- Arizona requires a Registrar of Contractors license for general contracting.
- The qualifying party needs at least four years of practical or management experience, at least two within the last ten years, and must meet the class requirements.
- Plan for two exams: the trade exam and a business and law exam.
- Pay runs from about $37.50 an hour for the lowest-paid tenth of general contractors to $81.04 for the top tenth.
- Jobs are projected to grow 11.9% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 4.5% projected nationally.
The path in Arizona, step by step
Arizona licenses general contractor work at the state level through the Arizona Registrar of Contractors. These are the steps it lays out, in order.
- Pick your class: B or B-3 for homes, B-1 or B-2 for commercial, or KB-1 or KB-2 for both.
- Make sure your qualifying party has four years of experience, two of them in the last ten years.
- If you use an LLC or corporation, register it with the Arizona Corporation Commission first.
- Pass the online SRE exam through Gmetrix and the trade exam through PSI, each with 70% or better.
- Submit background checks and ID for everyone on the license, plus your license bond.
- Apply and pay on the ROC online portal, then renew every two years.
The full license guide, with every fee and form: general contractor license in Arizona.
Finding an apprenticeship in Arizona
Arizona runs Registered Apprenticeship through its own State Apprenticeship Agency, recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor to register and oversee programs there. Its staff are state employees, and it may use the federal paperwork or forms of its own. Apprenticeship.gov lists the Arizona State Apprenticeship Agency as the contact.
Either way, a registered program means paid work with a mentor, raises as you progress, classroom instruction and a credential recognized in every state. Search open spots in the Apprenticeship Job Finder.
Across the country. New construction managers are usually hired as assistants and work under an experienced manager for up to a year, sometimes longer.
License levels and exams in Arizona
The license to aim for: B General Residential, B-1 General Commercial, B-2 General Small Commercial, or KB-1 / KB-2 Dual.
Trade exam. Yes, through PSI, online or at a testing center. The fee is $66 and you need 70% to pass. B, B-3 and CR-61 share one combined exam, and B-1, B-2, KB-1 and KB-2 share another. For B-1, B-2, KB-1 and KB-2 you may take the NASCLA Commercial General Building exam instead.
Business exam. Yes. The Arizona Statutes and Rules Training Course and Exam (SRE), an open book course and exam online through Gmetrix. The fee is $61.
Keeping it. Licenses run two years. The late renewal fee is $50.
Coming from another state. Arizona has no direct reciprocity. The registrar may waive the trade exam and experience if your qualifying party held a comparable license in another state, gained by exam, within the past 5 years. The SRE exam generally cannot be waived.
| License | What it covers |
|---|---|
| B General Residential Contractor | Build and repair all or any part of a home or its appurtenances. Electrical, plumbing, air conditioning, boilers, pools, spas and wells must be subcontracted. |
| B-3 General Remodeling and Repair Contractor | Remodel and repair existing homes, including carpentry. Electrical, plumbing and mechanical work must be subcontracted. |
| B-1 General Commercial Contractor | Build, alter and repair commercial structures and manage the work. |
| B-2 General Small Commercial Contractor | Commercial projects of $2,000,000 or less, labor and materials included. |
| KB-1 Dual Building Contractor | The B-1 commercial and B residential scopes together. |
| KB-2 Dual Residential and Small Commercial | The B-2 small commercial and B residential scopes together. |
What the Arizona license costs
The fees the Arizona Registrar of Contractors lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| New general residential license (B, B-3 and others): application, license fee and recovery fund | $870 |
| New general commercial license (A, B-1, B-2): application and license fee | $780 |
| New general dual license (KA, KB-1, KB-2): application, license fee and recovery fund | $1,050 |
| Renewal, general residential | $590 |
| Renewal, general commercial | $580 |
| Renewal, general dual | $750 |
| SRE statutes and rules exam (paid to Gmetrix) | $61 |
| Trade exam (paid to PSI) | $66 |
What general contractors earn in Arizona
The median general contractor in Arizona earned $55.14 an hour in May 2025, 20th of 51 states, with 9,910 on payrolls. The national median was $55.28.
At the bottom of the range, a quarter of general contractors in Arizona earned under $45.77 an hour and a tenth under $37.50. At the top, a quarter earned over $65.55 and a tenth over $81.04.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $37.50 | $77,990 |
| 25th percentile | $45.77 | $95,200 |
| Median | $55.14 | $114,680 |
| 75th percentile | $65.55 | $136,350 |
| 90th percentile | $81.04 | $168,560 |
BLS has no separate wage figure for general contractors. These are its numbers for construction managers, the group BLS files general contractors under. They count managers on a payroll, so owners who run their own contracting business are not in them. Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: general contractor salary in Arizona.
Jobs ahead in Arizona
Arizona's labor market office projects jobs for general contractors growing from 9,640 in 2022 to 10,790 in 2032, a change of 11.9%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 840 openings a year.
Jobs are projected to grow 11.9% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 4.5% projected nationally, ranking 22nd of the 49 states in the file.
These are the state's own long-term projections, published together on Projections Central for the occupation group construction managers.
Starting your own general contractor business in Arizona
To contract on your own in Arizona, the license is the B General Residential, B-1 General Commercial, B-2 General Small Commercial, or KB-1 / KB-2 Dual.
Insurance. You must attest that you follow the state workers' compensation rules, and at renewal licensees with employees give their workers' comp policy number and insurer. Check with the board for liability insurance.
Bond. Residential general: $9,000 if yearly volume is under $750,000, or $15,000 at $750,000 or more. Commercial general: $5,000 up to $100,000 based on yearly volume. A dual license combines both amounts.
Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Arizona median of $55.14 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $167.42 per billable hour. Try your own in the labor rate calculator.
The full checklist is in how to start a general contracting business. The free Koira Office plan gives you a website on a Koira address, estimates customers sign with a deposit, invoices with card payments and your day's jobs in one place, with no per-person fee. See the plans.
Where this comes from
The license steps, fees and rules are from the official pages below, read on the date shown. Pay is the BLS May 2025 state estimate, the job outlook is Arizona's own long-term projection, and the apprenticeship details are from the U.S. Department of Labor. A detail an official page did not confirm is left out.
- AZ ROC license classifications (checked 2026-10-08)
- AZ ROC license and renewal fees (checked 2026-10-08)
- AZ ROC bond information (checked 2026-10-08)
- AZ ROC applying for a license (checked 2026-10-08)
- AZ ROC renew a license checklist (checked 2026-10-08)
- A.R.S. 32-1122, qualifications (checked 2026-10-08)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 11-9021
- Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2022 to 2032 (state labor market offices) (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Apprenticeship System (Office of Apprenticeship and State Apprenticeship Agencies) (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, State Offices (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Registered Apprenticeship Program (checked 2026-10-09)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Construction Managers (checked 2026-10-09)
Training, schools and certifications for every state: how to become a general contractor.