How to check a contractor license in Arkansas

Use "Find A Licensed Contractor" on the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board's site. On a home, a residential builder or home improvement contractor needs a license once the job costs more than $2,000 in labor and materials. Commercial contractors need one at $50,000 or more. Confirm the license type matches the work, such as remodeler or home improvement specialty.

How do I check if a contractor is licensed in Arkansas?

Use the "Find A Licensed Contractor" page of the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board, which is part of the Department of Labor and Licensing. The board licenses the construction business rather than the individual workers, so search for the company named on your contract.

Get the business name from the bid, and the license number if the contractor has it handy.
Open the board's Find A Licensed Contractor page. The page loads, but the search tool on it may only appear in a regular web browser.
Confirm that the business on the record matches the business on your contract.
Check the license type against the job. Home work falls under types such as residential building contractor, residential remodeler and residential home improvement specialty contractor.
For a roof on a home, the roofer may hold a residential roofing contractor registration instead of a builder or remodeler license.
For anything other than a single-family home, a project of $50,000 or more needs a commercial license.

We last checked this lookup on 2026-10-19. The residential remodeler license covers all kinds of construction on an existing home, up to and including additions, while the home improvement specialty license is for a business working as the prime contractor on a home. If the search won't show up, start from the board's main page on the Department of Labor and Licensing site. For other states, see how to check a contractor license, state by state.

When does a contractor need a license in Arkansas?

A contractor needs a license for work on a home once the job costs more than $2,000. Arkansas Code 17-25-513 exempts residential building and home improvement work only when the cost doesn't exceed $2,000, and that exemption doesn't apply when a project is divided into separate contracts under $2,000.

A few other exemptions matter to homeowners. Owners of a single-family home can act as their own home improvement contractor, and a subcontractor working for a licensed residential contractor doesn't need a residential license of its own. For buildings other than single-family homes, the board's commercial license applies to projects of $50,000 or more, according to the board's report to the Arkansas Legislature.

Who licenses plumbers and electricians in Arkansas?

The Contractors Licensing Board doesn't. Plumbers and gas fitters are licensed through the Arkansas Department of Health's Protective Health Codes section, and electricians and HVAC contractors are licensed by separate boards in the Department of Labor and Licensing.

The Department of Health runs a plumbing license lookup that lists master, journeyman and apprentice plumbers and gas fitters with license numbers and expiration dates. You can reach Protective Health Codes at 501-661-2642.
The Board of Electrical Examiners licenses master, journeyman, residential master, residential journeyman, air conditioning and industrial maintenance electricians. It publishes a roster you can check.
The HVAC Licensing Board licenses HVAC/R contractors and keeps its own HVAC roster.

A plumber or electrician working within a license from one of these boards doesn't also need a residential contractor license for that work. Arkansas Code 17-25-513 exempts contractors licensed by another state board when they stay within the scope of that license.

What does an Arkansas license lookup not tell you?

It doesn't tell you whether the contractor does good work. A license shows the business met the board's requirements, and that's where it stops.

It says nothing about quality. Only past customers can tell you whether a contractor is slow, hard to reach or careless.
Insurance may not be on file. The board requires proof of workers' compensation before it licenses a contractor who must carry it, but a home improvement contractor doing less than $50,000 of work in Arkansas doesn't have to show that proof.
Jobs of $2,000 or less have no license to check. Ask for a written contract with the price and scope, and for a certificate of insurance.
Complaints only appear if someone filed them. A clean record can mean unhappy customers never called the board.
It doesn't confirm who's at the door. Make sure the person on site works for the business on the license.

A job near a state line can involve a contractor based next door, so check that state's records too. The lookups for Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Oklahoma are on their own pages.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so confirm details with the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board.

Sources

Agents can keep these contractors in Proferral

Proferral is a free app real estate agents use to keep a go-to list of the providers they trust and to remember every referral they send. Its license checks cover Oregon and Washington only, so for Arkansas you still run the lookup above by hand. Here's how Proferral's license checks work.

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