- Most firms on record: Miami, FL, with 4,916 named firms in the seven trades.
- Share active in the last 12 months on file, by trade: plumbing 59.8%, electrical 59.5%, HVAC 58.6%, solar 55.0%, new home 50.3%, roofing 49.9%, remodel 45.9%.
- One-permit firms, by trade: remodel 64.4%, roofing 51.4%, new home 50.5%, plumbing 41.7%, solar 41.5%, HVAC 41.5%, electrical 35.8%. Remodel and new-home lists carry many small builders and one-off filers; in the trade permits most filers are repeat firms.
- New firms: the share of firms whose first permit falls in the last 12 months on file runs from 13.3% in Pittsburgh, PA to 31.0% in Denton, TX.
A firm here is a business name that filed at least one permit on a house or small residential building in the trade during the city's data window. "Active" means at least one of its permits was filed in the last 12 months on file; "new" means its first permit in the trade came in those 12 months; "gone quiet" means it filed five or more permits in the window and none in the last 12 months.
The short version: each trade across cities
"Usual" is the middle of the city figures, so a big city counts the same as a small one. "Gone quiet" adds up the firms in every city with two or more years of data.
| Trade | Cities | Usual firms per city | Most firms | Usual share active in last 12 months on file | Usual share new | Usual share with one permit | Gone quiet (of firms with 5+ permits) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical | 46 | 420 | New York City, NY (1,252) | 59.5% | 20.1% | 35.8% | 950 of 7,912 |
| Plumbing | 42 | 267 | Miami, FL (1,002) | 59.8% | 21.5% | 41.7% | 612 of 4,823 |
| HVAC | 44 | 288 | New York City, NY (1,418) | 58.6% | 20.7% | 41.5% | 612 of 4,900 |
| Roofing | 29 | 365 | Minneapolis, MN (1,483) | 49.9% | 22.2% | 51.4% | 692 of 3,658 |
| Remodel | 45 | 414 | San Francisco, CA (1,925) | 45.9% | 24.8% | 64.4% | 391 of 2,579 |
| New home | 36 | 126 | Nashville, TN (2,252) | 50.3% | 23.2% | 50.5% | 342 of 1,609 |
| Solar | 38 | 76 | San Diego County, CA (495) | 55.0% | 18.4% | 41.5% | 262 of 1,251 |
City by city: the seven trades together
One firm per name across electrical, plumbing, HVAC, roofing, remodel, new-home and solar permits. City names link to the city's permit statistics, which cover every trade the city files, not just these seven.
| City | Permits | Firms | Active in last 12 months on file | New in last 12 months | One permit only | Gone quiet (share of 5+ permit firms) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque, NM | 1,779 | 288 | 31.9% | 17.4% | 63.2% | 10 (28.6%) | solar left out: few filings in the last 12 months |
| Ames, IA | 3,695 | 275 | 66.9% | 24.4% | 42.5% | 3 (3.4%) | |
| Anaheim, CA | 7,614 | 2,043 | 47.9% | 25.8% | 58.9% | 44 (16.2%) | |
| Arlington, VA | 15,301 | 1,430 | 58.3% | 16.1% | 36.2% | 50 (10.5%) | county permits |
| Austin, TX | 77,830 | 3,744 | 60.4% | 20.2% | 34.0% | 184 (12.9%) | |
| Bellevue, WA | 16,604 | 2,006 | 55.4% | 20.4% | 40.8% | 64 (12.4%) | |
| Bellingham, WA | 6,876 | 384 | 57.8% | 21.1% | 42.4% | 16 (13.1%) | |
| Bend, OR | 15,152 | 808 | 61.6% | 17.1% | 33.4% | 35 (10.6%) | |
| Bismarck, ND | 4,295 | 295 | 67.8% | 15.3% | 32.9% | 4 (3.3%) | remodel includes additions |
| Boulder, CO | 11,089 | 1,440 | 57.9% | 24.5% | 44.0% | 38 (11.0%) | |
| Burlington, VT | 3,220 | 600 | 54.2% | 26.7% | 53.7% | 9 (7.8%) | roofing includes siding |
| Cambridge, MA | 12,869 | 3,995 | 47.0% | 23.3% | 54.3% | 118 (19.0%) | remodel includes additions |
| Cape Coral, FL | 15,580 | 1,998 | 73.0% | — | 41.7% | — | 21 months of data |
| Cary, NC | 15,735 | 1,344 | 57.9% | 24.3% | 46.4% | 34 (10.2%) | |
| Chicago, IL | 33,532 | 3,911 | 60.1% | 20.2% | 39.9% | 120 (10.5%) | |
| Cincinnati, OH | 14,342 | 1,436 | 53.2% | 22.1% | 45.6% | 49 (14.9%) | |
| Citrus Heights, CA | 7,006 | 1,313 | 53.6% | 23.4% | 47.4% | 38 (13.2%) | remodel includes additions |
| Cleveland, OH | 21,146 | 1,753 | 54.1% | 20.5% | 39.6% | 102 (18.6%) | |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 95,637 | 2,256 | 70.1% | 14.3% | 18.5% | 182 (13.6%) | remodel includes additions |
| Columbus, OH | 53,436 | 1,791 | 58.0% | 18.6% | 37.6% | 105 (15.6%) | |
| Denton, TX | 7,193 | 976 | 53.2% | 31.0% | 59.3% | 25 (13.8%) | |
| Denver, CO | 5,901 | 939 | 60.8% | 20.6% | 36.0% | 45 (16.0%) | |
| Elk Grove, CA | 13,923 | 1,121 | 52.6% | 22.6% | 48.8% | 38 (14.2%) | remodel includes additions |
| Greensboro, NC | 46,634 | 2,140 | 64.3% | 21.1% | 35.4% | 84 (10.3%) | |
| Henderson, NV | 19,738 | 666 | 65.9% | 22.2% | 33.5% | 31 (12.8%) | |
| Honolulu, HI | 27,036 | 851 | 63.6% | 18.6% | 33.8% | 24 (8.6%) | file ends Jun 2025 |
| Marin County, CA | 7,486 | 1,234 | 47.6% | 20.3% | 50.6% | 30 (13.0%) | unincorporated county |
| Medford, OR | 4,048 | 385 | 59.2% | 22.3% | 42.1% | 13 (11.3%) | remodel includes additions |
| Mesa, AZ | 3,738 | 309 | 41.1% | 20.4% | 60.8% | 14 (23.7%) | |
| Miami, FL | 30,787 | 4,916 | 59.2% | 18.6% | 37.2% | 180 (12.1%) | |
| Minneapolis, MN | 63,889 | 3,135 | 56.6% | 13.8% | 32.3% | 203 (16.5%) | |
| Naperville, IL | 3,230 | 813 | 47.4% | 23.9% | 57.8% | 27 (20.9%) | timed only in the permit system used from 2024 |
| Nashville, TN | 116,966 | 4,536 | 57.1% | 22.0% | 42.8% | 258 (16.4%) | 37 months of data |
| New York City, NY | 85,532 | 3,488 | 63.8% | 18.5% | 35.1% | 115 (8.9%) | HVAC includes boilers |
| Orlando, FL | 40,076 | 3,612 | 55.8% | 19.8% | 37.7% | 218 (19.4%) | |
| Palo Alto, CA | 5,301 | 1,457 | 49.7% | 24.6% | 53.9% | 25 (11.2%) | |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 7,403 | 535 | 62.4% | 13.3% | 25.4% | 40 (14.4%) | remodel includes windows; remodel left out: few filings in the last 12 months |
| Provo, UT | 1,149 | 309 | 44.3% | 26.9% | 61.5% | 10 (27.0%) | |
| Raleigh, NC | 38,464 | 1,962 | 67.0% | 19.3% | 28.8% | 98 (11.6%) | |
| Sacramento County, CA | 26,172 | 3,072 | 55.7% | 22.9% | 45.9% | 101 (13.1%) | unincorporated county; remodel includes additions |
| Saint Paul, MN | 51,341 | 3,264 | 58.8% | 20.4% | 34.5% | 204 (17.5%) | |
| San Diego, CA | 18,045 | 1,852 | 51.8% | 27.4% | 55.1% | 61 (16.1%) | |
| San Diego County, CA | 20,899 | 2,027 | 51.4% | 23.6% | 50.8% | 68 (16.2%) | unincorporated county |
| San Francisco, CA | 15,104 | 2,609 | 57.2% | 21.9% | 41.9% | 66 (11.8%) | |
| Scottsdale, AZ | 10,033 | 2,101 | 47.5% | 27.1% | 60.9% | 42 (16.5%) | |
| Seattle, WA | 41,515 | 1,205 | 71.3% | 20.6% | 26.9% | 61 (10.3%) | HVAC = furnaces; heat pumps filed separately |
| Somerville, MA | 8,183 | 2,398 | 50.6% | 23.4% | 49.4% | 62 (15.4%) | |
| St. Louis, MO | 2,543 | 1,177 | 30.3% | 20.3% | 71.9% | 24 (27.6%) | |
| Sugar Land, TX | 9,249 | 1,714 | 45.2% | 20.2% | 51.6% | 67 (20.4%) | |
| Tyler, TX | 10,365 | 1,052 | 48.4% | 17.4% | 45.2% | 66 (20.6%) | remodel includes additions |
| Waco, TX | 12,752 | 916 | 52.1% | 17.0% | 42.0% | 44 (14.9%) | |
| Wheaton, IL | 2,875 | 659 | 37.5% | 20.9% | 61.5% | 18 (24.0%) | finish = last passed inspection |
| Wilmington, NC | 7,800 | 1,072 | 54.6% | 19.5% | 38.3% | 55 (17.6%) |
Every city, every trade
Each cell is the number of named firms in the trade, then (in brackets) the share that filed a permit in the last 12 months on file. Figures link to the compare page for the trade, which lists those firms with their permits in the last year and flags any with none in 12 months. A dash means no such trade, fewer than 200 permits or 20 named firms, or too few filings in the last 12 months to compare (see the Notes column).
| City | Electrical | Plumbing | HVAC | Roofing | Remodel | New home | Solar | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque, NM | — | — | — | — | 180 (26.1%) | 136 (39.0%) | — | solar left out: few filings in the last 12 months |
| Ames, IA | 76 (72.4%) | 73 (75.3%) | 50 (74.0%) | — | 84 (51.2%) | — | — | |
| Anaheim, CA | 640 (47.5%) | 129 (53.5%) | 210 (50.0%) | 568 (48.2%) | 423 (39.5%) | — | 258 (44.6%) | |
| Arlington, VA | 524 (59.7%) | 448 (62.5%) | 274 (58.8%) | — | 346 (46.5%) | 119 (52.1%) | 41 (56.1%) | county permits |
| Austin, TX | 1,193 (58.2%) | 991 (59.3%) | 819 (58.5%) | — | 836 (48.9%) | 645 (46.2%) | — | |
| Bellevue, WA | 781 (63.1%) | 358 (56.4%) | 570 (54.2%) | 92 (44.6%) | 394 (35.3%) | — | — | |
| Bellingham, WA | 151 (70.9%) | — | 68 (70.6%) | — | 101 (37.6%) | 68 (45.6%) | 29 (65.5%) | |
| Bend, OR | 190 (67.9%) | 191 (60.7%) | 169 (60.9%) | — | 180 (46.7%) | 149 (53.7%) | 33 (63.6%) | |
| Bismarck, ND | 77 (72.7%) | 44 (72.7%) | 40 (75.0%) | — | 113 (43.4%) | 70 (68.6%) | — | remodel includes additions |
| Boulder, CO | 355 (50.7%) | — | 324 (63.3%) | 426 (59.9%) | 414 (53.1%) | — | 112 (60.7%) | |
| Burlington, VT | 204 (65.2%) | — | — | 156 (49.4%) | 288 (46.5%) | — | — | roofing includes siding |
| Cambridge, MA | 1,038 (53.3%) | 802 (51.7%) | 470 (40.9%) | 353 (39.4%) | 1,395 (40.8%) | — | 69 (53.6%) | remodel includes additions |
| Cape Coral, FL | 311 (80.1%) | 186 (75.8%) | 455 (83.5%) | 465 (55.1%) | 313 (69.6%) | 362 (73.5%) | 88 (75.0%) | 21 months of data |
| Cary, NC | 279 (56.6%) | 106 (58.5%) | 372 (66.9%) | — | 626 (51.9%) | 79 (49.4%) | 37 (56.8%) | |
| Chicago, IL | 855 (70.6%) | 644 (67.9%) | 1,138 (58.7%) | 433 (52.2%) | 710 (44.4%) | 458 (46.1%) | 58 (63.8%) | |
| Cincinnati, OH | — | 258 (65.9%) | 385 (53.8%) | — | 853 (44.8%) | 122 (44.3%) | — | |
| Citrus Heights, CA | 344 (52.9%) | 94 (55.3%) | 302 (54.3%) | 365 (59.2%) | 244 (42.6%) | — | 77 (53.2%) | remodel includes additions |
| Cleveland, OH | 361 (62.3%) | 296 (58.1%) | 235 (61.3%) | 586 (50.9%) | 556 (42.4%) | 65 (43.1%) | — | |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 513 (70.2%) | 375 (74.7%) | 421 (77.2%) | 709 (68.5%) | 422 (57.3%) | 122 (48.4%) | 140 (52.1%) | remodel includes additions |
| Columbus, OH | 499 (66.7%) | 357 (60.2%) | 527 (59.0%) | — | 635 (45.4%) | 148 (45.9%) | — | |
| Denton, TX | 159 (51.6%) | 123 (56.9%) | 216 (63.9%) | 247 (47.8%) | 154 (48.1%) | 72 (55.6%) | 76 (27.6%) | |
| Denver, CO | — | — | — | — | 858 (56.9%) | 270 (52.6%) | — | |
| Elk Grove, CA | 219 (50.7%) | 134 (54.5%) | 339 (53.7%) | 200 (53.0%) | 262 (43.1%) | 20 (50.0%) | 115 (60.0%) | remodel includes additions |
| Greensboro, NC | 942 (63.0%) | 415 (64.8%) | 545 (65.9%) | — | 405 (58.3%) | 123 (59.3%) | 33 (60.6%) | |
| Henderson, NV | 203 (64.5%) | 198 (68.2%) | 29 (51.7%) | — | 191 (62.3%) | 80 (57.5%) | 83 (51.8%) | |
| Honolulu, HI | 408 (66.7%) | — | — | — | 351 (49.6%) | 197 (61.9%) | 110 (60.0%) | file ends Jun 2025 |
| Marin County, CA | 315 (53.0%) | 94 (66.0%) | 131 (48.1%) | 300 (54.7%) | 379 (34.0%) | — | 199 (35.2%) | unincorporated county |
| Medford, OR | 96 (66.7%) | 73 (76.7%) | 83 (60.2%) | — | — | 81 (50.6%) | 26 (53.8%) | remodel includes additions |
| Mesa, AZ | 118 (35.6%) | 65 (30.8%) | — | — | — | 56 (46.4%) | 47 (51.1%) | |
| Miami, FL | 1,029 (62.1%) | 1,002 (65.3%) | 846 (61.1%) | 908 (62.4%) | 1,475 (46.2%) | 311 (51.1%) | 74 (47.3%) | |
| Minneapolis, MN | — | 497 (74.6%) | 298 (74.2%) | 1,483 (45.3%) | 1,424 (51.1%) | 71 (42.3%) | 35 (57.1%) | |
| Naperville, IL | 196 (31.6%) | 94 (51.1%) | — | — | 467 (51.4%) | 92 (42.4%) | 57 (45.6%) | timed only in the permit system used from 2024 |
| Nashville, TN | 1,162 (65.7%) | 629 (64.7%) | 937 (54.1%) | — | — | 2,252 (51.6%) | — | 37 months of data |
| New York City, NY | 1,252 (76.4%) | 709 (67.6%) | 1,418 (48.0%) | — | — | 297 (52.5%) | 87 (75.9%) | HVAC includes boilers |
| Orlando, FL | 751 (59.4%) | 468 (57.1%) | 759 (56.1%) | 1,058 (52.7%) | 800 (51.4%) | 292 (41.8%) | 138 (39.9%) | |
| Palo Alto, CA | 426 (46.9%) | 192 (51.0%) | 182 (51.6%) | 398 (46.2%) | 420 (43.3%) | — | 103 (55.3%) | |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 329 (62.3%) | — | 153 (64.7%) | — | — | — | 59 (74.6%) | remodel includes windows; remodel left out: few filings in the last 12 months |
| Provo, UT | — | — | — | 67 (58.2%) | 150 (39.3%) | 66 (37.9%) | — | |
| Raleigh, NC | 942 (66.0%) | 513 (64.3%) | 638 (63.3%) | — | — | 206 (61.7%) | — | |
| Sacramento County, CA | 936 (52.1%) | 175 (49.7%) | 581 (55.2%) | 748 (56.1%) | 864 (48.6%) | 72 (59.7%) | 236 (52.5%) | unincorporated county; remodel includes additions |
| Saint Paul, MN | 750 (66.4%) | 463 (69.8%) | 282 (64.9%) | 1,301 (54.0%) | 955 (45.9%) | — | 30 (56.7%) | |
| San Diego, CA | 576 (49.5%) | 375 (43.5%) | 177 (54.2%) | — | 534 (48.7%) | 91 (41.8%) | 423 (54.6%) | |
| San Diego County, CA | 760 (48.0%) | 288 (42.4%) | 218 (55.0%) | 294 (49.7%) | 225 (40.0%) | 129 (38.0%) | 495 (57.0%) | unincorporated county |
| San Francisco, CA | — | — | — | 1,072 (49.9%) | 1,925 (53.7%) | — | 116 (81.9%) | |
| Scottsdale, AZ | 760 (50.8%) | 687 (41.6%) | 94 (41.5%) | — | 432 (42.1%) | 304 (51.0%) | 137 (47.4%) | |
| Seattle, WA | 899 (71.1%) | — | 316 (73.1%) | 61 (54.1%) | — | — | 81 (70.4%) | HVAC = furnaces; heat pumps filed separately |
| Somerville, MA | 762 (51.7%) | 489 (53.4%) | 230 (52.2%) | 303 (40.3%) | 755 (44.8%) | — | 77 (49.4%) | |
| St. Louis, MO | — | — | — | 204 (31.9%) | 984 (29.5%) | — | — | |
| Sugar Land, TX | 466 (50.6%) | 276 (54.7%) | 230 (49.6%) | 604 (36.9%) | — | — | 64 (48.4%) | |
| Tyler, TX | 235 (54.0%) | 129 (63.6%) | 144 (55.6%) | 218 (38.5%) | 187 (35.3%) | 199 (44.7%) | 63 (31.7%) | remodel includes additions |
| Waco, TX | 203 (55.7%) | 132 (62.1%) | 134 (60.4%) | 211 (47.9%) | 95 (16.8%) | 132 (52.3%) | 74 (40.5%) | |
| Wheaton, IL | 114 (32.5%) | 62 (40.3%) | 69 (39.1%) | 295 (39.3%) | 142 (38.0%) | — | — | finish = last passed inspection |
| Wilmington, NC | 414 (46.1%) | 246 (47.2%) | 293 (48.8%) | — | 259 (50.2%) | 222 (53.2%) | 20 (60.0%) |
What this means when you hire
- A long list is not a deep bench. In the usual city only about half of the firms on record filed a permit in the last 12 months on file (the tables above have each city), so the number that can take your job this season is smaller than the total. The compare page shows each firm's permits in the last year and flags firms with none.
- Gone-quiet firms deserve one question. A firm with a real track record that has stopped filing may have closed, been sold or moved on. Ask where their last few jobs were and check those addresses with the city.
- New and one-permit firms have little record. That is not a red flag, but there is less to go on. Our contractor red flags guide and how to check a contractor's permit history cover what to ask instead.
How evenly the work is spread among those firms is a separate question, covered in contractor market concentration by city.
How we know this
What is counted. Business names on permits for houses and small residential buildings in seven trades, issued in the city's data window (three years to September 2026 in most cities; see the Notes column). Names are grouped ignoring case, punctuation and legal suffixes; owner-builder entries are left out. "Last 12 months on file" ends at the last month of each city's file, so for a city whose file ends early (Honolulu in June 2025) it is that file's last year, not this one.
Thresholds. A city-and-trade cell is shown when the trade has 200 or more permits and 20 or more named firms. New and gone-quiet figures need at least 24 months of data, so they are left out for Cape Coral, whose file starts in January 2025. A trade whose last 12 months hold under a quarter of the permits an even pace would give is left out of the active, new and gone-quiet figures and of the city-wide row, because that is a gap in the city's feed rather than firms leaving (Pittsburgh's remodel permits, for example).
Caveats. These are permit filers, not licensed or registered businesses: a firm that works without permits is not here, and a firm filing under two names counts twice. A subcontractor whose work is filed under the general contractor does not appear. A shrinking trade (solar filings fell in many cities in the last year on file) lowers the active share for reasons that have nothing to do with the firms. San Diego County, Marin County and Sacramento County are unincorporated-county permits only.
Regenerating. The tables are built by seo/tools/studies.py from the same files as every compare page; rerun it after a data refresh.
Numbers come from public permit records in 53 cities, data through October 22, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Pick your city and see which firms filed permits this year →
Questions
- How many contractors work in my city?
The tables count firms that filed at least one home permit in the trade in the data window, usually three years. Seattle, for example, has 899 electrical firms on record, and 639 of them filed a permit in the last 12 months on file. Firms that only work on commercial buildings, or never pull permits, are not counted.
- What does "gone quiet" mean?
A firm with five or more permits in the trade in the window but none in the last 12 months on file. It may have closed, moved, switched to commercial work or started filing under a new name. Minneapolis has 144 roofing firms in that position. If a contractor you are talking to is one of them, ask where their recent jobs are.
- Is a contractor with only one permit a bad sign?
Not by itself. Plenty of one-permit firms are small builders who do one or two jobs a year in a city, or firms based in the next town. In Seattle 241 of 899 electrical firms filed one permit in three years. One permit does mean there is little record to judge them on, so ask for addresses of past jobs and look those up.
- What counts as a new contractor?
A firm whose first permit in the trade falls in the last 12 months on file, after at least two earlier years with none. That is new to the permit record in that city, not necessarily a new business: an established firm from a neighboring city that starts working here counts as new too.
- Are owner-builders counted?
No. Permits where the owner is listed as the contractor are left out of every count here, so the figures are firms that work for others. Each firm counts once per trade, and once in the city-wide table however many of the seven trades it works in.
Build your own list
Pick your city and the kind of work. Every firm with a permit on record, sorted by what you value.
Related guides
- How many contractors are licensed? License match rates by city and trade
- How concentrated is the contractor market? Top-5 share by city and trade
- Which cities' contractors finish their permits? Completion rates in 2026
- Where permits stay open: share of permits still open after a year, by city and trade