Residential RoofersCheck a roofer's license before you sign anything

Trust

How we verify listings

Listings on Residential Roofers come from state contractor license registries or, in cities without license data we can use, from Google Maps ratings. Here is exactly what we check, what we show and what we leave out.

Where a city has a license page, every result in this tool traces back to the file of whichever state agency issued it, such as Washington's L&I or California's CSLB. Each result carries the status, class, and expiration date as that agency shows it, plus a direct link to look it up yourself.

Where a city doesn't have a license page yet, we search Google Maps for roofers there instead and rank what we find by rating and review count together. That ranking isn't this tool's license check, which is exactly why we still point you to the state lookup before you sign anything.

We don't inspect job sites, interview past customers, or score workmanship. That's outside what a license record, or a Google rating, can tell anyone, including us.

Where the listings come from

Each license listing also links to its own record on the state agency's website, so you can check it at the source.

What we check before a business is listed

What each listing shows

Business name
As registered with the state, with capitalization tidied up.
Category
Our label for why the business is listed on this site, based on its specialty or registered name.
License class
The specialty the registry lists for the business, for example General or Roofing.
License number
The contractor license or registration number the registry uses.
Status
Active as of the date we checked. We don't list any other status.
Effective and expiration dates
When the current license took effect and when it expires, as the registry reports them.
Business type
For example limited liability company, corporation or individual, shown on each business's profile when the registry provides it.
City and ZIP
From the business address on record. They show where a business is based, not the area it serves, which is why we say “based in”.
Verify license
A link to the business's own record on the state agency's website.

What we leave out on purpose

We don't publish phone numbers, street addresses or the names of owners and principals, even where the registry lists them. The business name is the only name we show.

How often we refresh

We re-pull the registry data and rebuild these pages from it. Every city page shows the date its listings were last checked; the current listings were checked on September 30, 2026. A license can change between our checks, so the Verify license link, which opens the live record, is always the final word.

Top-rated lists

This tool runs the same Google Maps search in every city: "roofing contractor." A listing only survives if it's open for business, it actually does roofing rather than sell materials or resell your contact details to roofers, and it carries 3 or more Google reviews. Distance matters too: a small town only reaches about 6 miles out, while a sprawling metro stretches the net to 25.

Survivors get ordered by blending their star rating with their review count, so a 5.0 sitting on a couple of reviews lands behind a 4.8 backed by hundreds. A city has to clear five qualifying roofers before we publish anything, and the published list stops at ten names.

A Google rating is not what this tool exists to check. It tells you how past customers felt about the job, not whether a business currently holds a license or registration, which is the actual question this site was built to answer.

So treat a top-rated page the same way you'd treat any bid: get the license or registration number in your own hand, ring up the agency that issued it, ask them to confirm it's current, request a certificate of insurance, and keep the checkbook closed until the roof is actually finished.

The details, the same on every top-rated page (3,221 city pages on this site):

A rating is not a license check and not an endorsement. Before you hire anyone, ask for the license or registration number your state or city requires and check it with the office that issued it.

What we don't do

We don't review or endorse contractors, and a listing isn't a recommendation. License listings are sorted alphabetically; top-rated lists are ranked only by Google rating and review count, as described above. No business pays to be listed, to be left off or for its position. If we ever add paid placements, they will be marked Sponsored. How we make money.

Something wrong?

Business owners can claim a listing to ask for a correction, or ask us to remove it.