Guide · California home improvement

How to read a CSLB license lookup

Before you sign, look the contractor up on the state's license search. The record is short and terse. Here is what each part means, and which lines should stop you.

Start with the official lookup

Use the Contractors State License Board's own Check a License page. You can search by license number, business name or a person's name. California requires contractors to put their license number on their ads, bids and contracts, so take the number from the bid or contract, not from a yard sign. CSLB also suggests asking to see the pocket license and a photo ID, so you know the person in front of you is the person on the license.

A license number on a flyer does not mean the license is valid today. The record is what counts.

Status: one line decides

"Current and active" is the only status that lets a contractor take your job today. Expired, suspended, revoked or inactive all mean no, and work done while a license is suspended is unlicensed work. A status can change during a job (CSLB suspends a license when workers' compensation coverage lapses, for example), so look again before each large payment, not only before you sign.

Classification: licensed, but for your job?

Each license lists its classifications: "B" general building, or specialty classes such as C-10 electrical, C-36 plumbing or C-39 roofing. A painting license does not cover a new roof. If no classification on the record matches the work, that is a real problem, not a technicality.

The $25,000 bond, and what it is not

Every active contractor must keep a $25,000 contractor's bond on file (BPC 7071.6). Two things people get wrong:

It is not insurance. It is a limited fund a surety pays out on valid claims, shared among everyone with a claim against that contractor. On a $150,000 remodel, $25,000 is a floor, not a safety net.
A second $25,000 bond appears on some records: the bond of the qualifying individual (BPC 7071.9), when the person who qualifies the license is not its owner. That is normal; it is another small fund, not extra credibility.

One kind of bond changes the payment rules: a performance and payment bond, or another bond or joint control approved by CSLB, covering the whole job. A contractor who furnishes one is exempt from the $1,000-or-10% down payment limit and from the rule against payments ahead of the work (BPC 7159.5(a)(8)). It is rare. If a contractor cites it to justify a large deposit, look for a blanket performance and payment bond on the license record, or ask for the bond itself, naming your job.

Workers' compensation: reading "exempt"

The record shows either a workers' compensation policy or an exemption: the contractor's signed statement that it has no employees. So check it against the crew. If the record says exempt and a three-person crew arrives, something is off, and an injury on your property becomes a harder question.

Five classifications must carry workers' compensation whether or not they have employees: C-8 concrete, C-20 heating and air conditioning, C-22 asbestos abatement, C-39 roofing and C-61/D-49 tree service. A rule requiring coverage for every contractor takes effect on January 1, 2028 (BPC 7125, as amended by SB 1455). Until then, "exempt" is a lawful status for most contractors working alone.

Complaints and legal actions

The lookup also shows certain complaints, citations and legal actions reported to CSLB. A recent citation about contracts or payments is exactly what you want to know before paying a deposit. CSLB may not have entered every recent event, and a clean record does not prove the quality of anyone's work.

The 60-second check

Take the number from the bid or contract.
Status: current and active, today.
A classification that matches your job.
A bond on file. If a large deposit comes up, look for a blanket performance and payment bond.
Workers' compensation that fits the crew you expect.
Look again before each large payment.

Check your contractor's record, free

Paste the quote, or a license number with a line about the job (for example "re-roof in Irvine"), and we read the contractor's live CSLB record: status, classifications, bonds, workers' compensation and disclosures, and whether a classification fits the job. No account is needed for a quick check.

Check a contractor

General information about California law, not legal advice. Checked against the official text on November 3, 2026. Sources: CSLB Check a License, CSLB workers' compensation requirements, BPC 7071.6, BPC 7159.5, BPC 7125.