51 Jurisdictions
Contractor License Requirements by State
Do All States Require a Contractor License?
No. In the summary we use, 19 jurisdictions have a state license, 9 have state registration, 9 regulate only residential or limited work, 11 leave it to local government and 3 have no state general contractor license. Trades are often licensed separately.
| State | System | When It Applies |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | State License | $100,000 per undertaking; a separate $5,000 figure applies to pool work |
| Alaska | State Registration | No general project-dollar threshold |
| Arizona | State License | $1,000 total, with limited exemptions |
| Arkansas | State License | Commercial work of $50,000 or more; specified residential work over $2,000 |
| California | State License | $1,000 in labor and materials, or a job needing a permit or extra workers |
| Colorado | Local Only | None statewide; cities such as Denver license contractors |
| Connecticut | Residential or Limited | Home improvement contractor registration for jobs over $200 |
| Delaware | State Registration | No project-dollar floor for the contractor business license |
| District of Columbia | State Registration | Based on activity; no general dollar floor |
| Florida | State License | Based on scope of work; no general dollar exemption |
| Georgia | State License | Based on scope of work; no project-dollar floor |
| Hawaii | State License | Based on scope of work; no project-dollar threshold |
| Idaho | State Registration | Private work over $2,000 in labor and materials; a public-works license from $50,000 |
| Illinois | Local Only | None statewide |
| Indiana | Local Only | None statewide |
| Iowa | State Registration | $2,000 or more in annual construction earnings |
| Kansas | Local Only | None statewide |
| Kentucky | No State License | No state general contractor license |
| Louisiana | State License | Commercial work of $50,000 or more; residential at $50,000 or for structural work |
| Maine | No State License | No state general contractor license; written-contract rules apply above $3,000 |
| Maryland | Residential or Limited | Covered home improvement work; no dollar floor |
| Massachusetts | Residential or Limited | Based on scope (construction supervisor license and home improvement registration) |
| Michigan | Residential or Limited | Covered residential work; a narrow exception under $600 |
| Minnesota | Residential or Limited | Residential work; a $15,000 annual-receipts exemption for specialty skills |
| Mississippi | State License | Commercial and new residential over $50,000; remodeling over $10,000 |
| Missouri | Local Only | None statewide; cities such as Kansas City license contractors |
| Montana | State Registration | Based on activity; a narrow exemption for those with no employees |
| Nebraska | State Registration | Based on activity; no project-dollar floor |
| Nevada | State License | $1,000 or more |
| New Hampshire | Local Only | None statewide |
| New Jersey | Residential or Limited | Home improvement registration; no project-dollar floor |
| New Mexico | State License | Based on scope of work; no project-dollar floor |
| New York | Local Only | None statewide; cities such as New York City and Buffalo have their own rules |
| North Carolina | State License | $40,000 or more per project |
| North Dakota | State License | More than $4,000 per job |
| Ohio | Local Only | None statewide for general contractors |
| Oklahoma | Local Only | None statewide |
| Oregon | State License | Generally required; a narrow exemption under $1,000 |
| Pennsylvania | Residential or Limited | $5,000 or more a year in covered home improvement work |
| Rhode Island | State Registration | Broad registration; a narrow casual-work exception under $500 |
| South Carolina | State License | Commercial work with a total cost over $10,000 |
| South Dakota | No State License | No state general contractor license; a contractor excise-tax license applies |
| Tennessee | State License | $25,000 or more, before bidding or negotiating |
| Texas | Local Only | None statewide |
| Utah | State License | Based on scope of work; no project-dollar floor |
| Vermont | Residential or Limited | More than $10,000 including labor and materials |
| Virginia | State License | Over $1,000; the license class depends on project and annual value |
| Washington | State Registration | Based on activity; no project-dollar floor |
| West Virginia | State License | Residential $5,000 or more; commercial $25,000 or more |
| Wisconsin | Residential or Limited | Based on permits and scope for one- and two-family homes |
| Wyoming | Local Only | None statewide; cities such as Cheyenne license contractors |
General contractor rules only, summarized from a public 51-state comparison checked by its authors 2026-09-04 to 2026-10-26. We did not verify each threshold against state law. Laws change, so confirm with the state.
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