Massachusetts asks more of roofers than most states, and gives homeowners more in return. A roofer needs both a Construction Supervisor Licence and Home Improvement Contractor registration — and that registration is what gives you access to the state Guaranty Fund if the work goes wrong. Hire someone unregistered and that protection is simply gone. This page lists roofers serving Boston.
What Boston roofers handle
Ice dam damage and prevention, the defining seasonal failure.
Slate and specialty covering repair on the historic stock.
Flat and low-slope roofing on triple-deckers and the dense urban stock.
Full replacement on asphalt shingle across the general stock.
Roof deck replacement on century-old framing.
Historic district work in the protected neighbourhoods.
Licensing in Massachusetts
Massachusetts requires two separate credentials for roofing work, and both are checkable.
- Home Improvement Contractor (HIC) registration, from the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. Costs $150 plus a payment into the state Guaranty Fund.
- Construction Supervisor Licence (CSL), from the Office of Public Safety and Inspections, which requires passing an exam.
A roofer needs both. One without the other is not properly credentialed for the work.
The Guaranty Fund is the part worth knowing about. It exists to compensate homeowners who lose money to a registered contractor’s poor or incomplete work — but claims can generally only be made against contractors who were registered at the time. Hiring an unregistered roofer forfeits that protection entirely, which makes the HIC check worth more in Massachusetts than an equivalent check in most states.
What’s specific to Boston
The Guaranty Fund is the reason to check registration. Claims against it can generally only be made where the contractor was HIC-registered at the time of the work. That makes verifying registration worth more here than an equivalent check elsewhere — it is not box-ticking, it is your recourse.
Two credentials, two issuing bodies. The CSL comes from the Office of Public Safety and Inspections and requires an exam; the HIC comes from Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. Ask for both numbers.
Ice dams are the classic Boston failure. Snow melting over an under-insulated attic refreezes at the cold eave and drives water back under the covering. The city’s older housing is particularly prone. Insulation and air sealing are the fix.
Triple-deckers carry flat roofs. Boston’s characteristic three-family housing has low-slope roofs that fail by ponding and seam failure, needing membrane work rather than shingles.
Slate survives on the historic stock. Beacon Hill, the South End and the older suburbs retain slate roofs, which are a separate trade. Most asphalt crews cannot work on them properly.
Pricing expectations
Boston and Massachusetts figures for 2026, as published by local roofing companies:
- Full architectural shingle replacement, 2,000 sq ft home: $15,000–$22,000, one company’s own average around $17,000
- Architectural shingle: $4.00–$8.50 per square foot; another guide puts asphalt at $3.50–$7.00
- Natural slate: $20–$35 per square foot; synthetic slate $8–$15
- Metal: corrugated steel $4–$7, aluminium or standing seam $7–$16, up to $20 on the other guide
- Code-required ice and water shield at the eaves: adds $300–$600
- Permit: $100–$500 depending on municipality; labour $3–$7 per square foot, or $50–$80 an hour
One Boston line is not optional. Massachusetts building code requires ice and water shield on all eave edges, because of ice dam risk — the guide read here puts it at $300–$600 on a typical asphalt roof and calls it non-negotiable for both code compliance and warranty validity. If a quote here is conspicuously cheaper than the others, that is one of the first places to look. The other Boston variable is the housing stock: multi-family and three-decker roofs cost more than single-family, and neither guide quantifies by how much, so get that priced rather than estimated.
These are ranges local roofing companies publish for this metro rather than survey data, so treat them as a bracket to check a quote against, not a price list.
Two contract items: that ice and water shield at the eaves is specified and priced, since state code requires it, and whether the building is single-family or multi-family, and how that changes the quote.
Neighborhoods served
Roofers listed here work across Boston, including Jamaica Plain, Dorchester, South Boston, Roslindale, Charlestown, Brighton, West Roxbury, Hyde Park, East Boston and the South End.
Most also serve surrounding communities — Cambridge, Somerville, Quincy, Brookline, Newton, Medford, Malden and Revere.
How this directory helps
Every roofer here is listed with business name, address and phone so you can verify them yourself.
Three questions sort Boston contractors. Ask for both the CSL and the HIC registration — the HIC is what preserves your Guaranty Fund protection. Ask what they recommend for attic insulation and air sealing. And on a historic roof, ask whether they work in slate.