How to check a contractor's license, state by state
Every state in this table keeps a free public register, and anyone can search it with the business name, the person's name or the license number. In most states one search covers plumbing, HVAC and electrical work, but in a few, electricians or HVAC firms are licensed by a city, so you search in two places. Find your state below and open the official search. The searches listed are the ones each state's own licensing pages point to, for the trades we cover.
Checking a license by state, at a glance
Tap a state to see the details. Each state links to our full page for it, with the official pages every figure came from.
| State | Who keeps the register | Where to search | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC) | Search the register | |
| California | Contractors State License Board (CSLB) | Search the register | |
| Colorado | Colorado State Electrical Board · Colorado has no state HVAC board · Colorado State Plumbing Board | Plumbing: search the register HVAC: search the register | |
| Florida | Florida DBPR | Search the register | |
| Georgia | Georgia State Construction Industry Licensing Board | Search the register | |
| Illinois | No state agency · Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) | Search the register | |
| Indiana | Indiana has no state electrical board · Indiana has no state HVAC board · Indiana Plumbing Commission | HVAC: search the register Plumbing: search the register | |
| Maryland | Maryland State Board of Electricians · Maryland State Board of Heating · Maryland State Board of Plumbing | Electrical: search the register HVAC: search the register Plumbing: search the register | |
| Massachusetts | Board of State Examiners of Electricians · Two boards · Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters | Plumbing: search the register HVAC: search the register | |
| Michigan | Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs | Search the register | |
| Missouri | Office of Statewide Electrical Contractors · Missouri has no state heating and cooling board · Missouri has no state plumbing board | Electrical: search the register Plumbing: search the register | |
| Nevada | Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB) | Search the register | |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors · New Jersey State Board of Examiners of Heating · New Jersey State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers | Search the register | |
| New York | New York State has no electrical board · New York State has no HVAC board · New York State has no plumbing board | Search the register | |
| North Carolina | North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing | Electrical: search the register Plumbing: search the register | |
| Ohio | Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) | Search the register | |
| Oregon | Oregon Building Codes Division (BCD) · Oregon Construction Contractors Board (CCB) for the business license | Plumbing: search the register HVAC: search the register | |
| Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania has no electrical board · Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General | Search the register | |
| South Carolina | South Carolina Department of Labor | Search the register | |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance | Search the register | |
| Texas | Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) · Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE) | Plumbing: search the register HVAC: search the register | |
| Utah | Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) | Search the register | |
| Virginia | Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation | Search the register | |
| Washington | Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) | Search the register | |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) | Search the register |
What this means for you
What to type into the search
Start with the license number if you have it, because it is the only field that cannot be spelled two ways. Without it, search the business name exactly as it appears on the quote or the van. If nothing comes back, try the owner's surname. Many registers hold the license against a person, not the company.
What a good result looks like
You want to see the license active today, with the trade that matches the work you are buying, and no expiry date in the past. A register that shows bonds and insurance, as Washington does, is worth reading in full before you pay a deposit.
When you find nothing
An empty result does not always mean the contractor is unlicensed. In some states the license belongs to a city, not the state, so the state search will never show it. Check the state's row below, then ask the contractor which city issued their license and search there.
Check before money changes hands
The useful moment is before the deposit, not after the job goes wrong. A search takes under a minute, it is free, and an unlicensed contractor often means your insurer treats the work as uninsured.
State by state: what is different about checking a license
What is unusual in each state. Nothing here repeats the table.
Arizona
Arizona's registrar licenses by trade code, so a residential heating firm shows as R-39 and a commercial one as C-39. Search the business name, then read the code.
California
California's board shows the classification letter, the bond and any judgments against the license. A C-20 is heating and air conditioning, a C-36 is plumbing, a C-10 is electrical.
Colorado
Colorado licenses electricians and plumbers, and nothing for heating or cooling. For HVAC work ask the city. Denver keeps its own list of licensed firms.
Florida
Florida separates certified contractors, who may work statewide, from registered ones, who may work only where their local license allows. The register shows which you are looking at.
Georgia
Georgia's board calls HVAC work conditioned air contracting, so search that wording if the trade name draws a blank.
Illinois
Illinois licenses plumbers through its health department. Electricians and HVAC firms are licensed by cities, and Chicago runs the biggest scheme.
Indiana
Indiana licenses plumbers at state level only. For electrical and heating work the license comes from the city or county, and Indianapolis publishes its own list.
Maryland
Maryland runs one search tool, but you pick the board first. Plumbing, electrical and HVACR each have their own list behind the same page, so choose the trade that matches the work you are buying.
Massachusetts
Massachusetts splits its registers. Plumbers and electricians sit with the occupational boards, while refrigeration and sheet metal licenses sit with the Office of Public Safety and Inspections, so a heating firm is checked in a different place.
Michigan
Michigan puts every trade under one department, and the register shows the classifications on a mechanical contractor's license, such as warm air or refrigeration.
Missouri
Missouri has no single register. Electrical contractors licensed by the state appear in the state search, while plumbing and heating licenses usually belong to a city, so Springfield and Kansas City keep their own lists.
Nevada
Nevada's contractors board licenses by classification, so search the business name and then read the code. C-1 is plumbing, C-2 electrical and C-21 refrigeration and air conditioning.
New Jersey
New Jersey puts every licensed trade in one verification site, so a plumber, an electrician and an HVACR contractor are all checked in the same place.
New York
New York State keeps no register for these trades. New York City's buildings department holds the licenses, so search there and expect nothing at state level.
North Carolina
North Carolina keeps two registers. Plumbing and heating sit with one board, electrical contractors with another, so a complete check means two searches.
Ohio
Ohio's state license covers commercial work. A firm doing only home work may be licensed by a city instead, and will not appear in the state register.
Oregon
Oregon needs two searches. The business license sits with the Construction Contractors Board, while each person's trade license sits with the Building Codes Division.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's only statewide register is the home improvement contractor search run by the Attorney General. A city license, such as Philadelphia's, will not appear in it.
South Carolina
South Carolina's search covers the commercial mechanical license. Residential specialty licenses come from a separate commission, so a small home firm may not appear.
Tennessee
Tennessee puts contractors and limited licensees in one state search. A small firm licensed only by a city will not be there, so ask which city issued the license.
Texas
Texas plumbers are licensed by their own board, with a separate search from the one covering electricians and HVAC firms. Searching the wrong one looks like an unlicensed contractor.
Utah
Utah holds every trade in one license search, and the license shows its classification, such as P200 for plumbing or E200 for electrical.
Virginia
Virginia issues one contractor license with the trade added as a specialty, so check the specialty line as well as the license class.
Washington
Washington's search is run by Labor and Industries, the same body that registers contractors and sets the bond. Search by business name, person or registration number.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin holds credentials for both people and businesses, so a plumber's own license and their company's registration are two separate entries.
Words in this guide
- License lookup
- The free public search a state runs so anyone can check whether a license is real and current.
- Classification
- The code on a license that says which trade it covers, such as C-20 for heating and air conditioning in California.
- Active
- The license is in force today. A license can exist but be expired, suspended or inactive.
How we checked these numbers
Every row was written from our own pages for that state, where each rule links to the official page or the law it came from. A person then compared each cell and each paragraph with that official page. So far 25 of the 25 rows have been through that check. How to read a page on this site.