Roofer

Field & Trades

Installs and repairs the one system every building depends on to keep water out, physically demanding work done almost entirely outdoors, at height.

What is a Roofer?

A Roofer installs, repairs, and replaces roofing systems, shingles, tile, metal, or low-slope membrane roofing, on new construction and existing buildings. No personal license is legally required to work as an employee roofer in most of the country; roofing licensing in the states that require it (including California, Nevada, and Utah) applies at the business/contractor level, the person who contracts directly with customers and pulls permits, not to every roofer on a crew. A number of states (including Georgia, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and others) have no state-level roofing license requirement at all, though local jurisdictions can impose their own.

What they do

• Install roofing materials (shingles, tile, metal panels, or membrane systems) per manufacturer specifications
• Remove and dispose of old roofing during a re-roof or repair
• Inspect roofs for leaks, damage, and wear, and identify the cause of a failure
• Install flashing, underlayment, and ventilation components that keep a roof system watertight
• Follow fall-protection procedures required for work at height on a sloped or low-slope roof
• Coordinate with insurance adjusters or estimators when the work is tied to a storm-damage claim

A typical day

• 6:30 AMLoad materials and equipment for the day's job, check the weather forecast
• 7:30 AMSet up fall protection and begin tearing off old roofing on a re-roof job
• 10:00 AMInstall underlayment and begin laying the new roofing material
• 1:00 PMInstall flashing around a chimney and vents to keep those transitions watertight
• 3:30 PMDo a final walk of the completed sections and clean up debris and materials

Skills

Software

Pay expectations

Reviewed May 2025. Pay reflects the national wage distribution for this occupation, not a promise for any one job: entry level is the lower part of that range, 5 years in sits around the national median, and 10 years in is the upper part, since pay isn't actually tracked by years on the job. Real pay varies a lot by state, metro area, union status, and employer — scale these up or down for your market. These figures are base pay only: overtime, shift differentials, and per-project bonuses are standard across most construction trades and routinely push real earnings above what's shown here.

Education

Required:

High school diploma or equivalent, since no personal license is legally required to work as an employee roofer in most states. A person who wants to independently contract roofing work (sign contracts, pull permits) typically needs a state roofing or general contractor license in states that require one; that requirement is business-level, and which states require it varies widely

Preferred:

On-the-job training or a formal roofing apprenticeship

Helpful:

OSHA 10 or OSHA 30 certification, manufacturer-specific installation certifications for particular roofing systems

Not necessary:

A college degree, since this trade is learned almost entirely on the job

Career progression

1. 1.Roofing Laborer
2. 2.Roofer
3. 3.Crew Lead or Foreman
4. 4.Roofing Superintendent or own a roofing contracting business

Who hires for this role