Short answer
The Tulsa metro had 2,498 construction establishments with paid employees in 2023, employing 26,142 people with $1.76 billion in annual payroll, according to Census County Business Patterns. Tulsa County has 1,593 of them. Oklahoma doesn't require a state license for general contracting; the Construction Industries Board licenses electrical, mechanical and plumbing work and registers roofers, and the City of Tulsa's Permit Center registers trade licenses and insurance and issues trade permits.
- 2,498 construction establishments and 26,142 employees across seven counties in 2023; average pay $67,270.
- 34 oil and gas pipeline contractors employ 2,732 people, 1.6% of the US count against Tulsa's 0.31% share of all construction.
- Heavy and civil firms employ 5,556 people, more than the 4,713 at all homebuilders and commercial builders.
- Oklahoma registers roofers with $500,000 of liability insurance for homes and $1,000,000 for a commercial endorsement.
- Builders were authorized to start 5,154 housing units in the metro in 2025, up from 4,311 in 2024.
On this page
This report is for homeowners and businesses choosing a contractor in the Tulsa area, people researching the market for a job or an acquisition, and B2B sellers whose customers are builders, trades and industrial contractors. It starts with what you can and can't check in Oklahoma, then the Census figures and how to prospect.
What you can check on an Oklahoma contractor
Oklahoma's Construction Industries Board (CIB) states plainly that general contractors "are not currently required to have a state license in Oklahoma for general contracting." The trades are another matter:
| Who | What's required | Where to check |
|---|---|---|
| General contractors | No state license; local rules vary | Permit history, insurance, references |
| Electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors | CIB license | CIB licensee search |
| Roofing contractors | CIB registration, $500,000 general liability for residential work; a commercial endorsement needs $1,000,000, an exam and continuing education | CIB registered roofing contractor search |
| Trades working in the City of Tulsa | Trade licenses and insurance registered with the city's Permit Center, which issues trade permits | City of Tulsa |
| State highway contractors | ODOT prequalification | ODOT Office Engineer |
So a sound check on a Tulsa general contractor is practical rather than paper-based. Ask which licensed electrical, mechanical and plumbing firms it uses and look each one up; get its liability certificate and confirm it with the insurer; look up its permits in the city's self-service portal; and ask for recent jobs of the same type and size. For roofing, the CIB search tells you whether a firm is registered and whether it holds the commercial endorsement, which matters if you're reroofing a warehouse rather than a house.
Tulsa construction in numbers
US Census Bureau County Business Patterns (CBP) 2023, construction sector (NAICS 23), Tulsa, OK Metro Area (CBSA 46140):
| Measure | Metro Tulsa, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Construction establishments | 2,498 |
| Employees | 26,142 |
| Annual payroll | $1,758,581,000 |
| Average employees per establishment | 10.5 |
| Average annual pay | $67,270 |
| Share of US construction establishments | 0.31% (of 814,557) |
Average pay is about $9,300 below the national construction figure of $76,580 (our calculation from the CBP state files); Oklahoma as a whole ranks 48th among states for construction pay.
Pipeline and plant country
| Type of work (NAICS) | Establishments | Employees | Per establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oil and gas pipeline construction (237120) | 34 | 2,732 | 80.4 |
| Power and communication lines (237130) | 40 | 758 | 19.0 |
| Water and sewer lines (237110) | 36 | 585 | 16.3 |
| Highway, street and bridge (2373) | 31 | 1,309 | 42.2 |
| Commercial and institutional builders (236220) | 209 | 2,625 | 12.6 |
| Residential remodelers (236118) | 212 | 696 | 3.3 |
| New single-family general contractors (236115) | 105 | 286 | 2.7 |
| Plumbing, heating and air conditioning (238220) | 424 | 3,918 | 9.2 |
| Electrical contractors (238210) | 293 | 3,371 | 11.5 |
| Foundation, structure and exterior (2381) | 380 | 2,902 | 7.6 |
| Site preparation (238910) | 112 | 1,255 | 11.2 |
The 34 pipeline contractors are 1.6% of the 2,156 in the United States, five times Tulsa's share of construction overall. Heavy and civil construction as a whole (172 establishments) employs 5,556 people, more than the 4,713 at every homebuilder and commercial builder in the metro. Industrial building contractors are counted too, but their employment is flagged by the Census Bureau as high-noise, so it's not reported here.
Seven counties
| County | Establishments | Employees | Employees per establishment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tulsa County, Oklahoma | 1,593 | 17,780 | 11.2 |
| Rogers County, Oklahoma | 283 | 4,032 | 14.2 |
| Wagoner County, Oklahoma | 228 | 1,337 | 5.9 |
| Creek County, Oklahoma | 227 | 2,136 | 9.4 |
| Osage County, Oklahoma | 87 | 566 | 6.5 |
| Okmulgee County, Oklahoma | 48 | 147 | 3.1 |
| Pawnee County, Oklahoma | 32 | 144 | 4.5 |
Rogers County, east of the city, has the largest establishments in the metro on average. Wagoner and Osage are mostly small residential firms.
Size
| Employees per establishment | Establishments |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 1,536 |
| 5 to 9 | 405 |
| 10 to 19 | 274 |
| 20 to 49 | 192 |
| 50 to 99 | 58 |
| 100 to 249 | 24 |
| 250 to 499 | 7 |
| 500 to 999 | Not published |
| 1,000 or more | Not published |
In broader bands, 2,215 establishments have 1 to 19 employees, 250 have 20 to 99 and 33 have 100 or more; the published cells leave two with 500 or more, which the Census Bureau doesn't split. CBP counts locations with paid employees, not companies, and leaves out the self-employed.
Housing and the local public company
The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey counted 5,154 housing units authorized in the Tulsa metro in 2025, up from 4,311 in 2024, with an estimated value of $1.12 billion: 3,740 single-family homes, 122 in two- to four-unit buildings and 1,292 in buildings of five or more units.
Matrix Service Company, the industrial contractor long based in Tulsa, still appears in SEC records with a Tulsa address, but its Form 10-K for the year to 30 June 2026 gives its principal executive offices as Houston and lists Tulsa as an administrative and operations office, with a fabrication facility in nearby Catoosa. It reported $873.6 million in revenue for that year. No listed construction company now names the Tulsa metro as its headquarters.
Selling to Tulsa contractors
| Size band | Establishments | Who usually decides |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 19 employees | 2,215 | The owner |
| 20 to 99 employees | 250 | Owner with an operations manager, estimator or office manager |
| 100 or more | 33 | Operations, safety, fleet and procurement leaders |
Pipeline and utility contractors buy for crews that travel: trucks, lodging, safety training, inspection and equipment rental, often decided by an operations or equipment manager rather than the owner. Trades and homebuilders buy locally in small orders. Our guide on finding decision makers covers the next step once you have the company.
Illustrative example. Arkansas River Inspection and its numbers are invented; the counts are from CBP 2023.
Arkansas River Inspection (arkriverinspect.example) sells weld inspection and nondestructive testing to contractors who build pipe. Its list is the 110 utility system contractors (34 oil and gas pipeline, 40 power and communication line and 36 water and sewer line) plus the 209 commercial and institutional builders, of which it assumes a fifth do industrial work: about 152 accounts. Winning 20% (30 accounts) at $90,000 of inspection work a year each is $2.7 million. The research that matters is which of them just won a pipeline or plant job. That's the research Bebop does for each contractor in a list you describe in plain language.
Where to find names
| Source | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| Oklahoma Construction Industries Board | Licensee search for electrical, mechanical and plumbing, and the registered roofer search |
| City of Tulsa Permit Center | Trade license and insurance registration, and the self-service permit portal |
| ODOT contractor prequalification | How highway contractors qualify to bid state work |
| AGC of Oklahoma | Statewide building chapter with a Tulsa office and a member directory |
For the region's energy companies, see the Tulsa oil and gas companies report; for the rest of the state, Oklahoma construction companies.
Next step: the construction companies industry guide shows how to segment a contractor list like Tulsa's by trade.
Sources
- County Business Patterns 2023, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- Building Permits Survey, annual CBSA data 2024 and 2025, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- Construction Industries Board, State of Oklahoma, accessed 30 October 2026
- Roofing, Oklahoma Construction Industries Board, accessed 30 October 2026
- Permit Center, City of Tulsa Development Services, accessed 30 October 2026
- Contractor prequalification, Oklahoma Department of Transportation, accessed 30 October 2026
- Matrix Service Company Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2026, US Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR), 3 September 2026
- Associated General Contractors of Oklahoma, AGC of Oklahoma, accessed 30 October 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many construction companies are in Tulsa?
The US Census Bureau counted 2,498 construction establishments with paid employees in the Tulsa metro area in 2023, employing 26,142 people. Tulsa County has 1,593, Rogers County 283 and Wagoner County 228. 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 general contractors need a license in Oklahoma?
No. The Oklahoma Construction Industries Board states that general contractors are not currently required to hold a state license. The Board licenses electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors and registers roofing contractors, and cities set their own rules: in Tulsa, the city's Permit Center registers trade licenses and insurance and issues trade permits.
How do I check a roofing contractor in Oklahoma?
Use the Construction Industries Board's registered roofing contractor search. Oklahoma requires roofers to register and carry at least $500,000 of general liability insurance for residential work. A commercial roofing endorsement requires $1,000,000 of coverage, an exam and four hours of continuing education every 36 months, so check for the endorsement before hiring a roofer for a commercial building.
What kind of construction companies are in Tulsa?
Specialty trades are the largest group, with 1,742 establishments in 2023, led by plumbing and HVAC (424) and electrical contractors (293). Tulsa also has an unusual concentration of heavy civil firms: 34 oil and gas pipeline contractors employ 2,732 people, and heavy and civil construction overall employs 5,556, more than all homebuilders and commercial builders combined.
Is Matrix Service still headquartered in Tulsa?
Not according to its latest annual report. Matrix Service Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2026 gives its principal executive offices as Houston, Texas, and lists Tulsa as an administrative and operations office, with a fabrication facility in Catoosa. It reported $873.6 million in revenue for that year. SEC company records still show an older Tulsa business address.