How to check a contractor license in North Carolina

The North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors licenses anyone building or remodeling a project worth $40,000 or more. Search its license portal by name, company or license number to see the classification and status. Electricians answer to a separate electrical contractors board, and plumbing and HVAC contractors to the plumbing, heating and fire sprinkler board.

How do I find out if a contractor is licensed in North Carolina?

Search the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors' license portal. Enter at least one field, such as the license number or company name, and confirm the license is active, the company matches and the classification covers the job.

Get the license number or the company name from the contractor.
Open the NCLBGC license search. We last checked this lookup on 2026-10-19.
Fill in at least one field. You can search by classification, license number, qualifier number, company name, a person's first and last name, phone number or street address.
Tick "Include like sounding names" if you aren't sure how the name is spelled.
Open the record and confirm the license is active and the company name matches the one on your contract.
Check that the classification fits the work. The board's classifications run from building through specialty trades such as roofing and swimming pools.

If a licensed contractor's work goes wrong, the board's home page links to its complaint portal. A complaint filed there goes to the board that issued the license.

Does North Carolina require a general contractor license?

Yes, for any project valued at $40,000 or more. Below that amount, the state doesn't require a general contractor license, so a smaller job can go to someone with no NCLBGC license at all.

That leaves a lot of home work outside the board, from a new deck to a bathroom refresh. On a smaller job, ask for insurance on file, get references from people you know, and ask the county permit office whether the work needs a permit.

Who licenses electricians and plumbers in North Carolina?

Two separate boards do. The State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors licenses electrical contractors, and the State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors licenses plumbing, heating and air conditioning, fuel gas piping and fire sprinkler contractors.

Each board runs its own search. The electrical board's license search and the plumbing, heating and fire sprinkler board's license search work like the NCLBGC portal, where you fill in at least one field such as license number or company name. A kitchen remodel with new wiring and a moved sink can mean three lookups.

The plumbing board lists separate classes for plumbing, heating, fuel piping and fire sprinkler work, so match the class to the job. If a record is unclear, call the electrical board at 919-733-9042 or the plumbing, heating and fire sprinkler board at 919-875-3612.

What does a North Carolina license lookup not tell you?

It tells you who holds a license and for what, not how well they work. Use it as the minimum before you refer anyone. For contractors based next door, the state-by-state guide has the lookups for South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia.

A missing record isn't always a problem. On a project under $40,000, a contractor can work without an NCLBGC license.
One license doesn't cover every trade. A general contractor's license doesn't license the electrician or the plumber, who need their own.
The lookup is about the license, not insurance. For a big job, ask the contractor for a current certificate of insurance.

A job near a state line can involve a contractor based next door, so check that state's records too. The lookups for Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia and South Carolina are on their own pages.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so confirm details with the NCLBGC or the trade 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 North Carolina you still run the lookup above by hand. Here's how Proferral's license checks work.

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