California Contractor License Classifications

The California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) issues licenses in four primary categories. Each classification authorizes a specific scope of construction work.

General Contractors

A: General Engineering Contractor

Authorizes construction of fixed works requiring specialized engineering knowledge and skill, including irrigation, drainage, water power, water su...

15363 licensed contractors

B: General Building Contractor

Authorizes construction of structures including residential, commercial, and industrial buildings requiring at least two unrelated building trades ...

107590 licensed contractors

B-2: Residential Remodeling Contractor

Authorizes remodeling of existing residential wood-frame structures with nonstructural projects requiring at least three unrelated building trades ...

1494 licensed contractors

Specialty Contractors (Class C)

C-2: Insulation and Acoustical Contractor

Installs insulating media and preformed architectural acoustical materials for temperature and sound control, including batt, blown, rigid board, s...

1205 licensed contractors

C-4: Boiler, Hot-Water Heating and Steam Fitting Contractor

Installs, services, and repairs power boiler installations, hot-water heating systems and steam fitting, including fire-tube and water-tube boilers...

705 licensed contractors

C-5: Framing and Rough Carpentry Contractor

Performs form work, framing, and rough carpentry for framed structures, including sub-flooring, siding, exterior staircases and railings, overhead ...

1073 licensed contractors

C-6: Cabinet, Millwork and Finish Carpentry Contractor

Makes and installs cabinets, cases, sashes, doors, trims, non-bearing partitions, and other finish carpentry by cutting, surfacing, joining, gluing...

4478 licensed contractors

C-7: Low Voltage Systems Contractor

Installs, services, and maintains communication and low voltage systems not exceeding 91 volts, including telephone, sound, cable television, close...

4940 licensed contractors

C-8: Concrete Contractor

Forms, pours, places, finishes, and installs specified mass, pavement, flat and other concrete work, and places and sets screeds for pavements or f...

5662 licensed contractors

C-9: Drywall Contractor

Lays out and installs gypsum wall board and assemblies, including nonstructural metal framing members, and performs taping and texturing operations...

3308 licensed contractors

C-10: Electrical Contractor

Places, installs, erects, or connects electrical wires, fixtures, appliances, apparatus, raceways, conduits, solar photovoltaic cells, or any part ...

28895 licensed contractors

C-11: Elevator Contractor

Fabricates, erects, installs, and repairs elevators including sheave beams, motors, cable and wire rope, guides, cab, counter weights, doors, contr...

222 licensed contractors

C-12: Earthwork and Paving Contractor

Digs, moves, and places earth materials for cuts, fills, excavations, grades, trenches, backfills, and tunnels (if incidental), including use of ex...

2518 licensed contractors

C-13: Fencing Contractor

Constructs, erects, alters, or repairs all types of fences, corrals, runs, railings, game court enclosures, guard rails, barriers, playground equip...

1865 licensed contractors

C-15: Flooring and Floor Covering Contractor

Prepares surfaces and installs carpet, resilient sheet goods, resilient tile, wood floors and flooring including finishing and repair, and any othe...

7159 licensed contractors

C-16: Fire Protection Contractor

Lays out, fabricates, and installs all types of fire protection systems including all associated equipment.

2267 licensed contractors

C-17: Glazing Contractor

Selects, cuts, assembles, and installs all types of glass, glass work, mirrored glass, and glass substitutes for glazing. Fabricates and glazes fra...

3164 licensed contractors

C-20: Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) Contractor

Fabricates, installs, maintains, services, and repairs warm-air heating systems and water heating heat pumps, ventilating systems, air-conditioning...

12173 licensed contractors

C-21: Building Moving/Demolition Contractor

Raises, lowers, cribs, underpins, demolishes, moves, or removes structures including their foundations.

1866 licensed contractors

C-22: Asbestos Abatement Contractor

Performs abatement including containment, encapsulation, removal, and disposal of asbestos-containing construction materials. Operates as a stand-a...

315 licensed contractors

C-23: Ornamental Metal Contractor

Assembles, casts, cuts, shapes, forges, welds, fabricates, and installs brass, bronze, copper, cast iron, wrought iron, stainless steel, and other ...

1104 licensed contractors

C-27: Landscaping Contractor

Constructs, maintains, repairs, and installs landscape systems and facilities for public and private gardens, including preparing and grading plots...

12556 licensed contractors

C-28: Lock and Security Equipment Contractor

Evaluates, sets up, installs, maintains, and repairs all doors and door assemblies, gates, locks and locking devices, panic and fire-rated exit dev...

375 licensed contractors

C-29: Masonry Contractor

Installs concrete units, clay products, concrete and glass block, natural and manufactured stone, terra cotta, and fire brick for structural and no...

2152 licensed contractors

C-31: Construction Zone Traffic Control Contractor

Prepares or removes lane closures, flagging, or traffic diversions using portable devices such as cones, delineators, barricades, sign stands, flas...

457 licensed contractors

C-32: Parking and Highway Improvement Contractor

Applies and installs protective coatings, vehicle stops, guard rails, directional lines, buttons, markers, signs, and arrows on parking facilities,...

525 licensed contractors

C-33: Painting and Decorating Contractor

Prepares surfaces by scraping, sandblasting, or other means and applies paints, papers, textures, fabrics, pigments, oils, varnishes, shellacs, sta...

16207 licensed contractors

C-34: Pipeline Contractor

Fabricates and installs pipelines for conveyance of fluids such as water, gas, or petroleum, including protective coatings and the trenching, borin...

553 licensed contractors

C-35: Lathing and Plastering Contractor

Coats surfaces with mixtures of sand, gypsum plaster, lime and water, or cement and water, applied by trowel or spray for soundproofing and firepro...

1881 licensed contractors

C-36: Plumbing Contractor

Provides means for a supply of safe water and proper disposal of fluid waste, including piping, storage tanks, venting, gas appliances and connecti...

17934 licensed contractors

C-38: Refrigeration Contractor

Constructs, fabricates, erects, installs, maintains, services, and repairs refrigerators, refrigerated rooms, insulated spaces, temperature insulat...

1696 licensed contractors

C-39: Roofing Contractor

Installs products and repairs surfaces that seal, waterproof, and weatherproof structures using asphaltum, pitch, tar, felt, glass fabric, urethane...

5620 licensed contractors

C-42: Sanitation System Contractor

Fabricates and installs cesspools, septic tanks, storm drains, and other sewage disposal and drain structures, including cast iron, steel, concrete...

985 licensed contractors

C-43: Sheet Metal Contractor

Selects, cuts, shapes, fabricates, and installs sheet metal including cornices, flashings, gutters, leaders, pans, kitchen equipment, duct work wit...

1341 licensed contractors

C-45: Electrical Sign Contractor

Fabricates, installs, and erects electrical signs including wiring, and non-electrical signs including post/pole supported, structure-attached, and...

891 licensed contractors

C-46: Solar Contractor

Installs, modifies, maintains, and repairs thermal and photovoltaic solar energy systems.

1231 licensed contractors

C-47: General Manufactured Housing Contractor

Installs, alters, repairs, or prepares for moving manufactured homes, mobile homes, and multifamily manufactured homes, including accessory buildin...

462 licensed contractors

C-49: Tree and Palm Contractor

Plants, maintains, and removes trees and palms, including pruning, stump grinding, and tree, palm, or limb guying.

462 licensed contractors

C-50: Reinforcing Steel Contractor

Fabricates, places, and ties steel mesh or steel reinforcing bars of any profile used to reinforce concrete structures.

268 licensed contractors

C-51: Structural Steel Contractor

Fabricates and erects structural steel shapes and plates used as structural members for buildings and structures, including riveting, welding, rigg...

1582 licensed contractors

C-53: Swimming Pool Contractor

Constructs swimming pools, spas, or hot tubs, including installation of solar heating equipment using necessary trades and skills.

2951 licensed contractors

C-54: Ceramic and Mosaic Tile Contractor

Prepares surfaces and installs glazed wall, ceramic, mosaic, quarry, paver, faience, glass mosaic, and stone tiles; thin tile resembling full brick...

6466 licensed contractors

C-55: Water Conditioning Contractor

Installs water conditioning equipment with only such pipe and fittings as necessary to connect to the water supply system and to bypass excluded po...

310 licensed contractors

C-57: Well Drilling Contractor

Installs and repairs water wells and pumps by boring, drilling, excavating, casing, cementing, and cleaning to provide a supply of uncontaminated w...

750 licensed contractors

C-60: Welding Contractor

Causes metal to become permanently attached, joined, and fabricated by the use of gases and electrical energy creating sufficient heat.

1129 licensed contractors

C-61: Limited Specialty Contractor

A specialty contractor classification for fields and scopes of operations not covered by other specific C classifications. The CSLB tracks C-61 lic...

C-61 Limited Specialties (D Codes)

D-03: Awnings

Installs, modifies, or repairs aluminum, metal, vinyl, or canvas awnings and patio covers, either freestanding or attached to a structure.

D-04: Central Vacuum Systems

Installs, modifies, maintains, or repairs central vacuum systems, pneumatic tube dispatching systems, or any other pipeline operating systems of re...

D-06: Concrete Related Services

Installs reusable steel concrete form sections or interlocking precast pavers; performs post-tensioning, concrete sawing, breaking, curing, floor g...

D-09: Drilling, Blasting and Oil Field Work

Performs drilling, blasting, and oil field construction work.

D-10: Elevated Floors

Installs elevated (raised) floor systems.

D-12: Synthetic Products

Installs synthetic products and materials in construction.

D-16: Hardware, Locks and Safes

Installs, maintains, and repairs hardware, locks, and safes in construction settings.

D-21: Machinery and Pumps

Installs, maintains, and repairs machinery and pumps.

D-24: Metal Products

Fabricates and installs metal products in construction.

D-28: Doors, Gates and Activating Devices

Installs, maintains, and repairs doors, gates, and their activating devices including automatic openers.

D-29: Paperhanging

Installs wallpaper and wall coverings.

D-30: Pile Driving and Pressure Foundation Jacking

Performs pile driving and pressure foundation jacking operations.

D-31: Pole Installation and Maintenance

Installs and maintains utility and other poles.

D-34: Prefabricated Equipment

Installs prefabricated equipment in construction.

D-35: Pool and Spa Maintenance

Maintains and repairs swimming pools, spas, and hot tubs, including motors and pumps.

D-38: Sand and Water Blasting

Performs sand blasting and water blasting services.

D-39: Scaffolding

Erects and dismantles scaffolding for construction projects.

D-40: Service Station Equipment and Maintenance

Installs and maintains service station equipment.

D-41: Siding and Decking

Installs siding and constructs wooden decks and related handrails.

D-42: Sign Installation

Installs non-electrical signs.

D-49: Tree Service

Provides tree trimming, removal, and maintenance services.

D-50: Suspended Ceilings

Installs suspended ceiling systems.

D-52: Window Coverings

Installs window coverings including blinds, shades, and shutters.

D-53: Wood Tanks

Constructs and installs wood tanks.

D-56: Trenching Only

Performs trenching operations only.

D-59: Hydroseed Spraying

Performs hydroseeding and hydromulching services.

D-62: Air and Water Balancing

Performs air and water balancing for HVAC and plumbing systems.

D-63: Construction Clean-Up

Provides construction site clean-up services.

D-64: Non-Specialized

A general limited specialty designation for work not covered by any other D subcategory.

D-65: Weatherization and Energy Conservation

Performs weatherization and energy conservation work on structures.

Certifications

ASB: Asbestos Certification

An add-on certification that allows a contractor to perform asbestos abatement work within the scope of their existing license classification(s). T...

810 licensed contractors

HAZ: Hazardous Substance Removal Certification

An add-on certification for removal of hazardous substances. Only issued to contractors holding A, B, C-12, C-21, C-36, C-57, or C-61/D-40 licenses.

1859 licensed contractors

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