How it works

LegitOwl copies California's public contractor license file every night and keeps every copy. When a record changes, the change gets a date. A report lists those changes in plain English.

Where the records come from

One source: the Contractors State License Board (CSLB) public license file. It holds license status, trade classifications, bonds and workers' comp. Every record in a report carries the date we first saw it, so you can check it with CSLB.

What a report says

Each report carries one label. It describes the records, not the person:

• All current. License, bond and workers' comp are on file with no gaps we can see.
• Worth asking about. Something in the records changed, such as a lapse in coverage. Ask the contractor about it.
• License not active. The state's file does not show an active license today.

A label is not a rating and not hiring advice. It says what the records show. You decide what it means for your project.

What we cover

• Contractors licensed in California, across all trades.
• History from the night we first copied a record. Earlier dates appear when the state's file still shows them.
• Records refresh nightly. The state can take days or weeks to post a change, so a report is only as current as its source.

What we don't cover

• Reviews, ratings or the quality of anyone's work.
• Court cases, liens or private disputes.
• Revoked or cancelled licenses. The state drops them from its public file, so they drop out of ours.
• Unlicensed work. If a search finds no license, that is worth knowing. California requires a license for most jobs over a set dollar amount.
• Private lives. Business licenses and public business records only: no home addresses, no personal histories, no profiles of people.

Found an error? Write to hello@legitowl.com and we'll check it against CSLB.