Guides

Sterile Processing Technician Guides

Which Guide Answers Your Question?

Start with how to become a sterile processing technician, then compare the CRCST and CSPDT certifications, check your state's rules, and see what training costs and how long it takes. Every guide draws on the 212 programs verified on schools' own pages in November 2026, the certifying bodies and BLS pay data.

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Certification

Sterile Processing CertificationThe two national sterile processing certifications, HSPA's CRCST and CBSPD's CSPDT, who can sit each exam and which programs prepare you for them.Programs naming the CRCST: 120CRCST Certification (HSPA)HSPA's Certified Registered Central Service Technician credential, its 400 hands-on hours, provisional status and the programs that prepare you.Programs naming the CRCST: 120CSPDT Certification (CBSPD)The Certification Board for Sterile Processing and Distribution's technician exam, the CSPDT title it earns and the programs that prepare you for it.Programs naming the CSPDT: 46Certification Requirements by StateWhich states require sterile processing technicians to be certified by law, which credentials count and how long new hires have.States with programs verified: 38

Becoming a Sterile Processing Tech

How to Become a Sterile Processing TechThe training, hands-on hours, certification exam and hiring requirements that take you from no experience to your first sterile processing job.Programs verified: 212How Long Training TakesHow many weeks, instruction hours and clinical hours sterile processing programs take, by credential, from verified program pages.Median stated length: 26 weeks

Cost and Financial Aid

Course Cost and Financial AidWhat sterile processing courses and certificates cost, from published program prices, what the price leaves out and how to pay for it.Median published cost: $2,095

Careers and Comparisons

Sterile Processing vs Surgical TechHow sterile processing technicians and surgical technologists differ in training length, certification, daily work and BLS pay.Sterile processing median pay: $47,700Salary and CareersWhat sterile processing technicians earn nationally and in every state (BLS OEWS), the spread from entry level to the top tenth, and the roles the job leads to.Median annual pay: $47,700

Program Lists and Tools

Every program on this site was checked on the school's own website in November 2026. Clinical hours, exam prep and fees are shown as each school states them. Certification rules come from HSPA and CBSPD's own pages, and school completions from U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS) data. Sponsored listings are labeled as ads and never change which programs we list or how we rank them. How we verify programs