Do I need to be bonded and insured, or just one?

In California they are separate requirements that do different jobs. The $25,000 contractor license bond is mandatory to hold a CSLB license. Insurance is mandatory only in specific cases, workers' compensation once you have employees, but general liability is what most clients, general contractors, and property managers actually ask to see before they let you on site.

Which do I buy first?

The bond, because you cannot activate your license without it and everything else follows the license. Get the license bond filed, then place general liability, then add workers' compensation the moment you hire your first employee.

How much does it cost to get bonded and insured?

They are priced completely differently. The bond costs an annual premium that is a percentage of the $25,000 bond amount, typically 1% to 15% depending mostly on credit. Insurance is priced on your trade, payroll, and revenue, so a roofer and a handyman pay very different premiums for the same coverage limits.

Can I get bonded and insured with bad credit?

The bond, usually yes. Credit drives the premium rather than eligibility, and credit-challenged files are placeable in the right markets. Insurance underwriting looks at different things entirely, mostly your trade, claims history, and payroll, so a weak credit file matters far less on that side.

Does being bonded mean my customers are covered for anything?

No, and this is the most common misunderstanding. The license bond protects consumers, employees, and the public up to $25,000 for specific violations, and if the surety pays a claim you reimburse it in full. It is not general-purpose protection, and it is not insurance for your business.

How to Get Bonded and Insured in California

Getting bonded and insured, by the numbers

$25,000: California contractor license bond, required since Jan 1, 2023; CA Business & Professions Code, 2023
$100,000: Additional worker bond required of LLC contractors; CA Business & Professions Code
~290,000: Licensed California contractors, across 44 classifications; CSLB, 2025
~80%: New U.S. construction businesses that survive their first year; U.S. BLS

They are two different purchases

A bond is a three-party guarantee. You, the agency requiring it, and the surety standing behind you. It pays your customers and the public when you fall short, and then you reimburse the surety. An insurance policy is a two-party contract that pays you for your own covered losses, and nobody asks for the money back.

That difference is why you need both, and why bonded is not a synonym for insured. The bond is the price of holding a license. The insurance is the price of getting on most job sites.

Step 1: the license bond, first and non-negotiable

Every CSLB-licensed California contractor carries the $25,000 contractor license bond under BPC §7071.6. There is no exemption, and your license cannot go active without it on file. Buy this first, because the license gates everything else.

Quote it. No card or SSN to get a number. Credit is the main driver, and what the license bond actually costs breaks the range down.
Pay the premium and sign. You are signing an indemnity agreement, which is what obliges you to repay a paid claim.
The surety e-files it with the CSLB, typically within 24 to 48 business hours.

Two structures add a bond here. If an employee rather than an owner qualifies your license you also carry the Bond of Qualifying Individual, and an LLC carries the $100,000 employee/worker bond on top. The full picture is in the bond stack.

Step 2: general liability, what clients actually mean

When a homeowner, a general contractor, or a property manager asks if you are insured, they almost always mean general liability. It covers third-party bodily injury and property damage you cause on the job. California does not require it to hold a license, but the market effectively does: many GCs will not add you to a project without a certificate, and plenty of residential clients ask to see one.

Pricing has nothing to do with your bond. It is driven by your trade, payroll, and revenue, which is why a roofer and a handyman pay very different premiums for identical limits. We place contractor general liability alongside the bond so it is one conversation rather than three.

Step 3: workers' compensation, the moment you hire

The day you have employees, California requires workers' compensation. This one is genuinely mandatory, not market-driven, and a few classifications must carry it even with no employees. Getting this wrong is a licensing problem, not just an insurance problem, so confirm your situation with the CSLB rather than assuming.

What it costs, honestly

The bond and the insurance are priced on different logic, so a single "bonded and insured" number does not exist:

The bond: an annual premium of roughly 1% to 15% of the $25,000, driven mostly by credit. Strong credit lands in the low hundreds a year; cost by credit score shows the tiers.
The insurance: priced on trade, payroll, and revenue. A quote is the only honest answer here, and anyone advertising a flat rate is guessing.

If your credit is the problem

It usually is not fatal, and it usually only affects the bond half. Credit sets your bond rate rather than your eligibility, and credit-challenged files get placed in markets built for them. If you are brand new with no history at all, getting bonded as a new contractor walks the same path from a standing start.

We handle the bond and the insurance together so you are not managing three vendors to answer one question from a client. Start a quote and we will tell you which pieces your setup actually needs. Underwriting applies, and we never promise guaranteed approval.