How to check a contractor license in Missouri

Missouri has no statewide license for general contractors or home builders, so a contractor's license, if one is needed, comes from the city or county where the work is done. Call that building department to check it. Electrical contractors can hold a state license, which you can search in the Division of Professional Registration's MOPRO licensee search.

How do I check a contractor license in Missouri?

Start with the city or county, because that's where any general contractor license in Missouri comes from. For an electrical contractor, also search the state's MOPRO licensee search.

Find out which city or county the home is in.
Call that building department, or check its website, and ask whether it licenses the kind of contractor you're hiring and whether this contractor holds one.
Ask the same office whether the contractor has pulled permits there, and make sure the permit for this job will be in the contractor's name.
For electrical work, open the MOPRO licensee search at mopro.mo.gov and search for the electrical contractor.
Check that the record matches the business on the bid and that the license is current.

We last checked this lookup on 2026-10-19. The MOPRO search is a JavaScript page that didn't load for our scripted check that day, so open it in a regular web browser. If it won't load for you either, call the Office of Statewide Electrical Contractors at 573-522-3280 or start from its page on pr.mo.gov.

Does Missouri require a general contractor license?

No, not at the state level. The Division of Professional Registration's list of boards includes electrical contractors but has no board for general contractors, home builders or plumbers. Where a license exists, it comes from the city or county.

What should you check where there is no state license?

Check whatever the local office can tell you, then fill the gaps yourself. Without a state record, the paperwork the contractor hands you carries more weight.

Ask which local license the contractor holds, and confirm it with the city or county that issued it.
Ask for a current certificate of insurance, then call the insurance agent named on it to confirm the policy is still active.
Make sure the permit is pulled in the contractor's name, not the homeowner's.
Get the business's legal name, and check that it matches the license, the insurance certificate and the contract.

Does Missouri have a statewide electrical license?

Yes. The Office of Statewide Electrical Contractors, part of the Division of Professional Registration, began accepting applications for the electrical contractor license on July 1, 2019. Its licensees appear in the MOPRO licensee search.

The state license is for electrical contractors, and the office's page doesn't describe a statewide license for general contractors or other trades. Ask the city or county about the permit for the electrical work as well.

Who licenses plumbers in Missouri?

Not the state. The Division of Professional Registration has no plumbing board, so plumbing licenses, where they exist, are a city or county matter. Ask the building department where the work is done whether it licenses plumbers and whether this plumber holds one.

What should you check beyond the license?

A local license or a state electrical license tells you the contractor met a licensing office's rules. It doesn't tell you whether the work is good, or whether the insurance is still in force today. For that, talk to homeowners the contractor has worked for, and ask for a certificate of insurance dated close to the job.

Licensing rules differ from state to state, so a Missouri habit won't carry over. When a client is buying somewhere else, the guides for other states walk through each state's lookup.

A job near a state line can involve a contractor based next door, so check that state's records too. The lookups for Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska are on their own pages.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so confirm details with your city or county building department or the Division of Professional Registration.

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 Missouri you still run the lookup above by hand. Here's how Proferral's license checks work.

Start your list, free

It's free, no credit card needed, and you're never charged unless you choose Pro.