Ham radio operators in Maine: new licenses by county
4,452 licensed amateur radio operators; 137 new in the past 12 months. Updated weekly from FCC data.
At a glance · Data as of
- New hams · last 30 days
- 10
- New hams · last 12 months
- 137
- ▼ 9% vs prior 12 mo
- Active licensed hams
- 4,452
- Upgrades · 12 mo
- 73
- Vanity callsigns · 12 mo
- 27
- Address updates · 12 mo
- 54
- Often a move into the area
- Expiring · next 6 mo
- 264
About ham radio in Maine
New licenses held steady in Maine: 137 new hams in the past 12 months (down 9% from the year before). Maine ranks #42 of 52 states and territories for new licenses. Kennebec County leads the state with 18 new hams. Technicians make up 41% of the state’s licensees, below the U.S. average of 48%, a sign of an experienced community with many HF operators. 73 operators upgraded their license in the past year, the moment many buy their first HF rig.
New hams by month
Show data table
| Month | New hams |
|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 1 |
| Nov 2025 | 6 |
| Dec 2025 | 14 |
| Jan 2026 | 12 |
| Feb 2026 | 16 |
| Mar 2026 | 14 |
| Apr 2026 | 13 |
| May 2026 | 29 |
| Jun 2026 | 12 |
| Jul 2026 | 6 |
| Aug 2026 | 5 |
| Sep 2026 | 10 |
| Total | 138 |
License classes
| Class | Hams | Share | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technician | 1,818 | 41% | 48% |
| General | 1,242 | 28% | 25% |
| Amateur Extra | 1,102 | 25% | 21% |
| Advanced | 174 | 4% | 3% |
| Novice / Other | 116 | 3% | 2% |
Bar = Maine share · Tick = U.S. share
In the past 12 months, 20 operators upgraded to General and 48 to Amateur Extra.
How Maine compares
#42 of 52 states and territories for new hams in the past 12 months
| Per 1,000 active hams | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| New hams, past 12 months | 30.8 | 32.3 |
| Upgrades, past 12 months | 16.4 | 14.7 |
| Expiring, next 6 months | 59.3 | 57.3 |
137 new hams in Maine this past year. Get next month’s list free.
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| # | County | New hams 12 mo | Change vs prior year | Active hams | New per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kennebec County | 18 | ▲ 13% | 431 | 41.8 |
| 2 | Penobscot County | 18 | ▲ 29% | 472 | 38.1 |
| 3 | Cumberland County | 16 | ▼ 50% | 793 | 20.2 |
| 4 | York County | 15 | ▼ 38% | 599 | 25.0 |
| 5 | Aroostook County | 9 | — | 273 | 33.0 |
| 6 | Sagadahoc County | 6 | — | 144 | 41.7 |
| 7 | Lincoln County | 5 | — | 153 | 32.7 |
| 8 | Somerset County | 5 | — | 141 | 35.5 |
| 9 | Androscoggin County | 4 | — | 247 | 16.2 |
| 10 | Hancock County | 4 | ▼ 67% | 241 | 16.6 |
— in Change means fewer than 10 new hams the year before.
All Maine counties
14 counties with their own page. Numbers are new hams in the past 12 months.
- Androscoggin County4 new hams in 12 months
- Aroostook County9 new hams in 12 months
- Cumberland County16 new hams in 12 months
- Hancock County4 new hams in 12 months
- Kennebec County18 new hams in 12 months
- Knox County4 new hams in 12 months
- Lincoln County5 new hams in 12 months
- Oxford County4 new hams in 12 months
- Penobscot County18 new hams in 12 months
- Sagadahoc County6 new hams in 12 months
- Somerset County5 new hams in 12 months
- Waldo County2 new hams in 12 months
- Washington County2 new hams in 12 months
- York County15 new hams in 12 months
Smaller Maine counties
These 2 counties have too few licensees or too little recent activity for a page of their own, so their numbers are listed here.
| County | Active hams | New hams · 12 mo |
|---|---|---|
| Franklin County | 107 | 2 |
| Piscataquis County | 93 | 2 |
Neighboring states
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Figures may be reused with credit to Ham Recruiter (CC BY 4.0).
Questions about hams in Maine
How many ham radio operators are in Maine?
4,452 active amateur radio licensees are on file for Maine as of Oct 1, 2026.
How many new hams were licensed in Maine last year?
137 people in Maine received their first FCC amateur radio license in the 12 months ending Oct 1, 2026.
Which Maine counties have the most new hams?
In the past 12 months: Kennebec County (18), Penobscot County (18) and Cumberland County (16).
Where does this data come from?
From the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) public amateur license database, which we download every Monday. Addresses are matched to counties with the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder. This page shows totals only.
Can I see the names or call signs on this page?
No. Public pages show totals only. Verified Ham Recruiter users can search and export lists for outreach; see how licensee information is handled.
About this data
Data as of . Source: FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) weekly amateur license database; county from U.S. Census Bureau geocoding. Aggregates only, no individual licensee data is shown. Aggregate figures © Ham Recruiter, CC BY 4.0.
How we count
- New ham: an active licensee whose first license was granted in the period.
- Address updates: a change of FCC mailing address, often a move into the area.
- Counts use each licensee’s current FCC address. Someone licensed here who later moved is counted where they live now.
- Each license keeps only its most recent event of each type, so two upgrades in one year count once.
- PO-box-only addresses often can’t be matched to a county, so rural counties are slightly undercounted.
99% of Maine licensees could be matched to a county.