California vs Nevada: contractor markets, side by side
California has 222,093 active licensed contractors across the trades we cover; Nevada has 15,178 — about 15× more licensed contractors. Counts come from the California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) and the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB); market figures are U.S. Census aggregates.
| California | Nevada | |
|---|---|---|
| Active licensed contractors | 222,093 | 15,178 |
| Licenses per 10k residents | 54.4 | 40.4 |
| Residents | 40,805,409 | 3,752,362 |
| Households | 14,984,242 | 1,578,064 |
| Median household income | $97,970 | $71,790 |
| Building permits (2025) | 103,856 | 18,628 |
| Top city by licenses | Los Angeles | Las Vegas |
California is the denser market: 54.4 active licenses per 10k residents against 40.4 in Nevada. Density cuts both ways — more contractors to sell to per square mile, and more competition per job for the contractors themselves.
Household income runs higher in California — $97,970 median against $71,790 in Nevada — which generally shows up in project budgets and ticket sizes.
Trade by trade
| Trade | California | Nevada |
|---|---|---|
| Electricians | 29,015 | 2,207 |
| Plumbers | 18,070 | 1,019 |
| HVAC Contractors | 12,176 | 1,217 |
| General Contractors | 118,454 | 4,047 |
| Roofing Contractors | 5,678 | 420 |
| Solar Contractors | 1,217 | 24 |
| Landscape Contractors | 12,644 | 742 |
| Pool Contractors | 2,967 | 214 |
| Fire-Protection Contractors | 2,275 | 142 |
| Carpenters | 1,086 | 1,482 |
| Concrete Contractors | 5,674 | 730 |
| Masons | 2,149 | 376 |
| Drywall Contractors | 3,342 | 327 |
| Tile Contractors | 6,487 | 407 |
| Excavating Contractors | 2,516 | 368 |
| Painters | 16,279 | 985 |
| Flooring Contractors | 7,147 | 678 |
Counts are active licenses only, from each state's license board. A “—” means that board doesn't issue a statewide license for the trade, not that the trade doesn't exist there.