Sub crews price shingle labor by the square, and the rates roofers have posted run from about $70 to $140, with more for steep pitch, a second story, extra layers and hot work. Bid it from a written sheet that has a base rate for each pitch band and a line for every up-charge and component. Some states, including Texas and California, also set a deadline for paying the sub once you have been paid.
Posted sub rates for shingle labor run $70 to $140 a square
Each figure below is one roofer’s number from one market, posted on r/Roofing or in YouTube comments between 2024 and 2026.
| Who posted it | Rate per square | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| A sales manager | $75 to $125 | What subs typically charge |
| A Houston owner | About $75 | Installing UHDZ shingles |
| An owner paying crew leaders | $100, or $110 on two stories | One story, 9/12 pitch and under |
| An Arizona owner | $110, or $200 for hot work | Shingles; other crews offer $80 to $90 |
| A roofer | $70 | What most of the bigger companies pay |
| A Long Island sub | $140 | The rate he cites |
Some quoted rates include more than labor. A Los Angeles company paying its subs $500 a square asked how much it would save by hiring its own crew and buying its own materials. Ask a crew what its number covers before you set it beside the table.
Two owners say immigration enforcement has pushed labor costs up. One wrote on r/Roofing in 2026 that the workers still willing to work are “charging double the amount per square.” A Detroit owner went back to an in-house crew, paying shinglers $40 an hour and tear-off workers $25. If a crew’s rate jumps, price an hourly crew of your own against it before you agree.
Build the bid from a sheet with a line for every up-charge
A Michigan sub posted his labor rate sheet on r/Roofing in 2024 and asked other roofers for feedback. These were his asking prices with tear-off included, and a sub bidding labor to a roofing company can lay out its own sheet the same way:
| Line | Rate per square |
|---|---|
| 2/12 to 7/12 pitch | $100 |
| 8/12 to 10/12 pitch | $110 |
| 11/12 to 12/12 pitch | $120 |
| Each additional layer | Add $10 |
| No tear-off | $25 less |
His sheet has no lines for components, and three posts on r/Roofing asked about exactly that. One owner pays crews per square for shingles, hip and ridge, and starter, and asked how to pay a tear-off with more than one layer. Another asked which accessories get paid out on new construction, naming drip edge, ridge vent and step flashing. A thread asking owners how they pay their subs put it plainly: “Do you pay a flat rate per sq regardless of pitch or components installed?”
A company recruiting crews said that when it asks what they charge per square, the crews answer “what do you guys pay?” Bring your own sheet so the talk starts from your number, with a line for each of these:
- Base rate per square for each pitch band
- Second story
- Each layer of tear-off past the first
- Roofs with no tear-off
- Hip and ridge, and starter
- Drip edge, ridge vent and step flashing
- Hot work
Labor came in under materials in both posted cost breakdowns
An Arizona owner on r/RoofingSales put his costs at about $115 a square for materials and $110 for labor. Another Arizona owner in the same thread said crews who have worked in Texas put labor there within about $10 a square of Arizona.
A quote for a 79-square replacement, posted on r/Roofing, listed materials at $252 a square and labor at $130, with the labor line marked as subs carrying their own liability and workers’ comp insurance.
Build your labor line from your rate sheet and the roof’s measurements, then add overhead and margin on top. How to Price a Roof: Price per Square, Overhead and Target Margin covers that second step.
A crew without workers’ comp can put the cost on you
The quote above priced labor with the subs carrying their own coverage. When a crew has none, state rules decide what lands on you:
- Florida. Statute 440.10 makes the contractor liable for workers’ comp for a sub’s employees unless the sub has coverage, and requires the contractor to get proof of it or an officer’s exemption certificate.
- Texas. Under Labor Code 406.123, a contractor with coverage who hires a sub with no employees is treated as that sub’s employer, and the two may agree to deduct the premium from the sub’s pay. Write any deduction into the rate sheet, because it lowers what the crew takes home per square.
- California. Labor Code 2810 bars you from contracting for labor when you know or should know the price can’t fund the crew’s compliance with the law. A per-square rate too low to cover wages, payroll taxes and workers’ comp can fall under it.
One owner on r/smallbusiness says his carrier’s premium audit treated subs it judged underinsured as having no coverage and wanted three times his annual premium. Collect current certificates before the first roof, and price a crew without coverage as if you will pay its comp. How to Find and Keep Reliable Roofing Sub Crews covers checking the rest of a crew’s paperwork.
State law puts a clock on paying a sub once you are paid
Texas Property Code 28.002 says you must pay a sub its share of the owner’s payment no later than the seventh day after you receive it, and unpaid amounts bear interest at 1-1/2% a month.
Chapter 28 has exceptions, so have a lawyer confirm how it applies to a reroof paid by a homeowner or an insurer.
In a good-faith dispute on a home of one to four units, Texas lets you withhold up to 110% of the disputed amount.
California’s Business and Professions Code 7108.5 gives you seven days after each progress payment to pay your subs, with a penalty of 2% of the amount due for each month it goes unpaid.
Florida statute 715.12 says that once you have been paid for a sub’s labor, you must pay the sub.
Late payments bear the interest rate set under statute 55.03 plus 12% a year, starting on the 14th day after payment is due.
Texas also treats the money as trust funds. Under Property Code 162, construction payments you receive are held in trust, with you as trustee. A contractor who knowingly diverts them without first paying all current and past-due obligations has misapplied them, and misapplying $500 or more with intent to defraud is a third-degree felony.
An unpaid crew on a Texas home can file a lien. It must send notice of its claim by the 15th day of the second month after the month it did the work, and file the lien affidavit by the same day one month later.
Write the pay day into the agreement and set it inside your state’s deadline, counted from the day you receive the payment. Roofing Subcontractor Agreement Template: Scope, Insurance, Payment and a No-Poach Clause covers the payment clause.
Collect a W-9 first, and know that per-square pay does not settle status
The W-9 gives you the crew’s taxpayer ID. If a crew won’t give you a correct one, the IRS requires you to withhold 24% from what you pay it.
Starting with payments made in 2026, Form 1099-NEC is required for any sub you paid $2,000 or more in the year, up from $600.
Paying by the square does not by itself make a worker a contractor. The IRS counts how a worker is paid as evidence of financial control when it decides employee or contractor status, and a company that misclassifies with no reasonable basis can owe the employment taxes. The Labor Department’s 2026 proposed rule on contractor status uses a roofing example: a crew worker who started with no roofing skills and was trained by the company. There, the skill factor “weighs in favor of the individual being an employee.” Treat a worker you trained from scratch as a likely employee.
Set these before the next crew starts
- A written rate sheet with pitch bands, stories, layers and components
- An answer on whether materials are in any rate a crew quotes
- Current liability and workers’ comp certificates, or a price that covers the comp you would carry
- A pay day inside your state’s deadline, written into the agreement
- A W-9 on file before the first payment, and 1099-NECs filed by January 31
A crew on a fixed rate needs a steady run of roofs, and that depends on homeowners near you finding you when they search. Run the free Google Maps heatmap: pick your Google profile and a search, and in a few minutes you’ll see your rank at 49 points around your office.