Retraining ReportJob training public funding can pay for

Find training

Forklift certification in Illinois

2 forklift programs with results and funding that can make them free

2 schools offer these forklift programs, and Illinois has approved every one for workforce funding. Each shows how past students did; Illinois files no usable prices.

Forklift operators drive industrial trucks with a lifting mechanism and forks to move heavy and large loads around warehouses, storage yards and other worksites. No formal education is usually required, and a forklift may take only a few days to learn; training covers safety rules, many of them set by OSHA, and employers must certify that each operator has been properly trained.1

In Illinois, 1 of the 2 programs takes students without a high school diploma and 1 asks for earlier courses first.

Both are the same kind of program: forklift certification course.

See the 2 programs

How much does forklift certification cost in Illinois?

Not reported

Illinois files no usable prices, so none can be shown.

These two programs

Finished the program
Not reported
Neither program reports it
Working 6 months later
Not reported
Neither program reports it
Earned a year, estimated
Not reported
Neither program reports it
Length
1 week

Source: US Department of Labor, program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Only programs approved for workforce funding are listed; other schools in Illinois may also offer forklift training. How these figures are made

Is there free forklift training in Illinois?

Who qualifies, and other ways to pay: financial aid, grants and the GI Bill

All 2 forklift programs in Illinois approved for WIOA funding

Filters
What you need to enroll
Kind of program
School
How it's taught
How to show the list

2 programs

  • Forklift certification courseIn personPrerequisite courses

    Fork Lift Operation and Safety 848

    Olive Harvey College

    Chicago

    Accredited school

    Prerequisite courses

    Olive Harvey College, ChicagoForklift certification course · Accredited schoolIn person · Prerequisite courses

    Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
    Price if you pay yourselfLeft out
    Program website, Fork Lift Operation and Safety 848 at Olive Harvey College
    More details about Fork Lift Operation and Safety 848 at Olive Harvey College
    Finished
    Not reported
    Working at 6 months
    Not reported
    Earned in a quarter
    Not reported
    Length
    1 week, 30 hours a week
    Cost of supplies
    Not reported
    Students counted
    Not reported
    Earned a year, estimated
    Not reported
    Price if you pay yourself
    Left out
    Program website, Fork Lift Operation and Safety 848 at Olive Harvey College

  • Forklift certification courseIn personNo diploma needed

    Forklift-Operator Training

    University Center at MCC - Catalyst Campus

    Woodstock

    Accredited school

    No diploma needed

    University Center at MCC - Catalyst Campus, WoodstockForklift certification course · Accredited schoolIn person · No diploma needed

    Earned a year, estimatedNot reported
    Price if you pay yourselfLeft out
    Program website, Forklift-Operator Training at University Center at MCC - Catalyst Campus
    More details about Forklift-Operator Training at University Center at MCC - Catalyst Campus
    Finished
    Not reported
    Working at 6 months
    Not reported
    Earned in a quarter
    Not reported
    Length
    1 week, 8 hours a week
    Cost of supplies
    Not reported
    Students counted
    Not reported
    Earned a year, estimated
    Not reported
    Price if you pay yourself
    Left out
    Program website, Forklift-Operator Training at University Center at MCC - Catalyst Campus

How to pay for forklift training in Illinois

WIOA funding can pay for forklift training in Illinois

Every program on this page is approved for it. Whether you qualify, how much your local area pays and how to apply are on our page Does WIOA pay for job training?

Financial aid and grants for forklift training

Most students can get federal student aid for college, career school or trade school. A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, usually doesn't have to be repaid. Ask the school whether its program qualifies.67

GI Bill for forklift training

Veterans, service members and qualified dependents can use GI Bill benefits for non-college training programs.8

The program list does not show which programs accept these. Ask the school.

Other training in Illinois

How forklift training compares with the rest of transportation and logistics: Transportation and logistics training in Illinois

Where the Illinois forklift program numbers come from

Which Illinois forklift programs are on this list?

These are the forklift programs Illinois approved for WIOA funding (public workforce funding under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), as reported to the US Department of Labor for program year 2024 (July 2024 to June 2025). Each state keeps its approved programs on an eligible training provider list (ETPL).9 The list here covers programs approved as of June 30, 2025. Schools that never applied for approval are missing, so this is a part of what Illinois offers.

How the prices and results of Illinois forklift programs are measured

Prices are tuition and required fees for someone paying without workforce funding, as the school reported them; check the current price with the school. Results describe students who left each program in recent years, so they are no guarantee, and the yearly earnings are the reported quarter times four, an estimate. A program without a "Trained with WIOA funding" line may still take WIOA students. Where a field was left empty or withheld, the page says "Not reported", and "Left out" where a figure was filed but failed one of our checks; nothing is estimated to fill a gap. Where the numbers come from explains each figure in full.

How reliable are the Illinois figures?

The US Department of Labor's own results site lists Illinois among the states with "known data quality concerns".10 We leave out the share who finished for Illinois: only a few programs report it, and those at a typical 11%. We leave out prices for Illinois: the state files a code in place of each price, so no price can be shown.

Sources for the facts about forklift training in Illinois

Show the 10 sourcesHide the sources
  1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Material Moving Machine Operators
  2. US Department of Labor, TrainingProviderResults.gov: About This Site
  3. US Department of Labor: WIOA Adult Program
  4. Code of Federal Regulations, title 20, part 680, sections 680.220, 680.230 and 680.310: career services before training, other grants such as Pell Grants first, and limits on Individual Training Accounts (GovInfo, 2024 edition)
  5. US Department of Labor: American Job Centers
  6. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Eligibility for Federal Student Aid
  7. US Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Don't Miss Out on Federal Pell Grants
  8. US Department of Veterans Affairs: GI Bill benefits for non-college degree programs
  9. US Department of Labor, Training and Employment Guidance Letter 8-19, Attachment I: Requirements for Training Providers, Program Eligibility, and the State Eligible Training Provider (ETP) List
  10. US Department of Labor, TrainingProviderResults.gov: search page, note on states with known data quality concerns