New York vs Oregon: contractor markets, side by side
New York has 28,981 active licensed contractors across the trades we cover; Oregon has 32,659 — about 1.1× fewer licensed contractors. Counts come from the NYC Department of Buildings + DCWP and the Oregon Construction Contractors Board (CCB); market figures are U.S. Census aggregates.
| New York | Oregon | |
|---|---|---|
| Active licensed contractors | 28,981 | 32,659 |
| Licenses per 10k residents | 14.5 | 77.2 |
| Residents | 19,994,326 | 4,229,341 |
| Households | 8,494,175 | 1,818,529 |
| Median household income | $89,542 | $80,169 |
| Building permits (2025) | 38,667 | 14,679 |
| Top city by licenses | Brooklyn | Portland |
Oregon is the denser market: 77.2 active licenses per 10k residents against 14.5 in New York. 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 New York — $89,542 median against $80,169 in Oregon — which generally shows up in project budgets and ticket sizes.
Trade by trade
| Trade | New York | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
| Electricians | 3,510 | 1,168 |
| Plumbers | 1,148 | 1,877 |
| HVAC Contractors | 103 | 429 |
| General Contractors | 23,751 | 29,185 |
| Fire-Protection Contractors | 469 | — |
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.