Roof Online

    How to Check a Roofing Contractor’s License Online

    (and see roofing contractor licensing requirements by state)

    By Jack Gray, Roof Online Editor • Last updated October 11, 2024

    Also see our article How to Choose a Roofer.

    check a roofing contractor's license
    Always check a roofer’s license before hiring them to work on your roof.

    Table of Contents

    Introduction

    You should always ask for a roofer’s license number before you even think about hiring them to work on your roof. Any legitimate roofing contractor will be more than happy to provide you with his number.

    You can then check his license number online on the website of the state agency that regulates contractors in your state to verify that he’s running a legal business.

    On most of these state websites, you can also look up a roofing company just by using the name of the company and that will also tell you whether or not the contractor has a valid license.

    If you live in one of the dwindling number of places where a license is not required to perform roofing work, you should get the contractor’s business registration number. You can check that at least.

    You need to be positive that the contractor is licensed to do business in your state. Using an unlicensed contractor can have all kinds of legal consequences for you.

    For instance, try getting roof repairs covered by a roofing manufacturer warranty when the roof installer was unlicensed. It’s not going to happen.

    Also consider that if a contractor is willing to operate without a license, he’s probably willing to operate without getting his other paperwork in order, either. This includes permits, warranties, insurance, and even the roofing contract.

    If he’ll take shortcuts with the law, he’ll probably take shortcuts with your roof.

    This can end up costing you a lot of money down the road.

    If a roofer refuses to provide you with a contractor’s license number, it’s a pretty good sign that you’re dealing with a shady, fly-by-night operator. Don’t have anything more to do with him.

    Roofing Contractor Licensing Requirements in the U.S.

    There are no national licensing requirements for roofing contractors in the United States.

    Some states require roofing contractors to have roofing contractor’s licenses specifically, some states require roofing contractors to hold building contractor or home improvement licenses, and some states do not require roofing contractors to be licensed at all, and leave it up to local authorities.

    A contractor’s license is normally only valid in the state where it was issued. If a roofing contractor does business in more than one state, they will need to register in each state that they plan on doing business in.

    There will be a separate licensing record for each jurisdiction where they are legally permitted to operate.

    Looking up a Roofing Contractor’s License Online

    The links below will help you with your roofing contractor license lookup. They take you to the official state web pages that explain the licensing requirements for roofing contractors in each state, as well as the pages where you can verify a contractor’s license.

    In cases where no contractor license is required for roofing contractors, we provide a link that lets you verify a contractor’s business license, so you can at least tell if a roofer has a valid license to do business in your state. Scam artists and other untrustworthy contractors often won’t.

    Once you are on your state government website, you should be able to type the roofing contractor’s business name into the database search field and get a result.

    If you have a license number that you want to check, there should also be a search field for that.

    On many of these sites, after you’ve got your search results back, clicking on the contractor’s name or license number will bring up more information about the contractor, such as how long they’ve been in business.

    About the Links on this Page

    The first link under each state takes you to the state licensing requirements webpage so you can see what contractors have to do to get licensed.

    The second link takes you to the state database page where you can search by the license number to see if it’s valid, or the roofing contractor’s company name to see if they have a license.

    We try to keep these links up-to-date, but a lot of state governments have outdated websites and they are just now getting around to updating their sites.

    Because of these updates, occasionally a link will change and you will click on one of the links we provide and it won’t work properly.

    If this happens, go to the home page of the state government website. There will be a general “search this website” field at the top or the side of the page. Search for “Contractor License Look Up” or “Verify Contractor License” and it should show you the page that you want.

    Canada

    Canada’s Business Registries – Look up businesses in Canada – Search by name, business number, or registry ID

    United Kingdom

    Although the UK does not require contractor licenses for roofing contractors, you can look up UK businesses here and see if they are properly registered. Make sure you put the name of the business inside of quotation marks in the search field, or you’ll end up with thousands of unrelated search results.

    United States

    Alabama

    Alaska

    Arizona

    Arkansas

    California

    Colorado

    In Colorado, roofers are not licensed at the state level. Many Colorado cities and counties have their own licensing requirements, rules, and regulations.

    Look for the building inspector’s office or the building department on the municipal websites.

    Connecticut

    Delaware

    Florida

    Georgia

    Hawaii

    Idaho

    Illinois

    Indiana

    Iowa

    Kansas

    Kentucky

    • Kentucky.gov – County Information page. This page lets you find municipal websites in Kentucky. Kentucky contractors may or may not have licensing requirements at the local level; the local websites are where you have to check for this information. Look for the building inspector’s office or the building department on the municipal websites.
    • Verify Contractor’s License – Kentucky (Business license only.)

    Louisiana

    Maine

    Home improvement contractors are not licensed or regulated by the State of Maine.

    General licenses to operate a business are managed at the town/city level in Maine. Contact your town office for information. To obtain contact information for your town office or to locate your municipal website, visit the Maine.gov Local Government portal.

    Maryland

    Massachusetts

    Michigan

    Minnesota

    Mississippi

    Missouri

    • Mo.gov – City and County Government. This page lets you find municipal websites in Missouri. Missouri contractors may or may not have licensing requirements at the local level; the local websites are where you have to check for this information. Look for the building inspector’s office or the building department on the municipal websites.
    • Verify Contractor’s License – Missouri (Business license only.)

    Montana

    Nebraska

    Nevada

    New Hampshire

    New Hampshire Office of Professional Licensure and Certification

    New Jersey

    New Mexico

    New York

    North Carolina

    Roofing contractors are not required to be licensed in North Carolina for roofing jobs that are less than $30,000. Very few residential roofing jobs cost that much, so many, many residential roofers in North Carolina won’t have a license because they don’t need one.

    North Dakota

    Ohio

    Oklahoma

    Oregon

    Pennsylvania

    Rhode Island

    South Carolina

    South Dakota

    Tennessee

    Texas

    Utah

    Vermont

    Virginia

    Washington, DC

    Washington State

    West Virginia

    Wisconsin

    Wyoming