Florida vs Illinois: contractor markets, side by side
Florida has 108,645 active licensed contractors across the trades we cover; Illinois has 14,951 — about 7× more licensed contractors. Counts come from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) and the IDFPR + Chicago Department of Buildings; market figures are U.S. Census aggregates.
| Florida | Illinois | |
|---|---|---|
| Active licensed contractors | 108,645 | 14,951 |
| Licenses per 10k residents | 50.2 | 11.7 |
| Residents | 21,634,506 | 12,757,583 |
| Households | 9,915,946 | 5,427,336 |
| Median household income | $71,602 | $84,033 |
| Building permits (2025) | 178,297 | 18,551 |
| Top city by licenses | Miami | Chicago |
Florida is the denser market: 50.2 active licenses per 10k residents against 11.7 in Illinois. 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 Illinois — $84,033 median against $71,602 in Florida — which generally shows up in project budgets and ticket sizes.
Trade by trade
| Trade | Florida | Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| Electricians | 13,814 | 2,567 |
| Plumbers | 8,257 | 943 |
| HVAC Contractors | 13,544 | — |
| General Contractors | 58,081 | 6,074 |
| Roofing Contractors | 9,917 | 4,404 |
| Solar Contractors | 431 | — |
| Pool Contractors | 4,601 | — |
| Masons | — | 963 |
| Excavating Contractors | 2,570 | — |
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.