How to Check a Contractor's License in Nevada (Before You Sign Anything)

Las Vegas, Nevada · Updated October 2026 · Every figure from published sources — nothing made up

Las Vegas has plenty of excellent contractors. It also has a steady supply of unlicensed operators who advertise like pros, collect a deposit, and vanish or botch the job. The difference between the two is not always visible from a truck door or a slick quote — but it is visible in the state's records, and checking them is free.

This page walks through the four checks worth doing before you hire anyone, in the order we'd do them. The whole routine takes about ten minutes, and every tool below is an official public record — no accounts, no fees.

One honest note before the steps: a clean license does not guarantee beautiful work. What it guarantees is accountability — a bond on file, a board that can discipline them, and a state recovery fund standing behind the job. An unlicensed operator offers none of that.

Check 1: The license itself

The Nevada State Contractors Board keeps the master list. Its Contractor License Search covers every licensed contractor in the state.

You can search by company name, license number, or the owner's name, and partial names work. On the result, look at four things:

• Status. You want ACTIVE. Suspended, revoked, or inactive means they cannot legally take your job right now, whatever their quote says.
• Classification. The license class should match the work. Most home remodeling falls under a B (General Building) or B-2 (Residential and Small Commercial) license. A license for one narrow trade does not authorize a whole-home remodel.
• Monetary limit. Every license carries a dollar limit — the largest single project the contractor may legally take. Your project should fit under it. (This matters more than people realize: the state's Recovery Fund can deny a claim when a contract exceeded the contractor's classification or limit.)
• Name match. The name on the license should be the name on the contract you're signing. A mismatch is worth a question before money moves.

If they are not in the search at all, either they are unlicensed or they trade under a different name than the one on the license. Ask for the license number and search that directly. A legitimate contractor produces it without drama — it is also supposed to appear on their contracts and advertising. Contracting without a license is a crime in Nevada, and the Board investigates unlicensed activity, so "we don't bother with licenses" is a walk-away answer.

Check 2: Their disciplinary history

The Board runs a separate Discipline Search covering citations, pending cases, hearings, and final actions against licensees.

Under Nevada law (NRS 624.300), the Board can fine a contractor, suspend or revoke the license, issue a public reprimand, or order corrective work and repayment. So the record means something. Read it fairly:

• Usually minor: a single old citation over paperwork or a first-time administrative slip, closed and paid.
• Genuine warnings: repeated findings of substandard workmanship, working outside the license's scope, failing to respond to the Board, or discipline that ends in suspension or revocation.
• Patterns over incidents. Busy contractors accumulate the occasional complaint across hundreds of jobs. What you are screening for is the same failure repeating — deposits, disappearances, unfinished work — not one unhappy customer from 2016.

Check 3: The two government "do not hire" lists

Two more lists take a minute each, and while absence from them proves little, presence on either is decisive:

• The Nevada Labor Commissioner's List of Disqualified Contractors — said plainly, this one is about public works: contractors barred from government jobs over prevailing-wage offenses or federal debarment. It is a short list. It is not a ranking of home remodelers, but a company on it has serious compliance problems by any measure.
• The federal SAM.gov exclusions search — the national debarment list. Same logic: two minutes, and a hit ends the conversation.

Check 4: Complaint patterns

Finally, search the company on the Better Business Bureau and scan its Google and Yelp reviews with a specific eye:

• How does the company respond to complaints — engage and fix, or ignore and argue?
• Do the bad reviews repeat one theme (deposits taken, jobs abandoned, leaks never repaired), or are they the normal scatter any busy business collects?
• Is the review history years deep, or did sixty five-star reviews arrive in one suspicious month?

Reviews are the softest evidence on this page — anyone can post one — which is why they come last, after the state's records.

Red flags no database will catch

Some warnings only show up across the kitchen table:

• A deposit demand far beyond the cost of first materials, or "cash only."
• "We'll pull the permit under your name." On a contractor's job, the permit belongs in the contractor's name.
• No written contract, or a contract missing the license number, the scope, or a payment schedule.
• A price dramatically below every other bid. The cheapest remodel is usually the one you pay for twice.
• Pressure to sign today "before the price goes up."

If you've already been burned

File a complaint with the Board on its complaint page — it investigates complaints against licensed contractors and reports of unlicensed activity alike.

If your contractor was licensed, you may also qualify for Nevada's Residential Recovery Fund, which exists for exactly this situation. The key facts, from the Board's own Recovery Fund page:

• It covers owners of single-family homes who hired a properly licensed residential contractor and suffered actual damages.
• Awards are capped at $40,000 per claim, and other avenues (like the contractor's bond) must be pursued first — a court judgment or a Board finding is required.
• Complaints must reach the Board within four years of the work's completion.
• It does not cover anyone who hired an unlicensed contractor. That single rule is the strongest argument on this page for doing Check 1 before you sign, not after.

Or skip the detective work

Everything above is what we do before a contractor ever sees a project through this site. Every contractor we match holds a current Nevada license — the partner firm behind our matches carries a B-2 — verified against the Board's own records, and you choose whether your project goes to one recommended match or to up to three for bids. The service is free to homeowners; contractors never buy your information.

Frequently asked questions

Is it free to check a contractor's license in Nevada?

Yes. The Contractors Board's license search and discipline search are free public tools, and so are the Labor Commissioner's disqualified list and the federal SAM.gov exclusions search. If a website wants to charge you for a Nevada license lookup, close the tab and use the Board's.

What if I can't find my contractor in the license search?

Try the owner's name and the license number, not just the company name — businesses sometimes operate under a slightly different legal name. If they still don't appear, ask them directly for their license number and search again. A contractor who can't or won't produce one should be treated as unlicensed.

What does a B-2 license mean?

B-2 (Residential and Small Commercial) is the Nevada classification that covers home remodeling and small commercial work — kitchens, bathrooms, additions, casitas, and similar projects. A general B license covers broader building work. Either can be right for a home project; what matters is that the classification covers your job and your contract fits under the license's monetary limit.

Does a clean record mean they'll do good work?

No — it means they're legal, bonded, and accountable to a board that can fine them, suspend them, or order corrections, and that a state fund stands behind their work. Craftsmanship still shows in references, past projects, and how they handle the estimate. The license is the floor, not the ceiling.

My contractor has an old citation. Should I walk away?

Not automatically. Read what it was for and how it ended. A closed paperwork citation from years ago is common and minor. Revocations, repeat substandard-work findings, and a habit of ignoring the Board are the records that should end the conversation.

What if an unlicensed contractor already took my money?

You can still report unlicensed activity to the Contractors Board, which investigates it, and fraud is a matter for the police and the courts. But know the hard part up front: the Residential Recovery Fund only covers customers of licensed contractors, so the state's safety net won't apply. It's exactly the outcome the ten-minute check above exists to prevent.