Short answer: As of September 2026, the five highest-scoring roofing contractors in the Winston-Salem, NC metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score are Village Roofs, Inc. (90.8), Cooley Roofing (84.6), Wellborne Roofing, registered as Wellborne Construction Inc (83.3), New Testament Roofing (81.5), Restoration Roofing Specialists, LLC (80.5). All of them carry a verifiable manufacturer certification, every rating here was cross-checked against an independent record, and no money changed hands for any placement.
The Roofing Brief scored 13 certified roofing contractors serving the Winston-Salem metro on a published, reproducible formula, then researched each of the top five individually to confirm its record. Winston-Salem sits 25 miles from Greensboro, and the certification registry treats the two as one market: search Winston-Salem and the top results are Greensboro companies that already lead the Greensboro ranking. We rank contractors against the metro whose centre they are actually nearest, so this page is Forsyth County’s own. That changes its character. Only one President’s Club contractor ranks here, and it sits just over the county line in Oak Ridge; the four Forsyth and Davidson County firms behind it are all Master Elite, and every one of them carries a perfect 5.0. North Carolina licenses general contractors at $40,000 and up, and a Forsyth County replacement usually sits below that line, so there may be no state licence to check at all.
The conditions a Winston-Salem roof has to be specified for
The Triad’s severe weather is overwhelmingly wind. NOAA holds 556 severe wind reports across the five metro counties over the decade against 84 hail reports, only three of which reached two inches, and six tornadoes, including EF2s at King in Stokes County and Courtney in Yadkin County on the same day in May 2017. July is the peak month and 2023 the busiest year, when a June storm dropped 2-inch hail across Davidson, Yadkin and Davie counties.
Trees are how that wind reaches roofs. A survey in Yadkinville in August 2024 found a gas station canopy blown onto a car and trees uprooted in a single direction, which is the ordinary pattern here: straight-line winds, falling limbs and punctured decking rather than shredded shingles. The practical consequences are branch clearance over the roof and a deck inspection after any impact, not a higher impact rating.
North Carolina’s licensing threshold leaves a gap in this market. A general contractor licence with the roofing classification is required for work of $40,000 or more, a threshold that rose from $30,000 in October 2023, and a typical Forsyth County replacement sits below it. Below that line there is no state licence to verify, which is exactly why manufacturer certification, insurance and the BBB record carry the weight on this page.
Permits depend on scope and on which office covers your address. Winston-Salem and Forsyth County share an inspections operation, with Kernersville, Clemmons, Lexington and Mount Airy in the surrounding counties running their own, and any work touching decking or structure is permitted work. Ask who is pulling the permit, and if your contract approaches $40,000, ask to see the state licence rather than assuming the job falls under the threshold.
The 5 best roofers in Winston-Salem, NC
Scored 2026-09-20. The metro mean rating used as the Bayesian prior for Winston-Salem is 4.9, across a pool of 13 certified contractors.
| Rank | Company | TRB Score | Certification | Rating (reviews) | Adjusted | In business since | Based in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Village Roofs, Inc. | 90.8 | President’s Club | 4.9 (152) | 4.9 | not published | Oak Ridge, NC |
| 2 | Cooley Roofing | 84.6 | Master Elite | 5.0 (150) | 4.975 | 1989 | Clemmons, NC |
| 3 | Wellborne Roofing, registered as Wellborne Construction Inc | 83.3 | Master Elite | 5.0 (57) | 4.953 | not published | Winston Salem, NC |
| 4 | New Testament Roofing | 81.5 | Master Elite | 5.0 (112) | 4.969 | not published | High Point, NC |
| 5 | Restoration Roofing Specialists, LLC | 80.5 | Master Elite | 5.0 (27) | 4.935 | not published | Winston Salem, NC |
1. Village Roofs, Inc. — TRB Score 90.8
Village Roofs, Inc. is based in Oak Ridge, NC, BBB accredited since 7 January 2022, A+ rating, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 35 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 36.0 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 13.8 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 6.0 | 10 |
| Total | 90.8 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- A+ rated and accredited since 7 January 2022. BBB
- Listed with GuildQuality, which surveys customers directly rather than collecting volunteered reviews. GuildQuality
What they actually do. Residential roofing across Guilford and Forsyth counties.
Why it ranks here. President’s Club certification with a 4.9 rating and GuildQuality participation, so its feedback is solicited from every customer rather than volunteered. Oak Ridge sits between Winston-Salem and Greensboro and it serves both, which is why it appears on both pages, sixteen miles from the Winston-Salem centre.
Best fit for: Oak Ridge, Kernersville and eastern Forsyth County homeowners.
What we would want clarified. Sixteen miles from the metro centre and closer to Greensboro, where it also ranks. 152 registry reviews. We publish this because a ranking that only prints the flattering findings is an advertisement, not an assessment.
Verify the certification yourself on the GAF registry listing. The number carried on that listing is (743) 762-2204, which is the registry’s contact line and is often a directory tracking number rather than the contractor’s own: take the number from the company’s own website and compare the two.
2. Cooley Roofing — TRB Score 84.6
Cooley Roofing is based in Clemmons, NC, in business since 1989, BBB accredited since 4 October 2012, A+ rating, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 39.0 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 13.7 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 7.9 | 10 |
| Total | 84.6 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- A+ rated and accredited since 4 October 2012, a 14-year record, 37 years in business. BBB
- 130 reviews on Birdeye. Birdeye
What they actually do. Residential roofing across Forsyth County and the Winston-Salem area.
Why it ranks here. Thirty-seven years trading with fourteen years of unbroken A+ accreditation, the longest record in Forsyth County by a wide margin, on a clean 5.0 across 150 registry reviews. Longevity plus a perfect rating at that volume is the strongest combination in this metro.
Best fit for: Clemmons, Lewisville and western Forsyth County homeowners.
Verify the certification yourself on the GAF registry listing. The number carried on that listing is (336) 715-0074, which is the registry’s contact line and is often a directory tracking number rather than the contractor’s own: take the number from the company’s own website and compare the two.
3. Wellborne Roofing, registered as Wellborne Construction Inc — TRB Score 83.3
Trades as Wellborne Roofing, registered as Wellborne Construction Inc; listed on the GAF registry as Wellborne Roofing.
Wellborne Roofing, registered as Wellborne Construction Inc is based in Winston Salem, NC, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 38.1 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 11.1 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 83.3 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Member of Greater Winston-Salem, Inc. and the Lewisville-Clemmons Chamber of Commerce. Chamber
- Registered with the manufacturer under the legal name Wellborne Construction Inc while trading as Wellborne Roofing. GAF
What they actually do. Roofing, home improvement and repairs across Winston-Salem.
Why it ranks here. A clean 5.0 across 57 registry reviews from a contractor based in Winston-Salem itself, with dual chamber of commerce membership. Worth knowing before you check the paperwork: the legal entity is Wellborne Construction Inc, so a licence or corporate search under the trading name alone will come back empty.
Best fit for: Winston-Salem city homeowners.
What we would want clarified. Fifty-seven registry reviews and no locatable BBB rating or accreditation. Ask for the licence number under the legal entity name. We publish this because a ranking that only prints the flattering findings is an advertisement, not an assessment.
Verify the certification yourself on the GAF registry listing. The number carried on that listing is (336) 617-9031, which is the registry’s contact line and is often a directory tracking number rather than the contractor’s own: take the number from the company’s own website and compare the two.
4. New Testament Roofing — TRB Score 81.5
New Testament Roofing is based in High Point, NC, Not accredited, A rating, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 38.8 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 12.9 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 5.8 | 10 |
| Total | 81.5 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Rated A by the BBB, not accredited. BBB
- Roofing and construction across the Triad and Triangle. Company
What they actually do. Residential and commercial roofing across the Triad.
Why it ranks here. A clean 5.0 across 112 registry reviews from a High Point contractor covering the southern side of the Triad. It appears on the Greensboro page too, because High Point genuinely sits between the two cities.
Best fit for: High Point, Thomasville and southern Forsyth County homeowners.
What we would want clarified. Not BBB accredited and rated A rather than A+, though there is no complaint pattern on file. Seventeen miles from the metro centre. We publish this because a ranking that only prints the flattering findings is an advertisement, not an assessment.
Verify the certification yourself on the GAF registry listing. The number carried on that listing is (984) 383-1898, which is the registry’s contact line and is often a directory tracking number rather than the contractor’s own: take the number from the company’s own website and compare the two.
5. Restoration Roofing Specialists, LLC — TRB Score 80.5
Restoration Roofing Specialists, LLC is based in Winston Salem, NC, BBB accredited since 11 March 2014, A+ rating, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 37.4 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 9.1 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 80.5 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- A+ rated and accredited since 11 March 2014, a 12-year record. BBB
- Residential and commercial roofing, gutters, windows, siding and painting. Company
What they actually do. Roofing, gutters, windows, siding and painting, residential and commercial.
Why it ranks here. Twelve years of unbroken A+ accreditation, the second-longest formal record in Forsyth County, on a clean 5.0 rating.
Best fit for: Winston-Salem homeowners wanting several exterior trades from one contractor.
What we would want clarified. Twenty-seven registry reviews is a thin base for a firm with a twelve-year accreditation record. We publish this because a ranking that only prints the flattering findings is an advertisement, not an assessment.
Verify the certification yourself on the GAF registry listing. The number carried on that listing is (336) 999-6545, which is the registry’s contact line and is often a directory tracking number rather than the contractor’s own: take the number from the company’s own website and compare the two.
The 556 wind reports that shape a Winston-Salem roof
Aggregate hail counts tell you very little about a specific roof. These are the individual events: every severe-weather report logged by the National Weather Service across the 5 counties of the Winston-Salem, NC statistical area over ten years, with the dates, the stone sizes and the towns they landed on. Over that decade the metro logged 84 hail reports, 556 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 6 tornadoes. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $32.5 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
The biggest hail to fall on Winston-Salem in a decade
| Date | Stone size | Reported near | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 June 2023 | 2.0 in | Lexington | Davidson |
| 26 June 2023 | 2.0 in | Windsors Xrds | Yadkin |
| 26 June 2023 | 2.0 in | Bixby | Davie |
| 2 May 2016 | 1.75 in | Hanes | Forsyth |
| 3 May 2016 | 1.75 in | Handy | Davidson |
| 12 May 2016 | 1.75 in | Handy | Davidson |
The largest stone on record for this metro fell on 26 June 2023 near Lexington, measured at 2.0 inches. That is hen-egg sized. Two inches is the threshold at which insurers expect functional damage and full replacement claims.
Wind. The strongest thunderstorm gust logged in the metro was 65 knots, about 75 mph, near Yadkinville on 3 August 2024. Asphalt shingles begin lifting at roughly 67 mph when they are correctly nailed, and considerably below that when they are not.
Tornadoes. 6 tornadoes touched down in these counties over the decade, the strongest rated EF2 near King on 24 May 2017.
What the National Weather Service wrote about it
The NWS logs a written account of each severe-weather episode. This is its description of the 3 August 2024 event near Yadkinville, reproduced verbatim:
Thunderstorm winds caused a gas station canopy to fall on a car. Several trees were uprooted, all falling in the same direction. Damage values are estimated.
That is the kind of damage a roof in this metro has to be specified against, described by the agency that recorded it rather than by a contractor selling the repair.
When it happens. Severe weather reports cluster in July (157), May (124), August (117). The worst years on record were 2023 (110), 2022 (73), 2016 (71). If you are scheduling non-urgent work in Winston-Salem, the months outside that window are when crews are least stretched and least likely to be triaging emergency callouts ahead of your job.
Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, county-level detail files 2016 to 2025, filtered to the counties of this statistical area by The Roofing Brief. Damage figures are as reported to the NWS and undercount insured losses.
What to do with this. Winston-Salem sees enough damaging hail that a Class 4 impact-rated shingle is worth pricing, though not automatically worth buying. Get both quotes and weigh the premium against any insurance discount.
Before you sign anything in Winston-Salem
Licensing is required in NC. North Carolina has no state roofing licence as such. A general contractor licence from the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors, carrying the Building, Residential or S (Roofing) classification, is required for any roofing project costing $40,000 or more.
The $40,000 threshold rose from $30,000 effective 1 October 2023. Contracting without a licence at or above that value is a Class 2 misdemeanour under NCGS 87-13. Exams are administered by PSI.
Check here: NCLBGC licensee search. Below $40,000 no state licence is needed, and most single-family reroofs cost less than that, so many local roofers lawfully hold none. If your job is at or above $40,000, check the licence on the Board’s search; below it, check insurance certificates with the insurer, and note that North Carolina has no statute banning deductible rebates or giving a cancellation right on insurance-funded roof contracts.
Four checks to run before you sign anything, in any state.
- Verify certification at the source. Use the GAF verification tool rather than trusting a badge image on a company website.
- Get the certificate of insurance from the insurer, not the contractor, and confirm general liability and workers compensation are both active on the day work starts.
- Confirm who pulls the permit. If a contractor asks you to pull it as the homeowner, that moves liability onto you. Decline.
- Get warranty terms in writing before any deposit, and check the manufacturer warranty being promised actually requires the certification tier the contractor holds.
Who else is certified in Winston-Salem
13 certified roofing contractors serve the principal cities of the Winston-Salem, NC statistical area, of which 1 hold the top President’s Club tier. The pool carries 1,253 customer reviews between them at a mean rating of 4.9. The statistical area had a 2024 population of 705,187, a change of 4.32% against the 2020 census base, per the U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates.
How these Winston-Salem rankings were produced
Every contractor in the Winston-Salem, NC pool was scored out of 100 on four published components: certification tier, a Bayesian adjusted rating, review depth and distance from the metro centre. In this metro that meant scoring 13 certified contractors, of whom 1 hold President’s Club standing and 7 Master Elite, against a metro mean rating of 4.9. The top five were then researched individually against Better Business Bureau records, state licence registers and manufacturer directories. Good and bad findings are published together, and no contractor paid for a place here.
The full method, the weightings, what the GAF certification tiers actually mean, who is eligible to be ranked and what we do not claim are all set out on our roofer ranking methodology page. Last updated: September 2026. Scoring run: 2026-09-20. Corrections go to the editor and are actioned on verification.
What Winston-Salem homeowners want to know
Who is the best roofer in Winston-Salem, NC?
Village Roofs, Inc. of Oak Ridge, NC scores highest in the Winston-Salem metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score, at 90.8 out of 100 as of September 2026. It holds President’s Club certification with a 4.9 rating across 152 reviews. Highest-scoring is not the same as best fit for your specific job, and the four companies behind it score within 10.3 points.
How many certified roofing contractors serve Winston-Salem?
13 contractors on the GAF certification registry serve the principal cities of the Winston-Salem, NC statistical area as of September 2026, of which 1 hold President’s Club status.
How much damaging hail does Winston-Salem get?
The Winston-Salem, NC statistical area recorded 73 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 3 of 2 inches or larger between 2016 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Events Database. The largest hailstone reported measured 2.0 inches.
Did any contractor pay to appear on this list?
No. The Roofing Brief takes no placement fees, no lead fees and no affiliate commission from any roofing contractor. Ranking comes entirely from the published formula applied to public registry data, followed by an individual research pass on the top five.
What was the worst hailstorm in Winston-Salem in the last ten years?
The largest hailstone logged by the National Weather Service in the Winston-Salem, NC statistical area between 2016 and 2025 measured 2.0 inches, reported near Lexington on 26 June 2023. That is hen-egg sized. Two inches is the threshold at which insurers expect functional damage and full replacement claims. Across the decade the metro recorded 84 hail reports. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $32.5 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
When is the worst time of year for roof damage in Winston-Salem?
Severe-weather reports in the Winston-Salem, NC statistical area cluster in July, May, August, on the NOAA record for 2016 to 2025. Scheduling discretionary work away from that window tends to get you a better crew and a faster start, because nobody is juggling emergency callouts.
Do roofers need a licence in NC?
North Carolina has no state roofing licence as such. A general contractor licence from the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors, carrying the Building, Residential or S (Roofing) classification, is required for any roofing project costing $40,000 or more. The $40,000 threshold rose from $30,000 effective 1 October 2023. Contracting without a licence at or above that value is a Class 2 misdemeanour under NCGS 87-13. Exams are administered by PSI.
What should I check before hiring a roofer in Winston-Salem?
Below $40,000 no state licence is needed, and most single-family reroofs cost less than that, so many local roofers lawfully hold none. If your job is at or above $40,000, check the licence on the Board’s search; below it, check insurance certificates with the insurer, and note that North Carolina has no statute banning deductible rebates or giving a cancellation right on insurance-funded roof contracts.
Is Winston-Salem a hard market to find a good roofer in?
Winston-Salem sits 25 miles from Greensboro, and the certification registry treats the two as one market: search Winston-Salem and the top results are Greensboro companies that already lead the Greensboro ranking. We rank contractors against the metro whose centre they are actually nearest, so this page is Forsyth County’s own. That changes its character. Only one President’s Club contractor ranks here, and it sits just over the county line in Oak Ridge; the four Forsyth and Davidson County firms behind it are all Master Elite, and every one of them carries a perfect 5.0. North Carolina licenses general contractors at $40,000 and up, and a Forsyth County replacement usually sits below that line, so there may be no state licence to check at all.
Is wind or hail the bigger risk to a roof in Winston-Salem?
Wind, by a wide margin. The Winston-Salem, NC statistical area logged 556 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports against 73 hail reports of an inch or more between 2016 and 2025. Wind damage shows up at the rake, ridge and edge rather than across the field of the roof, so the fastening schedule and edge detail matter more here than the impact rating of the shingle.
Roofer rankings for other metros
The Roofing Brief scores certified roofing contractors in the 400 largest U.S. metropolitan and micropolitan areas on the same formula.
- Best roofers in Greensboro, NC, about 24 miles from Winston-Salem
- Best roofers in Hickory, NC, about 64 miles from Winston-Salem
- Best roofers in Charlotte, NC, about 70 miles from Winston-Salem
- Best roofers in Durham, NC, another NC metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Raleigh, NC, another NC metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Akron, OH, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in Madison, WI, a metro of comparable size
See the full index of all 400 metro roofer rankings, or read how to find and vet a roofing contractor anywhere in the country.
Cite this analysis
The Roofing Brief. “Best Roofers in Winston-Salem, NC: The Roofing Brief Contractor Score.” Published September 2026. Inputs: GAF certification registry; NOAA Storm Events Database 2016-2025; U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 population estimates; Better Business Bureau and independent review-platform records for each ranked contractor.