How to become a general contractor in Florida

The path in Florida, step by step

Florida licenses general contractor work at the state level through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Construction Industry Licensing Board. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Build four years of experience with one year as a foreman, or a degree plus one year.
2. Register with Professional Testing Inc and pass the Business and Finance, Contract Administration and Project Management exams.
3. Get a credit report, fingerprints, liability insurance and workers compensation coverage or exemption.
4. Apply to DBPR for certification, pay the application fee, and submit fingerprints right after you apply.
5. Renew every two years with 14 hours of continuing education and the $205 renewal fee.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: general contractor license in Florida.

Finding an apprenticeship in Florida

Florida 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 Florida 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 Florida

The license to aim for: Certified General Contractor (CG), Building Contractor (CB) or Residential Contractor (CR).

Trade exam. Yes. Contract Administration and Project Management exams (Division I), registered through Professional Testing Inc. Passing score is 70 percent.

Business exam. Yes. A Business and Finance exam, scheduled at Pearson VUE after registering with Professional Testing Inc. Passing score is 70 percent.

Keeping it. Every two years, with 14 hours of continuing education, including wind mitigation for some categories and at least one hour of laws and rules.

Coming from another state. Florida has reciprocal agreements for general, building and residential licenses with Louisiana, North Carolina and Mississippi. A NASCLA exam may also help if the transcript is released to the board.

What the Florida license costs

The fees the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Construction Industry Licensing Board lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.

What general contractors earn in Florida

The median general contractor in Florida earned $54.39 an hour in May 2025, 22nd of 51 states, with 34,010 on payrolls. The national median was $55.28.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of general contractors in Florida earned under $41.31 an hour and a tenth under $31.35. At the top, a quarter earned over $77.97 and a tenth over $100.70.

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 Florida.

Jobs ahead in Florida

Florida's labor market office projects jobs for general contractors growing from 41,310 in 2022 to 47,840 in 2032, a change of 15.8%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 3,790 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 15.8% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 4.5% projected nationally, ranking 10th 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 Florida

To contract on your own in Florida, the license is the Certified General Contractor (CG), Building Contractor (CB) or Residential Contractor (CR).

Insurance. General and building contractors: at least $300,000 public liability and $50,000 property damage. Other categories: $100,000 and $25,000. Workers compensation or an exemption is also required.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Florida median of $54.39 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $166.11 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.