Short answer
The Charleston-North Charleston metro had 2,367 construction establishments with paid employees in 2023, employing 19,827 people with $1.47 billion in annual payroll, according to Census County Business Patterns. Charleston County has 1,461, Berkeley 554 and Dorchester 352. In South Carolina, general and mechanical contractors need a state license for jobs over $10,000, and residential builders need one for jobs over $5,000; a general contractor's license group sets its maximum job size.
- 2,367 construction establishments and 19,827 employees in metro Charleston in 2023, about a fifth of South Carolina's construction market.
- 2,151 establishments have fewer than 20 employees; 25 have 100 or more.
- South Carolina license groups cap job size: Group One at $100,000 per job, up to Group Five with no limit.
- Permits for 7,287 new housing units were issued in the metro in 2025, 5,799 of them single-family.
- Charleston County adopts the 2024 International Building and Residential Codes for projects submitted from 1 January 2027.
On this page
This report covers Charleston, South Carolina: the Charleston-North Charleston metro of Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties. (Charleston, West Virginia, is a separate and much smaller market.) It's for homeowners and developers choosing a contractor, firms looking for subcontractors, job seekers, and B2B sellers who sell to builders and trades.
Charleston construction at a glance
US Census Bureau County Business Patterns (CBP) 2023, construction sector (NAICS 23), Charleston-North Charleston, SC Metro Area (CBSA 16700):
| Measure | Metro Charleston, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Construction establishments | 2,367 |
| Employees | 19,827 |
| Annual payroll | $1,466,596,000 |
| Average employees per establishment | 8.4 |
| Average annual pay | $73,970 |
| Share of US construction establishments | 0.29% (of 814,557) |
| County | Establishments | Employees | Employees per establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston County, South Carolina | 1,461 | 13,514 | 9.2 |
| Berkeley County, South Carolina | 554 | 4,124 | 7.4 |
| Dorchester County, South Carolina | 352 | 2,189 | 6.2 |
South Carolina as a whole had 11,981 construction establishments and 99,054 employees in the same release, so the metro is 19.8% of the state's establishments and 20.0% of its construction jobs. Charleston County alone has 62% of the metro's contractors.
Firm size
| Employees per establishment | Establishments |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 1,548 |
| 5 to 9 | 368 |
| 10 to 19 | 235 |
| 20 to 49 | 147 |
| 50 to 99 | 44 |
| 100 to 249 | 21 |
| 250 to 499 | 4 |
| 500 or more | Not published |
That's 2,151 establishments (90.9%) with 1 to 19 employees, 191 with 20 to 99 and 25 with 100 or more. The Census Bureau doesn't publish the two largest size classes here; subtracting the published classes from the total leaves no establishment with 500 or more employees.
South Carolina's license groups tell you the job size
South Carolina licenses general and mechanical contractors through the Contractor's Licensing Board for any job where the total cost of construction is over $10,000 (the threshold was $5,000 until a 2023 amendment). A general contractor's license group, set by its net worth or working capital, limits the size of each bid and job:
| License group | Maximum per job | Net worth required (or working capital) |
|---|---|---|
| Group One | $100,000 | $20,000 (or $10,000) |
| Group Two | $400,000 | $60,000 (or $40,000) |
| Group Three | $1,000,000 | $150,000 (or $100,000) |
| Group Four | $3,000,000 | $250,000 (or $175,000) |
| Group Five | Unlimited | $350,000 (or $250,000) |
Groups Three and Four must file CPA-compiled financial statements, and a Group Five applicant files a balance sheet audited by an accountant, so the group is also a signal of how established the firm's books are. Licenses are issued by classification too, such as General Contractors-Building or General Contractors-Highway, and a building contractor that subcontracts specialty work must use a firm licensed for it.
Homes are regulated separately. The Residential Builders Commission licenses residential builders for jobs over $5,000 on residential buildings up to three floors and 16 units, and residential specialty contractors for jobs over $500: plumbers, electricians and HVAC installers take an exam for a license, while roofers, masons, drywall installers, carpenters, painters and other trades register. A specialty contractor working directly for a homeowner on a job over $5,000 must be bonded. A builder or specialty contractor that should have been licensed or registered and wasn't can't file a mechanics' lien or sue to enforce the contract.
Who builds what
| Type of work (NAICS) | Establishments | Employees |
|---|---|---|
| Specialty trade contractors (238) | 1,480 | 12,635 |
| Plumbing, heating and air conditioning (238220) | 275 | 3,117 |
| Electrical contractors (238210) | 181 | 2,244 |
| Building finishing: drywall, painting, flooring (2383) | 349 | 1,879 |
| Site preparation (238910) | 108 | 2,044 |
| Building construction (236) | 781 | 4,946 |
| Residential remodelers (236118) | 374 | 1,494 |
| New single-family general contractors (236115) | 199 | 612 |
| For-sale homebuilders (236117) | 56 | 755 |
| Commercial and institutional builders (236220) | 119 | 1,572 |
| Heavy and civil engineering (237) | 106 | 2,246 |
Site preparation contractors average 18.9 employees, more than twice the metro average, as land clearing and grading keep pace with new subdivisions. The 56 for-sale homebuilders average 13.5. Highway and bridge contractors' employment (13 establishments) was published with a high-noise flag, so we don't report it.
What CBP counts: establishments (locations) with paid employees, not companies; a builder with offices in Mount Pleasant and Summerville counts twice. Owner-operators with no payroll fall outside the count, and employee numbers are for the pay period that took in March 12, 2023.
What's being built, and a code change coming
The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey counted 7,287 new housing units authorized in the metro in 2025, down from 8,514 in 2024. Single-family homes were 5,799 of them (6,817 in 2024) and buildings of five or more units 1,337.
Charleston County's Building Inspection Services, which issues building permits and contractor licenses and registrations, says that projects submitted on or after 1 January 2027 must meet the newly adopted state codes, including the 2024 International Building, Residential, Fire, Plumbing, Mechanical and Fuel Gas Codes. Code changes create work for estimators and designers and a reason to talk to contractors about training, products and plan review.
How to vet a Charleston contractor
- Match the license to the job. For commercial work over $10,000, a Contractor's Licensing Board license in the right classification, with a group large enough for your contract value. For a home, a Residential Builders Commission license.
- Check it with LLR, the state Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, which runs both boards, and confirm the name on the license matches the contract.
- Check local licensing and permits. Charleston County issues contractor licenses and registrations and lets you check permit status through its online portal; ask the firm which local permits it has pulled recently and confirm them with the issuing office.
- Ask for proof of insurance and a bond where the law requires one, and references from jobs in the same county.
- Ask about flood and wind requirements for your site, which affect design and cost in much of the county.
Public companies
No SEC-registered listed construction company has its business address in the Charleston metro, so local firms can't be ranked by published revenue. The license group (One to Five) is the best public proxy for a general contractor's size.
Selling to Charleston construction companies
| Size band | Establishments | Who usually decides |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 19 employees | 2,151 | The owner, who is often the licensed qualifier |
| 20 to 99 employees | 191 | Owner with an operations manager, estimator or office manager |
| 100 or more | 25 | Operations, safety, procurement and finance leaders |
The market is small enough to research account by account. The 216 establishments with 20 or more employees are the core for most B2B offers; general contractors in Groups Four and Five are where the larger commercial and institutional jobs sit. For outreach to owners who run their own jobs, keep emails short and specific; see the cold email templates.
Illustrative example. The company and its assumptions are invented; the counts are from CBP 2023.
Lowcountry Code Academy (lowcountrycode.example) sells training on the 2024 code changes. Its first list is building contractors (781 establishments) and building equipment contractors (487) in the metro: 1,268. If 25% have a dedicated estimator or project manager who needs the training, that's 317 firms. At $450 a seat and an average of two seats per firm, reaching 30% of them (95 firms) before January 2027 is $85,500 in course fees. The useful research is which firms have permit applications in progress. Bebop researches each firm in a list like this and drafts the opening email.
Where to find names
| Source | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| SC Code Title 40, Chapter 11 | The contractor licensing law: thresholds, license groups and classifications |
| SC Code Title 40, Chapter 59 | The residential builder and specialty contractor law |
| Charleston County Building Inspection Services | Permits, county contractor licenses and code adoption notices |
| SCDOT prime contractor prequalification | How highway contractors are prequalified on experience, manpower and equipment |
| ABC Carolinas | Merit shop commercial contractors across North and South Carolina |
| Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce | Regional business network and advocacy |
| Charleston Regional Development Alliance | Economic development and regional data for the three counties |
Next step: use the construction companies industry guide to turn these segments into a list.
Sources
- County Business Patterns 2023, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 40, Chapter 11: Contractors, South Carolina Legislature, accessed 30 October 2026
- South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 40, Chapter 59: Residential Builders, South Carolina Legislature, accessed 30 October 2026
- Building Inspection Services, Charleston County Government, accessed 30 October 2026
- Building Permits Survey, annual metro area data 2024 and 2025, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- Become a Prime Contractor: prequalification, South Carolina Department of Transportation, accessed 30 October 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many construction companies are in Charleston, SC?
The US Census Bureau counted 2,367 construction establishments with paid employees in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area in 2023, employing 19,827 people: 1,461 in Charleston County, 554 in Berkeley and 352 in Dorchester. These are locations with payroll rather than companies, and self-employed contractors with no employees aren't counted, so the number of active businesses is higher.
Do you need a contractor's license in South Carolina?
Yes, above set amounts. General and mechanical contractors need a license from the Contractor's Licensing Board for jobs where the total cost of construction is over $10,000. Residential builders need a Residential Builders Commission license for jobs over $5,000, and residential specialty contractors such as plumbers, electricians, roofers and painters must be licensed or registered for jobs over $500.
What do South Carolina contractor license groups mean?
A general contractor's license group caps the size of each job it can bid or take. Group One is limited to $100,000 per job, Group Two to $400,000, Group Three to $1 million and Group Four to $3 million, while Group Five is unlimited. Each group requires a minimum net worth or working capital, and Groups Three to Five need CPA-prepared financial statements.
How do I check a contractor's license in Charleston?
Check the state license with South Carolina's Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, which administers both the Contractor's Licensing Board and the Residential Builders Commission. Confirm the classification and, for commercial work, that the license group covers your contract value. Also check the firm's Charleston County contractor license or registration and its permits through the county's online portal.
Is construction growing in Charleston?
Housing permits slowed in 2025. The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey shows 7,287 new housing units authorized in the Charleston-North Charleston metro in 2025, down from 8,514 in 2024, with single-family units falling from 6,817 to 5,799. Commercial work isn't included in those counts. Charleston County adopts the 2024 International Building and Residential Codes for projects submitted from 1 January 2027.