Commercial roofing recruiters serving San Francisco.
San Francisco's own market data is blunt: high-rise and podium roofing, plus strict seismic and wind detailing, keep experienced foremen scarce and expensive. Estimators command a published 48% premium.
Scarce, and the metro's own data says so directly.
San Francisco's market data names the constraint in plain language: high-rise and podium roofing dominate over tract work, seismic and wind detailing requirements are strict, and the constrained overall labor pool keeps experienced commercial roofing foremen scarce and expensive.
Commercial estimators are the one role with a clean published figure: $68–$92/hr, about 48% above national - among the steepest premiums of any market we cover.
We recruit across the full org chart for commercial roofing contractors in San Francisco, and we verify real high-rise and seismic-detailing project history rather than general commercial roofing experience.
The story behind the scarcity.
High-rise downtown towers, hospital expansion, and the biotech capital of the world.
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Continued high-rise and podium construction downtown carries seismic-rated roofing and wind-uplift detailing at the top wage scale in the country.
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OSHPD/HCAI-compliant hospital-grade roofing demand through 2030, tied to seismic retrofit deadlines.
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Biotech capital of the world - new lab towers carry substantial low-slope commercial roofing scope.
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Constrained land and power drive new data center construction, adding low-slope commercial roofing demand.
What commercial roofing roles pay in San Francisco.
In the San Francisco metro, BLS puts the median for roofers at $74,340 a year, 34% above the $55,440 national median. Among the 104 metros BLS publishes for this occupation, San Francisco ranks 7th on pay. Most of the market sits between $57,720 and $98,390. Of the other field roles, sheet metal worker pays the most locally, at a $102,660 median. BLS does not publish San Francisco pay for roofing helper, which it withholds where a metro's sample is too small to be reliable. National benchmarks by role are in the 2026 Commercial Roofing Salary Guide.
| Role | San Francisco median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial RooferRoofers (47-2181) | $74,340 | $57,720–$98,390 | $55,440 | +34% | 2,610 |
| Roofing HelperHelpers--Roofers (47-3016) | – | – | $44,160 | – | – |
| Sheet Metal WorkerSheet Metal Workers (47-2211) | $102,660 | $55,560–$154,790 | $61,800 | +66% | 880 |
| Roofing ForemanFirst-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (47-1011) | $120,810 | $73,860–$166,330 | $79,920 | +51% | – |
| EstimatorCost Estimators (13-1051) | $101,630 | $58,910–$167,780 | $78,740 | +29% | – |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, San Francisco metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile. Headcount is shown for field occupations only; management, estimating and supervisory codes are counted across every industry in the metro.
What candidates expect. What credentials matter. What kills offers.
We don't tell prospective clients who their competitors are hiring - that's a discipline our clients value, and we'll honor it on a call. What we will share publicly: how the San Francisco commercial roofing hiring game actually plays out in 2026. The five things below are what we tell every San Francisco roofing client at intake.
Why the labor pool is genuinely constrained here
San Francisco's own market data is direct about this: the Bay Area's high-rise and podium roofing segment, combined with strict seismic and wind detailing requirements, keeps experienced commercial roofing foremen scarce and expensive.
Where San Francisco commercial roofing talent comes from
We recruit across the full org chart for commercial roofing contractors in San Francisco. Foremen with genuine high-rise and podium roofing experience, comfortable with California seismic and wind-uplift detailing requirements, are the harder fill in this market.
Credentials worth filtering for
What actually separates candidates in San Francisco: verified high-rise or podium roofing project history and real familiarity with California seismic detailing requirements - the specific gap the metro's own market data flags.
What candidates expect from a San Francisco roofing offer in 2026
San Francisco's hub does not publish a distinct roofing-foreman wage figure, so foreman-tier offers should be benchmarked against the metro's broader seismic-specialty commercial-construction bands. Commercial estimators command a published 48% premium - among the steepest of any market we cover.
Realistic timelines, by role
This is a tight, expensive market. Standard roles: 5-8 weeks intake to signed offer. Foremen with genuine high-rise/seismic experience run longer, given how constrained that specific pool is. First slate of vetted candidates within 48 hours regardless.
The roofing positions we fill, most often.
Across all San Francisco commercial roofing clients, these are the highest-volume roles we've recruited for in the last 24 months. High-rise and podium roofing foremen with seismic-detailing experience are the role in genuine short supply in this market.
- High-rise / podium roofing foreman
- Commercial roofing estimator
- Roofing project manager
- Roofing crew lead
- Roofing safety manager
For the broader picture across every commercial trade in San Francisco, see the San Francisco metro overview. To learn more about commercial roofing generally (across all 100+ markets we serve), see our Commercial Roofing industry page.
How we recruit commercial roofing in San Francisco, plainly.
Same approach we use in every market - but tuned for what works in San Francisco's commercial roofing segment specifically:
- Same-day intake call. We get the role, the project context, the budget, your dealbreakers. For San Francisco roofing, we also confirm the seismic and wind-detailing requirements for the specific site, since that changes the sourcing pool significantly.
- Candidate sourcing within 48 hours. We pull from our existing San Francisco commercial roofing candidate network, filtered for verified high-rise/podium and seismic-detailing experience.
- Vetted short list (typically 5-8 weeks given how tight this market is). Three to five candidates. We verify real project-delivery history and seismic-detailing experience rather than a line on a resume.
- Offer and close. We help with offer math against San Francisco's own wage table - the steepest in the country.
San Francisco runs 26% more commercial roofing workers per job than the country as a whole — well above the national concentration. More per job means more people to reach, and more employers reaching them.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 , Roofers. Metro-wide figures for the base occupation; the wage table above is role-specific and commercial.
How San Francisco's commercial roofing market compares
In 2023 the San Francisco metro had 43 nonresidential roofing contractors (counted by business location). BLS publishes that count but withholds headcount and pay here, which it does when a category is small enough that the figures could identify individual employers. The number of these employers rose 4.9%, more firms competing for the same crews. That works out to 0.9 per 100,000 residents against 1.8 nationally. Fewer local employers means experienced people are easier to identify, but many work for firms based outside the metro.
Among the 95 metros we cover with published BLS figures, San Francisco ranks 9th for headcount, 7th for median pay and 33rd for concentration for roofers. Pay here is among the highest we see, so offers need to start near the top of the range.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 5,480 | $63,560 | 1.00 | 107 |
| San Francisco | 2,610 | $74,340 | 1.26 | 43 |
| Riverside | 2,480 | $62,050 | 1.66 | 45 |
| San Diego | 1,830 | $62,180 | 1.37 | 28 |
| Sacramento | 1,800 | $63,320 | 1.91 | 35 |
| San Jose | 1,660 | $76,650 | 1.68 | 24 |
| Fresno | 640 | $62,400 | 1.55 | 11 |
| Modesto | 290 | $62,940 | 1.68 | 10 |
| Stockton | 240 | $61,950 | 0.97 | 11 |
| Bakersfield | 190 | $60,640 | 0.64 | 4 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial roofing employers in San Francisco, the local pool is deeper than most, so a well-run search can usually fill field roles from inside the metro.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, San Francisco metro. Employers are counted by business location.
How San Francisco's commercial roofing market has changed since 2018.
The number of nonresidential roofing contractors in San Francisco rose from 41 in 2018 to 43 in 2023, up 5%, behind the 10% growth nationally. Headcount and pay for those firms are withheld in San Francisco, so the occupation figures above are the better guide to what hiring costs.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonresidential roofing contractors: business locations | 41 | 43 | +5% |
| Nonresidential roofing contractors: employment | 1,184 | – | – |
| Nonresidential roofing contractors: average annual pay | $80,687 | – | – |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Frequently asked — commercial roofing hiring in San Francisco.
Why is commercial roofing labor so scarce in San Francisco?
San Francisco's own market data names high-rise and podium roofing as dominant over tract work, with seismic and wind detailing requirements that don't transfer from other markets. That combination keeps experienced commercial roofing foremen scarce and expensive.
Does San Francisco publish a distinct wage for commercial roofing foremen?
No - San Francisco's market data does not break out a separate foreman wage for roofing specifically. We benchmark foreman-tier offers against the metro's broader seismic-specialty commercial-construction bands instead of guessing at a figure.
What major projects are driving commercial roofing demand in San Francisco?
The Transbay district high-rise build-out, hospital expansion across UCSF, Kaiser, and Sutter, South San Francisco life-sciences construction, and regional data center growth all carry substantial commercial roofing scope - all real, ongoing trends with no verified regional dollar totals.
What do roofers earn in San Francisco?
BLS puts the San Francisco median for roofers at $74,340 a year, 34% above the $55,440 national median. That ranks 7th of 104 metros with published figures, in the top quarter. Most of the market sits between $57,720 and $98,390, a 1.7x gap and a moderate spread, so a few thousand dollars over the median buys real experience. Within California, San Jose pays more, at $76,650.
Is it hard to hire roofers in San Francisco?
Not by national standards. Roofers make up 26% more of the San Francisco workforce than they do nationally, about 2,610 people.
Which commercial roofing roles pay the most in San Francisco?
Of the roles we recruit for, Roofing Foreman pays the most in San Francisco, a $120,810 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Sheet Metal Worker at $102,660, 15% below it. Commercial Roofer is the lowest-paid field role at $74,340. Relative to national pay, Sheet Metal Worker is the strongest-paying role here (66% above).
How many nonresidential roofing contractors operate in San Francisco?
BLS counted 43 nonresidential roofing contractors in San Francisco in 2023. Up from 41 in 2018, a 5% increase against 10% growth nationally. BLS withholds their combined headcount and pay here, which it does when a category is small enough that the figures could identify individual employers.
Which nearby metros compete with San Francisco for roofers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are San Jose (42 miles, about 1,660, $76,650 median), Stockton (63 miles, about 240, $61,950 median) and Sacramento (75 miles, about 1,800, $63,320 median). San Francisco out-pays Stockton and Sacramento, an advantage when recruiting from there.
Two of the commercial roofing searches we closed this year were here.
Not a capability claim - the actual seats, what made each one hard, and how long it took. Every one of them links to its write-up.
- Roofing ShinglerThree weeks to add a safety-conscious shingler to a crew the client keeps building year-round.
- Roofing Project ManagerTwo decades of superintendent and project management experience against a five-year bar - placed in days.
One commercial roofing seat is open in California right now.
Nothing is open for this trade in San Francisco this week. These are the live commercial roofing searches elsewhere in California - commuting distance for some of them, a relocation conversation for the rest.
- Roofing EstimatorApply →
Every open role we are running →
Board last synced September 28, 2026. Roles move fast; /jobs/ is always the current list.
Hiring commercial roofing talent in San Francisco?
Tell us the role. We'll tell you wages, timeline, and where we'd source the candidate - in under 30 minutes.