Ohio vs Oregon: contractor markets, side by side
Ohio has 12,409 active licensed contractors across the trades we cover; Oregon has 32,659 — about 2.6× fewer licensed contractors. Counts come from the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) and the Oregon Construction Contractors Board (CCB); market figures are U.S. Census aggregates.
| Ohio | Oregon | |
|---|---|---|
| Active licensed contractors | 12,409 | 32,659 |
| Licenses per 10k residents | 10.5 | 77.2 |
| Residents | 11,774,683 | 4,229,341 |
| Households | 5,251,186 | 1,818,529 |
| Median household income | $71,229 | $80,169 |
| Building permits (2025) | 33,640 | 14,679 |
| Top city by licenses | Cincinnati | Portland |
Oregon is the denser market: 77.2 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 Oregon — $80,169 median against $71,229 in Ohio — which generally shows up in project budgets and ticket sizes.
Trade by trade
| Trade | Ohio | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
| Electricians | 4,449 | 1,168 |
| Plumbers | 3,061 | 1,877 |
| HVAC Contractors | 4,899 | 429 |
| General Contractors | — | 29,185 |
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.