Colorado · Published 2026-10-21 · Updated 2026-10-24 · By David Linda, Founder

Do roofers need a license in Colorado? The city-by-city answer

Short answer: there's no statewide roofing license in Colorado, but in most Front Range cities a roofer still needs a license or registration from the city, county or regional building department where your house is. And every residential roofing contract in Colorado has to follow state law, wherever you live.

Who licenses roofers, city by city

We checked each department's official licensing page. Here's what they say about roofers.

Where the house is	Who licenses roofers	What to know
Denver	Denver Community Planning and Development	Roofing is a Class D (specialty) license. The company needs a supervisor with a roofing certificate, such as Roof Covering/Waterproofing, Roofing-Shingles (residential only) or Metal Roof Installer. Denver doesn't accept other jurisdictions' licenses. More on Denver.
Colorado Springs and much of El Paso County	PPRBD	Roofing falls under PPRBD's specialty (D) building contractor class. An active license is required before a permit is issued, the insurance certificate must say re-roofing is covered, and licenses from other departments aren't accepted. More on PPRBD.
Aurora	City of Aurora	Aurora issues a Roofing Contractor license tied to ICC certification. Its public lookup listed 638 roofing licenses on October 21, 2026.
Thornton	City of Thornton	Class D Roofing and Class D Roofing/Siding/Windows licenses, qualified by a reciprocal jurisdiction's license or an ICC certification. Thornton's October 6, 2026 list had 322 businesses with an active roofing license.
Arvada	City of Arvada	A Class R roofing license, listed at $75 and renewed yearly, requires an ICC certification or a license from a Colorado jurisdiction that tests. Owner-occupants doing their own work are exempt.
Lakewood	City of Lakewood	Registration class 5H covers roofing and waterproofing. The first year is probationary, then registration renews every three years. Specialty fees are listed at $80 and $210.
Littleton	City of Littleton	Class D5 roofing needs ICC testing or reciprocity, and liability coverage of $1M per occurrence and $2M aggregate. Licenses expire December 31.
Boulder	City of Boulder	A city license is required for work that needs a building permit. Boulder doesn't accept other cities' licenses and requires $1M/$2M liability coverage with the city as additional insured.
Fort Collins	City of Fort Collins	Roofing is a separately licensed trade with its own ICC exam, and applicants document three projects.
Loveland and Longmont	Loveland, Longmont	Loveland lists roofing among its specialty licenses. In Longmont, Class D specialty contractors need insurance but no exam.
Highlands Ranch and unincorporated Douglas County	Douglas County Building Division	Roofing contractors register with the county before a permit is issued.
Commerce City	Commerce City	Licenses require an ICC exam or accepted reciprocal license, and roofing licenses are listed at $57.
Pueblo	Southern Colorado Building Department	Roofing licenses require a passing ICC test.

Low-slope and specialty roofs need the right class

Some cities license shingle roofing and low-slope or membrane roofing separately. Denver's Roof Covering/Waterproofing certificate covers commercial and residential roofing, while its Roofing-Shingles certificate is limited to residential shingle work. Other cities define their classes differently, so check the wording on the license itself. If your house has a flat porch roof, a membrane section or a metal roof, ask whether the roofer's license class covers that part of the job, not just the shingles. It's a common gap after hailstorms, when crews that mostly do shingles take on everything.

Do licenses transfer between cities?

Usually not, and some cities say so outright: Denver, Boulder and PPRBD don't accept other jurisdictions' licenses. But several cities accept another license as proof of qualification when you apply for theirs. Wheat Ridge, for example, accepts an active license from Aurora, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Denver, Fort Collins, Pikes Peak or Park County, and Thornton and Littleton accept reciprocal licenses. Either way, the roofer still needs a license in your city. Ask which one covers your address.

What our roofer license data shows

HomeProFax has loaded the contractor license lists from Aurora, Arvada and Thornton. They hold 933 roofing contractors: 573 on Aurora's list, 271 on Arvada's and 298 on Thornton's (as matched to our profiles).

172 of the 933 hold a roofing license in at least two of the three cities, and 37 hold one in all three. Metro roofers who work across city lines get licensed in each city, which is exactly what you want to see.
Only 3 list an out-of-state address. So a Colorado address on a license tells you little about whether a roofer has worked here long. Ask how many years they've been licensed in your city.
Nationally, we hold 7,623 roofing profiles, and 97 carry a board discipline or legal-action flag. Most are in California, where the state licenses roofers.

Where permit data exists, it's the best check. In Boulder, 634 different contractor names pulled 5,084 re-roof permits from 2021 through October 19, 2026. An experienced Boulder re-roofer has permits on file. Our Front Range hail guide has the details.

What state law requires in every roofing contract

Colorado's roofing law, C.R.S. 6-22-101 and following, applies statewide to residential roofing:

Written contract first. Before any roofing work, the roofer must give you a written contract signed by both of you, with the scope, materials, approximate dates and costs, the roofer's contact details and insurer (C.R.S. 6-22-103).
72-hour cancellation. The contract must let you rescind within 72 hours of signing and get a full refund of your deposit.
Your payment is held in trust. The contract must say, in bold type, that the roofer holds your payment in trust until materials are delivered or most of the work is done.
Insurance denial. If insurance is paying and your claim is denied in whole or in part, you can cancel within 72 hours of the written denial, and the roofer must return your payments within 10 days, minus work actually performed (C.R.S. 6-22-104).
No deductible waivers. Roofers can't advertise or promise to pay, waive or rebate your deductible (C.R.S. 6-22-105).

Why roofers are the hardest trade to check in Colorado

Because there's no state list, there's no single place to look a roofer up. Each city keeps its own records in its own format, and most don't publish them as data. For one roofer, a thorough check can mean a city license lookup, a permit search, the Secretary of State's business search and a review site or two. That's the gap HomeProFax is filling, one city list at a time.

The easy way: ask for the report

Ask every roofer you're considering for their verified HomeProFax report. It shows the city licenses we hold for that business, along with permits, business registration and other public records, on one page with sources. Browse licensed roofers in Aurora and Thornton.

City rules summarized from each department's official contractor-licensing page, checked October 2026. Roofer counts: HomeProFax data from the Aurora, Arvada and Thornton lists as of October 24, 2026. Not legal advice.

Common questions

Do roofers need a license in Colorado?

There is no state roofing license, but most Front Range cities and building departments require one. Denver, PPRBD (Colorado Springs), Aurora, Thornton, Arvada, Lakewood, Littleton, Boulder and Fort Collins all license or register roofing contractors.

Does a Denver roofing license work in Aurora or Colorado Springs?

No. Each city or building department issues its own license, and PPRBD says it does not reciprocate licenses from other departments. Some cities accept another license as proof of qualification, but the roofer still needs a local license.

How long do I have to cancel a roofing contract in Colorado?

State law requires roofing contracts to allow cancellation with a full deposit refund within 72 hours of signing, and you can also cancel within 72 hours of a written insurance claim denial.

Can a Colorado roofer cover my deductible?

No. C.R.S. 6-22-105 prohibits roofers from paying, waiving or rebating any part of an insurance deductible.

How do I check a roofer’s license quickly?

Ask the roofer for their verified HomeProFax report, which shows the city licenses and other public records we hold for the business.

Sources

Official pages we checked for this guide. Rules change, so confirm with the agency before you rely on them.

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