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Home / General Contractors / Pennsylvania
How to become a general contractor in Pennsylvania
Most general contractors in Pennsylvania start in an apprenticeship or a helper job and learn on the job. The contractor license comes later, if you run your own business.
Pick your way in
Earn while you learn
A program hires you, pays you on the job and runs your classes.
- Pay
- From day one
- In PA
- 34 registered programs
Classroom first
Learn the basics, then find work to log your hours.
- Pay
- You pay tuition
- In PA
- 23 schools with programs
Start on a crew
Get hired as a helper by a licensed general contractor and log hours on the job.
- Pay
- Paid on the job
- Start
- No experience needed
The license steps
Get hired or start training
Join a registered apprenticeship, take a trade school program, or work as a helper for a licensed contractor.
Work as a general contractor
Run your own shop
No experience requirement for registration.
- Issued by
- PA Office of Attorney General - Home Improvement Contractor Registration
$81,540
a year is the median for general contractors in Pennsylvania ($39.20 an hour, May 2025).3
Pay by city and percentile- Philadelphia–Camden$46.08
- Harrisburg–Carlisle$41.39
- Pittsburgh$39.92
- Allentown–Bethlehem$39.66
- York–Hanover$38.46
Questions
Do you need a license to work on your own as a general contractor in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania requires general contractors to register with the PA Office of Attorney General.1
Are general contractors in demand in Pennsylvania?
Projections Central expects about 2,360 general contractor openings a year in Pennsylvania through 2034, counting new jobs and people leaving the trade.2
Find an apprenticeship near you
34 registered programs in Pennsylvania. Enter your ZIP to see the closest ones and what they ask for.
Find a programMore for general contractors in Pennsylvania
Sources
- PA Office of Attorney General - Home Improvement Contractor Registration contractor licensing (attorneygeneral.gov, 2026-10-27)
- Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2024-2034 (projectionscentral.org, 2024-2034)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Pennsylvania, May 2025 (bls.gov, May 2025)