NAICS code for roofing contractors: 238160, and the jobs that aren't roofing

This page is for roofing companies filling in a NAICS or SIC field (SAM.gov, a bond or insurance application, a supplier credit form, a city vendor portal) and for sellers building a list of roofers. It gives the code, the neighboring codes and when each applies, how many roofing businesses there are, and where to find them.

The NAICS code for roofing is 238160

238160, Roofing Contractors, sits in Subsector 238, Specialty Trade Contractors. The Census Bureau's definition covers establishments primarily engaged in roofing, including treating roofs (spraying, painting or coating) and installing skylights. New work, additions, alterations, maintenance and repairs all count, so a repair-only roofer and a commercial re-roofer share the code.

The Census index lists asphalt shingles, metal roofing (sheet, corrugated, copper, galvanized), roll roofing, built-up tar and gravel, roof membranes, low-slope and steep-slope roofing, solar reflective roof coatings and skylights under 238160.

The codes next to it, and how to choose

The Census cross-references move these jobs out of 238160:

NAICS classifies by primary activity, measured in practice by revenue. A roofer that installs gutters on a third of its jobs is still 238160 if roofing brings in most of the money; list 238170 as a secondary code. A storm restoration company that sells the insurance job and then subcontracts roofing, siding and interiors is acting as a general contractor (236118 for homes), not a roofer.

The SIC code for roofing

SIC 1761 is the answer for any roofing contractor. Because it also covers siding and sheet metal work, a SIC-based list of "roofers" includes siding and gutter companies; NAICS 238160 is the cleaner filter. The SEC's EDGAR list doesn't carry 1761 and files specialty trade contractors under 1700.

How many roofing businesses there are

County Business Patterns 2023 counts 25,519 roofing contractor establishments with 215,242 employees and $15.19 billion in annual payroll. The 2023 data use 2017 NAICS codes; 238160 is unchanged in 2022.

The states with the most roofing establishments are California (2,926), Texas (2,442), Florida (2,215), Illinois (1,026) and Washington (990).

The neighbors, for comparison: 238170 Siding Contractors has 9,142 establishments, 238130 Framing Contractors 12,417 and 423330 roofing and siding wholesalers 3,581. CBP counts locations with paid employees, so owner-operators without payroll aren't included, and a roofer with branches in three cities counts three times.

SBA size standards

These are the size standards in the SBA's table effective March 17, 2023. Construction codes are measured in average annual receipts over the last five completed fiscal years:

Where the code gets used, and what a wrong one costs

• Federal and public bids. A roof replacement solicitation carries one NAICS code chosen by the contracting officer, and that code's size standard decides whether you're small for the bid. Register 238160 and any secondary codes you'd bid under in SAM.gov, or agencies searching by code won't find you.
• Tax returns. The IRS Schedule C list uses 238160, Roofing contractors, the same as NAICS.
• Bonds, insurance and supplier credit. Sureties, insurers and distributors ask for a code to classify your risk. If you also install solar or run whole restoration jobs, describe that work too; a roofing code alone tells them you work on the roof and nothing else.

Finding roofing companies

No SEC-listed company is mainly a roofing contractor. The public companies in roofing make or distribute the materials, and their 10-Ks show how concentrated the supply side is:

Carlisle's 10-K says QXO and Beacon together accounted for about 16.7% of its 2025 revenue, and ABC Supply Co. for about 16.3%. Two distributors buying a third of a major manufacturer's output tells a seller where roofers buy: at distributor branches, on credit terms. QXO's 2025 figure includes Beacon only from the April 2025 acquisition. The EDGAR list for SIC 1700 shows the listed specialty trade contractors, mostly solar and mechanical firms.

For the roofers themselves, use NAICS 238160 and filter by size: the 2,464 establishments with 20 or more employees run estimators, project managers and crews, and buy software, equipment, insurance and financing. Where your state licenses roofing contractors, its license lookup confirms each firm is active. Bebop finds roofing companies from a plain-language description (residential or commercial, region, size) and researches each account.

Worked example

Illustrative example. The company and figures are invented to show the method.

Summit Ridge Roofing (summitridge.example) has 30 employees in Texas. Revenue: 70% residential re-roofs, 20% commercial roof coatings, 10% seamless gutters.

1. Primary code: 238160. Re-roofs and coatings are both roofing, 90% of revenue.
2. Secondary code: 238170 for the gutter work, listed in SAM.gov in case a base housing contract bundles gutters.
3. Size check: receipts over five years total $31.0 million, an average of $6.2 million, under the $19.0 million standard for both codes.
4. SIC for a supplier credit form: 1761.
5. Tax return: activity code 238160.

Next step: compare the rules for the other building trades on the NAICS code for construction page.