California vs Ohio: contractor markets, side by side
California has 222,093 active licensed contractors across the trades we cover; Ohio has 12,409 — about 18× more licensed contractors. Counts come from the California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) and the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB); market figures are U.S. Census aggregates.
| California | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| Active licensed contractors | 222,093 | 12,409 |
| Licenses per 10k residents | 54.4 | 10.5 |
| Residents | 40,805,409 | 11,774,683 |
| Households | 14,984,242 | 5,251,186 |
| Median household income | $97,970 | $71,229 |
| Building permits (2025) | 103,856 | 33,640 |
| Top city by licenses | Los Angeles | Cincinnati |
California is the denser market: 54.4 active licenses per 10k residents against 10.5 in Ohio. 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 $71,229 in Ohio — which generally shows up in project budgets and ticket sizes.
Trade by trade
| Trade | California | Ohio |
|---|---|---|
| Electricians | 29,015 | 4,449 |
| Plumbers | 18,070 | 3,061 |
| HVAC Contractors | 12,176 | 4,899 |
| General Contractors | 118,454 | — |
| Roofing Contractors | 5,678 | — |
| Solar Contractors | 1,217 | — |
| Landscape Contractors | 12,644 | — |
| Pool Contractors | 2,967 | — |
| Fire-Protection Contractors | 2,275 | — |
| Carpenters | 1,086 | — |
| Concrete Contractors | 5,674 | — |
| Masons | 2,149 | — |
| Drywall Contractors | 3,342 | — |
| Tile Contractors | 6,487 | — |
| Excavating Contractors | 2,516 | — |
| Painters | 16,279 | — |
| Flooring Contractors | 7,147 | — |
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.