The short answer
- Most common: 3,000 supervised hours (21 of the 30 states that set a total).
- Fewest: 1,500 hours (North Carolina and South Carolina). Most: 4,500 hours (New Jersey).
- Counted differently: 16 states count direct client hours instead, from 1,000 to 2,000.
- Time instead of hours: Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky and Mississippi set a time requirement rather than an hour count.
- Supervision by video: fully allowed in 11 of 50 states.
LMFT supervision hours in every state
| State | License | Supervised hours | Supervision required | Minimum time | By video? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours total, 100 individual; up to 100 from graduate program (1:5 ratio); ≥100 post-degree incl. ≥50 individual | 2 years post-degree | After board approval |
| Alaska | LMFT | 1,700 direct client hours | at least 100 hours individual supervision + 100 hours individual or group (200 total) | — | After board approval |
| Arizona | LMFT | 1,600 direct client hours | at least 100 hours clinical supervision; ≥50 by LMFT or AAMFT Approved Supervisor; ≥25 individual | 24 months | Yes, fully |
| Arkansas | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 175 clock hours of supervision | — | After board approval |
| California | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 104 supervised weeks; ≥52 weeks individual/triadic | 104 weeks | Yes, fully |
| Colorado | LMFT | 2,000 hours | 50 hours per 1,000 practice hours (100 for 2,000); ≥25 of each 50 face-to-face individual | 24 months post-master's (12 months post-doctoral: 1,500 direct incl. 1,000 couples/families) | Yes, fully |
| Connecticut | LMFT | Time-based: 24 months | 100 hours postgraduate clinical supervision by an LMFT; at least 50 individual | 24 months | Partly in person |
| Delaware | LMFT | 3,200 hours | 100 hours of face-to-face clinical supervision | 2 years | With limits |
| Florida | LMFT | 1,500 direct client hours | at least 100 hours of supervision in no less than 100 weeks | 2 years (no less than 100 weeks) | Partly in person |
| Georgia | LMFT | Time-based: 2 years (associate path); 3 years (non-associate master's path) | 100 hours (associate path); 200 hours (non-associate master's path) | 2 years (associate path); 3 years (non-associate master's path) | With limits |
| Hawaii | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours clinical supervision | 24 months | With limits |
| Idaho | LMFT | 2,000 direct client hours | 200 hours; 100 individual; 100 by a licensed MFT | at least 2 years | After board approval |
| Illinois | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 200 hours; ≥100 post-degree; ≥100 individual; ≥100 from an MFT supervisor per 1283.25(b) | not less than 2 years | Yes, fully |
| Indiana | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours postdegree clinical supervision; 100 individual | not less than 24 months | Yes, fully |
| Iowa | LMFT | 3,000 hours | At least 110 hours of direct supervision; max 50 group | minimum of two years | Yes, fully |
| Kansas | LCMFT | 3,000 hours | Not less than 100 hours face-to-face clinical supervision; ≥50 individual | not less than two years | After board approval |
| Kentucky | LMFT | Time-based: 2 years | 200 hours post-master's; ≥100 individual; ≥50 hours using raw data (video, live observation, co-therapy) | 2 years | After board approval |
| Louisiana | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 200 hours of qualified supervision; ≥100 individual | 2 calendar years of post-degree supervised experience (statute and rule) | After board approval |
| Maine | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 200 hours; ≥100 individual (300 / ≥150 on the 4,000-hour track) | 2 years | Partly in person |
| Maryland | LCMFT | 2,000 hours | 100 hours face-to-face clinical supervision; ≥50 individual | 2 years after the master's or doctoral degree | With limits |
| Massachusetts | LMFT | 3,360 hours | 200 hours; ≥100 individual | 2 years (statute); rule cap of 35 h/week × 48 weeks makes 3,360 hours take ≥2 years | With limits |
| Michigan | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | not less than 200 hours; not less than 100 individual (no more than 1 other supervisee present) | — | With limits |
| Minnesota | LMFT | 4,000 hours | 200 hours; at least 100 individual | two years from filing the application to take the national exam | With limits |
| Mississippi | LMFT | Time-based: 24 consecutive months (supervision period) | 200 hours total: 100 post-degree (all with a Board Approved Supervisor) + up to 100 from graduate training; ≥50 individual; ≥100 with an AAMFT Approved Supervisor | 24 consecutive months (supervision period) | After board approval |
| Missouri | LMFT | 1,500 direct client hours | minimum 104 hours; at least 75% individual | 24 calendar months (master's); 12 months (doctoral/specialist) | After board approval |
| Montana | LMFT | 3,000 hours | at least 40 hours of face-to-face supervision, at least 38 individual, minimum 20 with each supervisor; at least 25 hours using raw clinical data | — | With limits |
| Nebraska | LIMHP | 3,000 hours | At least 100 hours of supervisor-supervisee contact | — | Yes, fully |
| Nevada | MFT | 3,000 hours | At least 300 supervised hours incl. ≥160 by primary and ≥40 by secondary supervisor(s) | At least 2 years of postgraduate experience in marriage and family therapy | After board approval |
| New Hampshire | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 200 hours face-to-face supervision by AAMFT Approved Supervisor or approved alternate supervisor | 2 years; each year ≥1,500 hours within not less than 12 consecutive calendar months | With limits |
| New Jersey | LMFT | 4,500 hours | Minimum 50 hours face-to-face supervision per supervised calendar year (1 hour/week) | Calendar year = 1,500 hours over 50 weeks (full-time) or ≥750 hours in each of two 50-week periods | Partly in person |
| New Mexico | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours postgraduate MFT supervision, including at least 100 hours individual | A minimum of two years' postgraduate marriage and family therapy experience | With limits |
| New York | LMFT | 1,500 direct client hours | — | — | With limits |
| North Carolina | LMFT | 1,500 hours | minimum of 200 hours of ongoing supervision (25 post-degree if 200 earned in program) | — | With limits |
| North Dakota | LMFT | 3,000 hours | at least 200 hours face-to-face, ≥100 individual | 24 months full time | Yes, fully |
| Ohio | IMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours face-to-face supervision; ≥100 individual | two calendar years (24 full months) | With limits |
| Oklahoma | LMFT | 3,000 hours | one hundred (100) hours face-to-face or technology-assisted supervision | 24 months | After board approval |
| Oregon | LMFT | 1,900 direct client hours | Monthly minimum: 2 hours (months with ≤45 direct hours) or 3 hours (months with ≥46); no lifetime total stated | 36 months | With limits |
| Pennsylvania | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 2 hours per 40 hours of experience (≈150 hours for 3,000) | 2 years | Yes, fully |
| Rhode Island | LMFT | 2,000 direct client hours | 100 hours of post-degree supervised case work over two years | 2 years | With limits |
| South Carolina | LMFT | 1,500 hours | 120 hours; ≥60 individual/triadic, remaining 60 individual/triadic or group | 2 years | After board approval |
| South Dakota | LMFT | 1,700 hours | 100 hours with a board-approved supervisor; ≥5 hrs each of case staffing, direct observation, co-therapy, record review | — | After board approval |
| Tennessee | LMFT | 1,000 direct client hours | 200 hours of supervision by an approved supervisor | not less than two years (two years of post-masters clinical experience, ≥10 hours per week) | With limits |
| Texas | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 200 hours by an LMFT-S; ≥100 individual | two years | After board approval |
| Utah | MFT | 3,000 hours | 100 direct clinical supervision hours; ≥25 direct observation | — | With limits |
| Vermont | LMFT | 3,000 hours | no fewer than 100 hours of face-to-face supervision; ≥50 individual | two years (statute: two-calendar-year work experience) | With limits |
| Virginia | LMFT | 2,000 direct client hours | 200 hours of in-person supervision; ≥100 by an LMFT; ≥100 within two years before application | not less than 21 months | After board approval |
| Washington | LMFT | 3,000 hours | At least 200 hours; ≥100 one-on-one; ≥100 with an LMFT (2+ yrs clinical experience) | — | Yes, fully |
| West Virginia | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 1 hour direct individual supervision per 20 hours of practice (≈150 hours for 3,000) | No less than 2 years (master's); no less than 1 year (doctoral) | After board approval |
| Wisconsin | LMFT | 3,000 hours | None set by the state: as a total; Form #2574 ratio implies ≥100 hours for the 1,000 client-contact hours | — | Yes, fully |
| Wyoming | LMFT | 3,000 hours | 100 post-graduate hours of clinical supervision (statute: face-to-face individual) with a DQCS | Not less than 18 months | With limits |
“By video?”: Yes, fully means required supervision can be done entirely by live video with no in-person minimum; With limits means video is mostly allowed with conditions; After board approval means the supervisor needs a state supervisor credential and the board approves the arrangement first; Partly in person means some supervision or presence must be in person. The client’s location decides which state’s rules apply.
How to read these numbers
States count differently. Most set a total of supervised experience hours, and a smaller share of that total must be supervision itself (the “Supervision required” column). Some count only direct client contact, and a few set a period of time instead of an hour count. Many also cap how many hours you can earn per week, which sets the real minimum time; those caps, time limits, exams and supervisor qualifications are on each state’s page.
These figures come from each board’s rules, statutes and publications, checked on September 25, 2026. Rules change, so confirm with your board before you plan around a number.