid at once. The monthly plan is $49.16 a month with the first three months due up front, plus a $91 yearly fee for paying monthly. ASHI raised yearly dues from $449 to $499 on September 1, 2026.

ASHI's refund policy gives no dues refunds, with one exception for members whose company pays under its multi-inspector program. The $449 ACI application fee is separate from dues.

The ASHI Standard of Practice sets the minimum an ASHI member's home inspection covers. It applies to buildings with four or fewer dwelling units, plus their attached and detached garages and carports. Members agree to follow it, along with ASHI's Code of Ethics.

Two versions exist. The one in force took effect March 1, 2014. Members approved a revised Standard in a vote that closed January 8, 2026. ASHI's Standard of Practice changes page lists its implementation date as January 1, 2027. Until that date, ASHI says the 2014 Standard is the current one. ASHI also publishes separate standards for narrower jobs, such as deck, pre-drywall, and radon mitigation system inspections. Arkansas and Mississippi adopt ASHI's Standard in their licensing rules. For how it compares with InterNACHI's and the state standards, see home inspection standards of practice.

ASHI membership isn't a license. In a licensing state, ASHI's own Inspector level asks you to hold the state license. A few states give ASHI a role anyway:

• Vermont lets an ACI with ACI membership apply by certification, in place of the 80-hour course and the exam.
• Utah asks for a current certification from ASHI, InterNACHI, or the International Code Council.
• Montana asks for membership in a national home inspection association, and ASHI is one it lists.
• Alabama and Arkansas require an ASHI Standards and Ethics exam for the license, alongside the NHIE.

For the general rule, see home inspector certification vs. license.

InterNACHI is another national association. It uses its own exam in place of the NHIE; see what is InterNACHI and its Certified Professional Inspector title. The NIBI Certified Inspector title accepts the NHIE or its own exam. For the ACI next to the Certified Master Inspector® designation, see that guide's side-by-side table. For the two associations side by side, see ASHI vs. InterNACHI, and for every common title in one table, see home inspector certifications compared.