Short answer: As of October 2026, the five highest-scoring roofing contractors in the Waco, TX metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score are Priority Contracting & Roofing (87.8), Pahmiyer Roofing & Construction (74.5), Roof Kings of Texas (68.1), Johnson Roofing (55.2), Guest Roofing Inc (54.8). 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 5 certified roofing contractors serving the Waco metro on a published, reproducible formula, then researched each of the top five individually to confirm its record. Waco is the opposite of Amarillo. Texas licenses no roofing contractors, and the City of Waco does not register them either: its construction permits page requires registration of plumbing, electrical and mechanical contractors, and roofing is not among the trades named. So a Waco homeowner cannot check a roofer against a state licence or a city roofing registration, because neither exists. The one credential available is the Roofing Contractors Association of Texas licence, voluntary and held by a small minority of the trade, and exactly one of the five firms below has it, with three separate licensed principals. The reroof permit is a flat $125 and Waco moved to the 2024 International Residential Code on 1 January 2026, three cycles ahead of Amarillo.
What a Waco roof is up against
The hail here is less frequent than on the Panhandle and bigger when it comes. Across 2016 to 2025 McLennan, Falls and Bosque counties logged 193 hail reports, 157 of them at an inch or more and 25 at two inches or more, against 92 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 20 tornadoes. The largest stone of the decade was 4.50 inches two miles east of Waco on 26 April 2023, reported by a trained spotter, with the NWS Fort Worth narrative recording that numerous vehicles and buildings were damaged from the large hail that fell in and around Waco and the episode narrative noting softball sized hail in McLennan County. The same storm produced 4.25 inch hail at Bosqueville and 4.00 inch hail at Ocee earlier that afternoon, so three of the four largest hail reports of the decade in these counties came from one afternoon. That is the shape of Waco’s risk: long quiet stretches punctuated by a single day that resets the market.
Because there is no licence and no registration, the only roofing credential in Texas is the one the trade body issues, and it is worth understanding what it tests. RCAT states plainly that Texas does not require roofing contractors to hold a state-issued roofing licence. Its voluntary licence requires the applicant to have been a principal in a Texas-domiciled roofing company with a fixed physical location for at least two continuous years, to carry $500,000 combined single limit general liability for a commercial licence or $300,000 for residential, or a $100,000 surety bond or irrevocable letter of credit in either case, to carry workers’ compensation or a compliant equivalent, and to pass three online examinations at 70 percent or better within one year of approval. Fees run $550 to $1,050 depending on category and membership, with a $250 annual renewal conditional on eight continuing education units. Note the entry test: time in business as a principal, not a trade test of installation skill.
The permit and code position is better than most Texas cities. Effective 1 January 2026 Waco enforces the 2024 editions of the International Residential Code and the rest of the International family under Chapter 6 of the city code, which puts it a full three cycles ahead of Amarillo on the 2021 IRC. A roofing repair or alteration to an existing residential structure is a flat $125 on the fee schedule, with reinspection fees escalating at $55 for a first failed inspection, $100 for a second and $150 thereafter, which is a real incentive on the contractor to pass the first time. There is no registration fee for the trades that must register.
One structural fact changes who the market serves. The city of Waco is majority renter: of 53,906 occupied housing units, 27,258 are renter-occupied against 26,648 owner-occupied, a renter share of 50.6 percent, while McLennan County as a whole is 38.2 percent renter. The renter concentration is specific to the city. For a roofing market that means a large share of the roofs being replaced belong to landlords and investors rather than to the people living under them, which tends to pull the market toward price and speed. Median year of construction is 1983 countywide and 1979 in the city, so the typical Waco house is on its second or third covering.
The 5 best roofers in Waco, TX
Scored 2026-10-02. The metro mean rating used as the Bayesian prior for Waco is 4.76, across a pool of 5 certified contractors.
| Rank | Company | TRB Score | Certification | Rating (reviews) | Adjusted | In business since | Based in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Priority Contracting & Roofing | 87.8 | Master Elite | 5.0 (345) | 4.97 | 2016 | Waco, TX |
| 2 | Pahmiyer Roofing & Construction | 74.5 | Master Elite | 5.0 (18) | 4.824 | 2014 | Waco, TX |
| 3 | Roof Kings of Texas | 68.1 | Certified | 5.0 (144) | 4.938 | 2022 | Mcgregor, TX |
| 4 | Johnson Roofing | 55.2 | Certified | 4.5 (23) | 4.678 | 1941 | Robinson, TX |
| 5 | Guest Roofing Inc | 54.8 | Certified | 4.3 (23) | 4.615 | 1985 | Waco, TX |
1. Priority Contracting & Roofing — TRB Score 87.8
Priority Contracting & Roofing is based in Waco, TX, in business since 2016, led by Will Miller, owner of the wider company; Micah McQueen, managing partner of the Waco branch, BBB accredited since 29 August 2016, A+ rating, 16 complaints closed in the last three years, 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 | 15.0 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 87.8 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Profiled as Priority Roofing of Waco, accredited since 29 August 2016 with an A+ rating, a founding date of 5 July 2016, and 16 complaints closed in the last three years.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Roof replacement, roof repair, storm and hail damage, residential and commercial roofing.
Why it ranks here. The top score in the metro on a 5.0 across 345 reviews, much the deepest review base here, with Master Elite certification and BBB accreditation at A+ running back to August 2016. It is a branch of a large operator, which brings scale advantages after a storm: crew availability, supply relationships and the ability to absorb a surge are real benefits in a market whose risk arrives as a single April afternoon.
Best fit for: A post-storm replacement where you need a crew quickly and want the deepest review record in the metro.
What we would want clarified. Be clear what you are hiring. This is not a Waco independent: the company’s own site, trading as Priority Roofing, states it runs over 30 locations across multiple states, and the Waco page names a managing partner rather than an owner. BBB records 16 complaints closed in the last three years, the highest on this page by a wide margin, and we could not retrieve the detail, so we characterise none of them, but you should read them yourself on the BBB profile before signing. The two records give different Waco-area addresses, Hewitt on BBB and Franklin Ave on the company’s own page. We could not establish the registered legal entity name, which appears variously as Priority Roofing, Priority Contracting and Roofing, and in a third-party record as Priority Contracting & Roofing of Austin LLC, and we could not confirm whether the 5 July 2016 founding date refers to the Waco branch or the wider company. It holds no RCAT licence. GAF tier self-reported. 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 (254) 299-5398, 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. Pahmiyer Roofing & Construction — TRB Score 74.5
Pahmiyer Roofing & Construction is based in Waco, TX, in business since 2014, led by Lee Pahmiyer, Owner, Not accredited; A+ rating, no complaints closed in the last three years, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 32.9 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 7.6 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 74.5 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Founded 28 June 2014 with Lee Pahmiyer as owner, not accredited, rated A+, with no complaints closed in the last three years.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Roof installation, roof repair, roof inspection, roof replacement, residential and commercial roofing.
Why it ranks here. A genuinely local, owner-named firm inside Waco city limits, trading since June 2014 with Master Elite certification, a 5.0 rating and no complaints closed at BBB in the last three years. Of the five firms here it is the only Master Elite holder that is a single-market independent rather than a branch, which is the relevant comparison against the firm above it. It is also straight with homeowners on the one point most of this trade stays quiet about: its own site states plainly that roofing contractors are not required to be licensed in Texas.
Best fit for: A local alternative to the branch operation above, from a named owner inside the city.
What we would want clarified. Its 18 reviews are much the thinnest base on this page and tell you very little, which is why it ranks second on tier rather than on record. It is not BBB accredited, though BBB rates it A+. It holds no RCAT licence. Its two published Waco addresses, 5900 Franklin Ave Unit 34 and 424 Clay Ave Ste 1911, left us unable to say which is current. And we found no independent source for it beyond BBB: no chamber, no builders association, no RCAT listing, so this entry rests on a single third-party record. GAF tier self-reported. 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 (254) 755-7663, 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. Roof Kings of Texas — TRB Score 68.1
Roof Kings of Texas is based in Mcgregor, TX, in business since 2022, led by Not published in any source we could read, BBB no BBB profile found, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 37.5 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 12.8 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 5.8 | 10 |
| Total | 68.1 | 100 |
What they actually do. Residential and commercial roofing, asphalt shingles, metal roofing, synthetic shingles, tile, modified bitumen, TPO, PVC, seamless gutters.
Why it ranks here. The widest material range on this page by a long way, and the only firm in this metro documenting tile, synthetic shingles, modified bitumen, TPO and PVC alongside asphalt and metal. If your job is a low-slope section, a membrane, or a tile roof, this is the one firm here that says it does them, and it carries a 5.0 across 144 reviews. It states a service area of McLennan, Bell and Coryell counties.
Best fit for: Membrane and low-slope work, tile, and synthetic shingles.
What we would want clarified. This is the least independently documented firm in the metro and the gaps are substantial. A BBB search returned no profile at all. It does not appear in RCAT’s licensed-contractor directory. No chamber or builders-association record was found, so our independent source list for it is empty rather than padded, and every claim above except the review figures comes from the company’s own site. No owner or principal is named in any source we could read. Its own site gives a business start date of 11 March 2022, making it the newest firm here, and it operates from McGregor, about 20 miles south-west of Waco and outside the city, so the city permit regime described above may not apply to its own premises. GAF tier self-reported. 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 (254) 340-0968, 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. Johnson Roofing — TRB Score 55.2
Johnson Roofing is based in Robinson, TX, in business since 1941, led by Sherri Johnson McDonald and Bill Johnson, chairman; S. McDonald, W. Coler and T. Davis hold the RCAT licences, BBB accredited since 1 August 1967, A+ rating, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: Certified (GAF), Three RCAT Commercial & Residential Roofing licences, #03-0188, #03-0035 and #03-0527, all class 03, verified in RCAT’s licensed-contractor directory. Certification by more than one manufacturer is uncommon and requires meeting each programme’s separate standards for insurance, training and track record.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 27.1 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 8.2 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 7.9 | 10 |
| Total | 55.2 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Holds three Commercial & Residential Roofing licences, #03-0188 in the name of S. McDonald, #03-0035 in the name of W. Coler and #03-0527 in the name of T. Davis, recorded as established 1 January 1941 and an RCAT member since 1975.. Roofing Contractors Association of Texas licensed-contractor directory
- Accredited since 1 August 1967 with an A+ rating, started in 1941, with Sherri Johnson McDonald as president and CEO and Bill Johnson as chairman of the board.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Commercial roofing, residential roofing, metal roof panel systems, roof management plans, historic and architectural restoration roofing.
Why it ranks here. Read this entry before you read its score. It is the only firm in this metro holding the Roofing Contractors Association of Texas licence, and it holds three of them, in the names of S. McDonald, W. Coler and T. Davis, more than any other company we have documented in Texas. It has been an RCAT member since 1975 and BBB accredited since 1 August 1967, the longest accreditation we have found in any metro in this programme. Established in 1941, it is third-generation family-led, and it describes work under the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program to Texas Historical Commission guidelines, which is a different order of capability from ordinary reroofing. In a market with no state licence and no city registration, this is the only firm on the page whose competence anybody outside the company has tested.
Best fit for: Historic and architectural restoration, metal panel systems, roof management plans on multiple buildings, and anyone who wants the only verified roofing credential in this market.
What we would want clarified. It ranks fourth on our formula because the formula weights manufacturer certification tier and review volume, and it holds base-tier GAF certification with a 4.5 across only 23 reviews. That is a genuine limitation if you are buying on the strength of recent consumer feedback, and 23 reviews is a thin base. It is registered in Robinson, immediately south of Waco, rather than in the city. We could not independently confirm the courthouse preservation work, because the Texas Historical Commission’s programme pages do not name contractors. And the records disagree on Sherri Johnson McDonald’s current role, with BBB listing her as president and CEO while the company’s own site describes her as former CEO and current advisor. Its emphasis reads commercial-first, so confirm it wants your house. 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 (254) 662-5571, 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. Guest Roofing Inc — TRB Score 54.8
Guest Roofing Inc is based in Waco, TX, in business since 1985, led by James G. Guest, President and CEO; Janis M. Guest, Director, BBB accredited since 3 March 2017, A+ rating, four employees, one complaint closed in the last three years, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: Certified (GAF), Manufacturer approvals claimed on the company’s own site: CertainTeed Gold Star, Firestone Building Products, Mule-Hide, Versico, Berridge, Sika and GenFlex. Certification by more than one manufacturer is uncommon and requires meeting each programme’s separate standards for insurance, training and track record.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 24.6 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 8.2 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 54.8 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Founded 1 January 1985, accredited since 3 March 2017 with an A+ rating, four employees, one complaint closed in the last three years, and James G. Guest as president.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Commercial roofing, low-slope and single-ply membrane roofing, residential roofing, reroofing, roof inspections, roof leak repair, storm damage repair.
Why it ranks here. Forty years old under the same family, with the widest set of manufacturer approvals on this page: CertainTeed Gold Star, Firestone Building Products, Mule-Hide, Versico, Berridge, Sika and GenFlex. That list is the signature of a low-slope and single-ply specialist rather than a shingle contractor, and it is the relevant one if you have a flat section, a membrane roof or a commercial-adjacent structure. BBB accredited at A+ with both principals named.
Best fit for: Single-ply membrane, low-slope sections and leak repair where the manufacturer approval behind the warranty matters.
What we would want clarified. Its emphasis is commercial, so establish that it wants residential work before you invest time in a quote. Its 23 reviews and 4.3 rating are the weakest combination on this page, which is why it ranks fifth. BBB records four employees and one complaint closed in the last three years. It holds no RCAT licence and appears in none of RCAT’s directories. Every one of the manufacturer approvals above is claimed on the company’s own site and we could not verify the currency of any of them, so ask for current certificates. It is registered in Woodway, a separate municipality adjoining Waco, and we could not establish what contractor registration Woodway requires, if any. GAF tier self-reported. 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 (254) 709-2223, 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 157 hail reports behind a Waco 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 3 counties of the Waco, TX statistical area over ten years, with the dates, the stone sizes and the towns they landed on. Over that decade the metro logged 193 hail reports, 92 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 20 tornadoes. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $10.9 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
The biggest hail to fall on Waco in a decade
| Date | Stone size | Reported near | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 April 2023 | 4.5 in | Waco | Mclennan |
| 26 April 2023 | 4.25 in | Bosqueville | Mclennan |
| 26 April 2023 | 4.0 in | Ocee | Mclennan |
| 16 June 2023 | 3.5 in | Lorena | Mclennan |
| 6 April 2018 | 3.0 in | Mcgregor | Mclennan |
| 16 May 2025 | 2.76 in | Morgan | Bosque |
The largest stone on record for this metro fell on 26 April 2023 near Waco, measured at 4.5 inches. That is grapefruit sized. Stones that big destroy asphalt shingles outright, dent metal, crack tile and routinely total roofs across whole neighbourhoods.
Wind. The strongest thunderstorm gust logged in the metro was 70 knots, about 81 mph, near Lorena on 8 April 2021. Asphalt shingles begin lifting at roughly 67 mph when they are correctly nailed, and considerably below that when they are not.
Tornadoes. 20 tornadoes touched down in these counties over the decade, the strongest rated EF2 near Tours on 26 April 2024.
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 8 April 2021 event near Lorena, reproduced verbatim:
Two neighboring properties were damaged by winds between Lorena and Moody. On one property, the porch of the home was damaged and a 30×40 metal barn with a steel frame was demolished. On the second property the roof was torn off a barndominium. Large trees were also damaged on both properties.
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 April (114), May (87), March (37). The worst years on record were 2023 (54), 2018 (42), 2024 (39). If you are scheduling non-urgent work in Waco, 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. Waco 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.
What 1953 left Waco, and what it did not
The 11 May 1953 Waco tornado killed 114 people and remains, in the National Weather Service Fort Worth office’s own climatology, the deadliest individual tornado recorded in North and Central Texas across the whole period from 1880 to 2025. NWS Fort Worth rates it F5, records 597 injuries and a path of approximately 23 miles. It is also one of the most consequential storms in the history of forecasting: the thunderstorm that produced it showed a hook-shaped echo on a radar screen at Texas A&M University, among the earliest observations linking radar hook echoes to tornado development, and the event contributed to the establishment of a national radar and reporting network.
We went looking for the thing you would expect to follow from that, a local building rule written in response, and we did not find it. Waco’s adopted codes are the standard 2024 International family under Chapter 6 of the city code, and we identified no tornado-specific local amendment. The 2024 IRC does carry ICC 500 storm shelter provisions, but those are national model-code content rather than a Waco response to 1953. The documented legacy of the storm is in weather radar and warning systems, not in local construction rules. We say so rather than implying a causal line the record does not support, which is the same discipline we applied to the derecho in Cedar Rapids.
What the modern record says about this market is different and more mundane. The convective risk in McLennan, Falls and Bosque counties is 157 hail reports of an inch or more in ten years, 25 of them at two inches or more, and 20 tornadoes. That is a moderate frequency with a severe tail: the 4.50 inch stone of 26 April 2023 came with 4.25 inches at Bosqueville and 4.00 inches at Ocee the same afternoon. April is the peak month by report count, ahead of May and March, which is earlier in the year than most of the plains metros in this programme and worth knowing if you are timing a replacement.
The practical consequence of having no licence and no city registration is that the checks fall to you, and there are four worth making here. Ask whether the firm holds an RCAT licence and look it up in RCAT’s own directory, because only one firm on this page does. Ask for the certificate of insurance and read the limits against the RCAT thresholds of $300,000 residential and $500,000 commercial, since nobody else is checking them. Ask who the principal is and whether the entity is Texas-domiciled with a fixed location, which is RCAT’s own entry requirement and a reasonable test even where no licence is sought. And pull the permit: at $125 flat with escalating reinspection fees, the city inspector is the only independent person who will look at the work, and that is worth more in Waco than in most places.
What a Waco homeowner can and cannot check
| Check | Available? | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Texas state roofing licence | Does not exist | RCAT |
| City of Waco roofing contractor registration | Not required; only plumbing, electrical and mechanical register | City of Waco construction permits page |
| RCAT voluntary licence | Available, held by one of the five firms on this page | RCAT licensed-contractor directory |
| RCAT entry requirement | Two continuous years as a principal in a Texas-domiciled firm with a fixed location, plus three exams at 70 percent | RCAT licensing page |
| RCAT insurance thresholds | $300,000 residential or $500,000 commercial general liability, or a $100,000 bond | RCAT licensing page |
| Reroof permit fee | $125 flat for repairs and alterations to existing residential structures | City of Waco fee schedule |
| Reinspection fees | $55 first, $100 second, $150 thereafter | City of Waco fee schedule |
| Code edition in force | 2024 International Residential Code, from 1 January 2026 | City of Waco Code of Ordinances, Chapter 6 |
| Largest hailstone, 2016 to 2025 | 4.50 inches, two miles east of Waco, 26 April 2023 | NWS Fort Worth, NCEI event 1096877 |
| Renter share, city of Waco | 50.6 percent of 53,906 occupied units | ACS 2024 five-year estimates, B25003 |
Source: NWS Fort Worth tornado climatology and storm narratives; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; RCAT consumer and licensing pages; City of Waco construction permits page, fee schedule and Code of Ordinances Chapter 6; US Census Bureau ACS tables B25003 and B25035.
What to verify before a Waco contractor starts
There is no state roofing licence in TX. Texas does not issue or require a state roofing contractor licence. There is no state exam, no state licence number to check, and no state board that can discipline a roofer.
The Roofing Contractors Association of Texas (RCAT) runs a voluntary Licensed Roofing Contractor program requiring two years of Texas experience, a fixed business address, a business and safety exam and a roofing exam at 70% or better, and at least $300,000 general liability insurance for residential work or a $100,000 surety bond.
That absence is the most important fact on this page. Where a state issues no credential, a manufacturer certification that can be revoked is the only quality signal a homeowner can actually check, which is why this ranking is built on certification rather than star ratings.
Check here: RCAT licensed contractor lookup. Many Texas cities still require roofers to register with the municipality and pull a permit, so check with the city building department where the work will happen.
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.
How deep the Waco certified market really is
5 certified roofing contractors serve the principal cities of the Waco, TX statistical area, of which 0 hold the top President’s Club tier. The pool carries 553 customer reviews between them at a mean rating of 4.76. The statistical area had a 2024 population of 307,123, a change of 3.83% against the 2020 census base, per the U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates.
How these Waco rankings were produced
Every contractor in the Waco, TX 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 5 certified contractors, of whom 0 hold President’s Club standing and 2 Master Elite, against a metro mean rating of 4.76. 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: October 2026. Scoring run: 2026-10-02. Corrections go to the editor and are actioned on verification.
The questions that come up most in Waco
Who is the best roofer in Waco, TX?
Priority Contracting & Roofing of Waco, TX scores highest in the Waco metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score, at 87.8 out of 100 as of October 2026. It holds Master Elite certification with a 5.0 rating across 345 reviews. Highest-scoring is not the same as best fit for your specific job, and the four companies behind it score within 33.0 points.
How many certified roofing contractors serve Waco?
5 contractors on the GAF certification registry serve the principal cities of the Waco, TX statistical area as of October 2026, of which 0 hold President’s Club status.
How much damaging hail does Waco get?
The Waco, TX statistical area recorded 157 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 25 of 2 inches or larger between 2016 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Events Database. The largest hailstone reported measured 4.5 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 Waco in the last ten years?
The largest hailstone logged by the National Weather Service in the Waco, TX statistical area between 2016 and 2025 measured 4.5 inches, reported near Waco on 26 April 2023. That is grapefruit sized. Stones that big destroy asphalt shingles outright, dent metal, crack tile and routinely total roofs across whole neighbourhoods. Across the decade the metro recorded 193 hail reports. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $10.9 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
When is the worst time of year for roof damage in Waco?
Severe-weather reports in the Waco, TX statistical area cluster in April, May, March, 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 TX?
Texas does not issue or require a state roofing contractor licence. There is no state exam, no state licence number to check, and no state board that can discipline a roofer. The Roofing Contractors Association of Texas (RCAT) runs a voluntary Licensed Roofing Contractor program requiring two years of Texas experience, a fixed business address, a business and safety exam and a roofing exam at 70% or better, and at least $300,000 general liability insurance for residential work or a $100,000 surety bond.
What should I check before hiring a roofer in Waco?
Many Texas cities still require roofers to register with the municipality and pull a permit, so check with the city building department where the work will happen.
What 1953 left Waco, and what it did not?
The 11 May 1953 Waco tornado killed 114 people and remains, in the National Weather Service Fort Worth office’s own climatology, the deadliest individual tornado recorded in North and Central Texas across the whole period from 1880 to 2025. NWS Fort Worth rates it F5, records 597 injuries and a path of approximately 23 miles. It is also one of the most consequential storms in the history of forecasting: the thunderstorm that produced it showed a hook-shaped echo on a radar screen at Texas A&M University, among the earliest observations linking radar hook echoes to tornado development, and the event contributed to the establishment of a national radar and reporting network.
Is Waco a hard market to find a good roofer in?
Waco is the opposite of Amarillo. Texas licenses no roofing contractors, and the City of Waco does not register them either: its construction permits page requires registration of plumbing, electrical and mechanical contractors, and roofing is not among the trades named. So a Waco homeowner cannot check a roofer against a state licence or a city roofing registration, because neither exists. The one credential available is the Roofing Contractors Association of Texas licence, voluntary and held by a small minority of the trade, and exactly one of the five firms below has it, with three separate licensed principals. The reroof permit is a flat $125 and Waco moved to the 2024 International Residential Code on 1 January 2026, three cycles ahead of Amarillo.
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 Killeen, TX, about 46 miles from Waco
- Best roofers in College Station, TX, about 86 miles from Waco
- Best roofers in Dallas, TX, about 89 miles from Waco
- Best roofers in Austin, TX, about 93 miles from Waco
- Best roofers in Tyler, TX, another TX metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Longview, TX, another TX metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Crestview, FL, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in Sioux Falls, SD, 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 Waco, TX: The Roofing Brief Contractor Score.” Published October 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.