Short answer: As of October 2026, the five highest-scoring roofing contractors in the Decatur, AL metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score are Impact Roofing (96.1), Ridgeline Construction Roofing & Exteriors (86.9), Roof Tech Solutions (65.2), Sharp Roofing and Construction (64.2), Roman’s Roofing (61.7). Each is certified by a manufacturer whose register we checked by hand, each rating has been tested against a source outside that register, and nobody bought a place on this page.
The Roofing Brief scored 5 certified roofing contractors serving the Decatur metro on a published, reproducible formula, then researched each of the top five individually to confirm its record. The Decatur area’s worst roof damage comes from tornadoes at night: an EF3 near Danville in November 2016 took the whole roof off a home, and on one March 2023 night two EF2s crossed Morgan County. One home in four in Lawrence County is a manufactured home, which Alabama’s roofing licence does not cover at all. Alabama licenses roofers on other homes over $2,500, without an exam. Seven certified firms appear in the directory for Decatur; one is a foundation contractor and one a commercial roofer outside the metro, both excluded, and five are ranked.
The conditions a Decatur roof has to be specified for
Alabama requires a licence from the Home Builders Licensure Board for residential roofing over $2,500: the Roofers licence, which needs a $10,000 bond and a business licence or manufacturer certification but no exam, or an Unlimited licence for jobs touching structure or other trades. Licences expire each 31 December and need six hours of continuing education to renew. A building official must refuse a permit without a licence. Unlicensed work is a Class A misdemeanour, and an unlicensed builder cannot sue to enforce the contract. Manufactured homes are outside the licence entirely.
Under Ala. Code 8-36-2 you may cancel an insurance-funded roofing contract before midnight on the fifth business day after your insurer denies all or part of the claim in writing, the roofer may take no payment until then, and it may not negotiate your claim for you. Alabama has no statute barring a roofer from waiving a deductible. From 1 January 2027 state law requires residential work to follow the applicable code.
The City of Decatur requires every contractor to hold a city business licence, register with the Building Department and keep liability insurance on file. Reroof permits are their own class: $15 for the first $1,000 plus $5 per $1,000 after, so about $85 on a $15,000 job plus a small issuance fee. The city published 313 reroof permits in January to September 2026. Its code as published still adopts the 2009 International Residential Code, with a 90 mph design wind speed.
Across 2016 to 2025 Lawrence and Morgan counties logged 62 hail reports, up to three inches north of Town Creek in May 2025, 474 thunderstorm wind reports and 22 tornadoes, one EF3 and four EF2. The ice storm of February 2021 left half an inch to more than an inch of ice. Manufactured homes are 24.9 percent of Lawrence County’s housing, and 36.7 percent of homes in Decatur are rented.
The 5 best roofers in Decatur, AL
Scored 2026-10-08. The metro mean rating used as the Bayesian prior for Decatur is 4.857, across a pool of 5 certified contractors.
| Rank | Company | TRB Score | Certification | Rating (reviews) | Adjusted | In business since | Based in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Impact Roofing | 96.1 | President’s Club | 5.0 (812) | 4.992 | 2021 | Athens, AL |
| 2 | Ridgeline Construction Roofing & Exteriors | 86.9 | President’s Club | 4.8 (369) | 4.807 | not published | Athens, AL |
| 3 | Roof Tech Solutions | 65.2 | Certified | 4.9 (147) | 4.889 | not published | Athens, AL |
| 4 | Sharp Roofing and Construction | 64.2 | Certified | 5.0 (17) | 4.893 | not published | Decatur, AL |
| 5 | Roman’s Roofing | 61.7 | Certified | 4.9 (9) | 4.864 | not published | Decatur, AL |
1. Impact Roofing: TRB Score 96.1
Impact Roofing is based in Athens, AL, in business since 2021, led by Jordan Lovell, owner, BBB accredited since 1 March 2022, A+ rating, no complaints, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: President’s Club (GAF), Owens Corning Preferred Contractor. 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 | 35 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 39.7 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 15.0 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 6.4 | 10 |
| Total | 96.1 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Accredited since March 2022 with an A+ rating; business started January 2021; owner Jordan Lovell; service area north Alabama and southern middle Tennessee; no complaints.. BBB business profile
- 25 permits naming Impact Roofing LLC from March 2024 to September 2026, almost all residential reroofs, the most of any ranked firm.. City of Decatur permit reports
- Listed as an Owens Corning Preferred Contractor, membership 237206.. Owens Corning contractor locator
What they actually do. Residential roof replacement in GAF, Owens Corning and IKO shingles, roof and low-slope repair, and emergency tarping.
Why it ranks here. The top-scoring firm for Decatur, with a perfect 5.0 across 812 GAF reviews at the President’s Club tier and Owens Corning Preferred status. It is based in Athens, about 14 miles away, but keeps a Decatur and Morgan County page and has the strongest local permit record of the ranked firms, 25 Decatur permits in 31 months. BBB confirms a January 2021 start, so it is about five years old. Its site shows an Alabama licence number we could not check on the board’s blocked search. It is also ranked on our Huntsville page.
Best fit for: Decatur, Priceville and Hartselle homeowners who want the region’s best-reviewed roofer with a track record of Decatur jobs.
What we would want clarified. A five-year-old business based outside the metro; its published area names Morgan County but not Lawrence County. Confirm its Alabama licence is current for this year. 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 (938) 223-8677, 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. Ridgeline Construction Roofing & Exteriors: TRB Score 86.9
Ridgeline Construction Roofing & Exteriors is based in Athens, AL, led by Lauren Marsh, president and owner; Terry Marsh, vice president, BBB accredited since 14 March 2012, A+ rating, one complaint in three years, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 35 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 32.3 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 13.2 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 6.4 | 10 |
| Total | 86.9 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Accredited since March 2012 with an A+ rating; business started December 2009; president Lauren Marsh; one complaint in three years.. BBB business profile
- Silver award in the 2025 Alabama Small Business of the Year awards; offices in Athens, Huntsville, Spanish Fort, Pensacola and Tampa.. 256 Today
- Four reroof permits in Decatur from 2025 to 2026.. City of Decatur permit reports
What they actually do. Residential roofing, siding and gutters, and commercial TPO and EPDM.
Why it ranks here. A family firm run by Lauren and Terry Marsh from Athens, at GAF’s President’s Club tier with 369 reviews averaging 4.8 and BBB accreditation since 2012. Its site lists Decatur and Hartselle among the areas it serves. The company reports winning BBB North Alabama’s 2023 Torch Award for Ethics, which BBB’s profile did not show when we checked. It has grown into a regional firm with offices as far as Tampa, and its Decatur permit record is light, four in 31 months. Its site says 2012 and BBB says 2009, so we give no founding year. It is also ranked on our Huntsville page.
Best fit for: Homeowners who want a long-accredited, family-run firm that also does siding and gutters.
What we would want clarified. A light Decatur track record and a footprint now spread across three states; and three unrelated firms use the Ridgeline name locally, so check the name on your contract. 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 (251) 486-1924, 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 Tech Solutions: TRB Score 65.2
Roof Tech Solutions is based in Athens, AL, led by Mike Raby and Toni Raby, owners, BBB accredited since 25 January 2019, A+ rating, no complaints, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 35.6 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 11.2 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 6.4 | 10 |
| Total | 65.2 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Accredited since January 2019 with an A+ rating; business started April 2012; owners Mike and Toni Raby; residential and commercial roofing, gutters, siding and remodelling; no complaints.. BBB business profile
- Two reroof permits in Decatur, in April 2024 and April 2025.. City of Decatur permit reports
What they actually do. Residential and commercial roofing, siding, gutters, remodelling and additions.
Why it ranks here. An Athens roofer owned by Mike and Toni Raby, with 147 GAF reviews averaging 4.9 and a clean BBB record since 2019. Its published service area is north Alabama in general, but Decatur’s permit reports show it working in the city. Its founding year conflicts (BBB 2012, a local profile 2011), so we give none, and we found no website of its own.
Best fit for: Homeowners who want a smaller owner-run firm that can also handle remodelling work.
What we would want clarified. Based outside the metro with no published service area naming Morgan or Lawrence County and no website; it holds GAF’s entry Certified tier. 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 (256) 998-9110, 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. Sharp Roofing and Construction: TRB Score 64.2
Sharp Roofing and Construction is based in Decatur, AL, led by David Sharp Sr, owner, Not accredited; not rated; no complaints, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 35.7 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 6.5 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 64.2 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Not accredited and not rated; owner David Sharp Sr; no complaints in three years.. BBB business profile
- Ten permits naming Sharp Roofing and Construction from March 2024 to September 2026, mostly reroofs.. City of Decatur permit reports
What they actually do. Residential reroofing and some remodelling.
Why it ranks here. A Decatur roofer on E Upper River Road with a perfect 5.0 across 17 GAF reviews and a steady small record of city permits, ten in 31 months, mostly reroofs. Its public footprint is thin: we found no website, and its BBB profile is neither accredited nor rated, though it shows no complaints.
Best fit for: City of Decatur homeowners who want a small local roofer for a straightforward reroof.
What we would want clarified. A thin review base, no website and no BBB rating; ask for its Alabama licence and insurance certificates before signing. 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 (256) 938-2900, 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. Roman’s Roofing: TRB Score 61.7
Roman’s Roofing is based in Decatur, AL, led by Carlos Roman, president, BBB accredited since 24 January 2024, A+ rating, no complaints, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
| Score component | Points | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Certification tier | 12 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 34.5 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 5.2 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 61.7 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Romans Roofing, Inc.: accredited since January 2024 with an A+ rating; business started 2006; president Carlos Roman; no complaints.. BBB business profile
- Reroof permits under Roman’s Roofing Inc in February 2025, April 2026 and June 2026.. City of Decatur permit reports
What they actually do. Residential and commercial roofing, siding and remodelling.
Why it ranks here. A second-generation Decatur family firm with nine GAF reviews averaging 4.9, BBB accreditation since 2024 and a five-year workmanship warranty, with reroof permits in the city’s records. Its site says family owned since 2003 and BBB says 2006, so we give no founding year. A separate permit holder, Roman’s Construction, also pulls Decatur reroof permits; we could not establish whether it is related.
Best fit for: Southeast Decatur homeowners who want a local family firm with a written workmanship warranty.
What we would want clarified. The thinnest review base of the five and a short accredited record; make sure your contract is with Roman’s Roofing Inc rather than the similarly named construction firm. 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 (256) 376-4821, 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.
Other active roofers in Decatur
Five certified firms are ranked here. These three hold Owens Corning credentials and pulled the most reroof permits in Decatur’s own records. They are not scored and we are not recommending them; check each one’s state licence is current, as the board’s online search was blocked to us.
| Company | Verified credential |
|---|---|
| River City Roofing Solutions | Owens Corning Preferred on Central Pkwy SW; the most active roofing permit holder in Decatur, with 114 permits from March 2024 to September 2026. |
| Yellowhammer Roofing Inc | Owens Corning Platinum Preferred, based in Athens; 76 Decatur permits in the same period. |
| Boxwood Roofing & Restoration LLC | Owens Corning Preferred in Hartselle, inside the metro; 53 Decatur permits in the same period. |
What 3.0 inch hail does to a Decatur 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 2 counties of the Decatur, AL statistical area over ten years, with the dates, the stone sizes and the towns they landed on. Over that decade the metro logged 62 hail reports, 474 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 22 tornadoes. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $1.2 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
The biggest hail to fall on Decatur in a decade
| Date | Stone size | Reported near | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 May 2025 | 3.0 in | Red Bank | Lawrence |
| 20 May 2025 | 2.75 in | Red Bank | Lawrence |
| 20 May 2025 | 2.75 in | Red Bank | Lawrence |
| 10 April 2025 | 2.5 in | Chalybeate Spgs | Lawrence |
| 7 April 2019 | 1.75 in | Talucah | Morgan |
| 15 May 2023 | 1.75 in | Huntsville Laceys Sp | Morgan |
The largest stone on record for this metro fell on 20 May 2025 near Red Bank, measured at 3.0 inches. That is baseball sized, comfortably past the point where a roof is written off rather than repaired.
Wind. The strongest thunderstorm gust logged in the metro was 82 knots, about 94 mph, near Hatton on 15 February 2025. Asphalt shingles begin lifting at roughly 67 mph when they are correctly nailed, and considerably below that when they are not.
Tornadoes. 22 tornadoes touched down in these counties over the decade, the strongest rated EF3 near Danville on 29 November 2016.
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 19 March 2018 event near Moulton, reproduced verbatim:
Sporadic tree damage was noted around the downtown area. Multiple trees were snapped and uprooted in this location, pulling down power lines and causing some minor damage to roofs of homes as a result.
That account is the design case for a roof here, and it comes from the agency that recorded it rather than by a contractor selling the repair.
When it happens. Severe weather reports cluster in April (133), May (93), March (73). The worst years on record were 2025 (182), 2023 (83), 2017 (68). If you are scheduling non-urgent work in Decatur, 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. Hail is not the governing risk in Decatur. Weight your decision toward wind rating, ventilation and flashing detail rather than paying extra for impact-rated shingles.
Night tornadoes and homes outside the licence
The strongest tornado of the decade arrived at 8:40 pm on 29 November 2016, an EF3 from Danville toward Basham in Morgan County. NWS found a home with complete roof loss and partial wall collapse, and an anchored mobile home obliterated, its contents thrown more than 100 yards, consistent with 140 mph winds.
Others followed after dark. On 16 December 2019 an EF2 crossed northern Lawrence County for 15 miles; NWS, county emergency managers and an Auburn University engineering team found that at three manufactured homes every anchor system failed under the lifting force, and two people died. Late on 24 March 2023 an EF2 tracked from Lawrence County past Danville High School toward Hartselle, mostly by dropping trees on houses, and rolled a single-wide where one person died; a second EF2 ran from Falkville the same night.
Those deaths point to the metro’s most distinctive gap. Manufactured homes are 24.9 percent of Lawrence County’s housing, twice Morgan County’s share. Alabama’s roofing licence, bond and Recovery Fund do not apply to them at all: Ala. Code 34-14A-6(6) exempts mobile homes and their repair. An owner reroofing a manufactured home in Lawrence County gets none of the protections a site-built house does.
The rules on site-built homes are also behind. The City of Decatur’s code as published still adopts the 2009 International Residential Code, with a 90 mph design wind speed and no ice barrier requirement, though the February 2021 ice storm left up to 1.1 inches of ice. The state is moving: from 1 January 2027 residential work must follow the applicable code, and the licensing board’s September 2026 proposal would make a stronger 2024 roofing supplement mandatory statewide outside Baldwin and Mobile counties.
Hail is the newer threat. Three of the metro’s four stones of two inches or more fell on one afternoon, 20 May 2025, around Town Creek and Red Bank. For a Decatur homeowner the checks are a current state licence for this year, a city permit, and, for a manufactured home, extra care: ask the roofer about tie-downs and deck attachment, because no licence board is watching that job.
Night tornadoes and the rules on a Decatur reroof
| Item | Figure or rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Danville EF3, 29 November 2016 | About 140 mph; complete roof loss | NWS Huntsville survey via NOAA NCEI |
| Tornadoes, 2016 to 2025 | 22: one EF3, four EF2 | NOAA NCEI Storm Events |
| Largest hail | 3.0 inches north of Town Creek, 20 May 2025 | NOAA NCEI Storm Events |
| Manufactured homes, Lawrence County | 24.9 percent | ACS 2020 to 2024, B25024 |
| Manufactured homes and the roofing licence | Exempt | Ala. Code 34-14A-6(6) |
| State roofer licence | Over $2,500; no exam; $10,000 bond; 6 hours CE a year | Ala. Code 34-14A-2; HBLB rules 465-X-3 |
| Cancellation after a claim denial | Five business days; no payment until then | Ala. Code 8-36-2 |
| Decatur reroof permits, January to September 2026 | 313 | City of Decatur permit reports |
| Code edition, City of Decatur | 2009 IRC as published | Code of Decatur 7-56 |
| Renter-occupied homes, Decatur | 36.7 percent | ACS 2020 to 2024, B25003 |
Source: NWS Huntsville storm surveys and NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (Lawrence and Morgan counties and zone rows); Ala. Code 34-14A and 8-36; Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board rules, reports and proposed chapter 465-X-10; Code of Decatur chapter 7 and the city’s monthly permit reports; Owens Corning contractor locator; BBB business profiles; US Census Bureau ACS 2020 to 2024.
What to verify before a Decatur contractor starts
Licensing is required in AL. Alabama requires a residential roofer licence from the Home Builders Licensure Board. The board’s own application packet states that a residential roofer who contracts directly with a homeowner to perform residential roofing is required to hold a residential roofers licence when the total cost of the undertaking exceeds $2,500.
The board issues three residential licence types. An Unlimited licence, earned by passing the Alabama Business and Law and Skills exams and filing a credit report, carries full homebuilding authority including roofing. A Limited licence covers a restricted scope that does not include residential roofing over $2,500. A Roofers licence covers residential roofing only and takes no exam: the applicant files a $10,000 licence and permit bond naming the board as obligee, renewed each year, and shows a contractor business licence held within the past year or proof that it is a manufacturer-certified roofing installer. Every licensee must complete six hours of continuing education each year before the licence is renewed.
Check here: Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board. Because the Roofers licence involves no competency exam, it evidences bonding and registration rather than skill, so manufacturer certification carries proportionally more weight in Alabama; the board itself accepts manufacturer certification as one route to the licence. Licences and the roofer’s bond run to 31 December and must be renewed each year, so check the licence is current, not just that it exists.
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.
What the rest of the Decatur field looks like
5 certified roofing contractors serve the principal cities of the Decatur, AL statistical area, of which 2 hold the top President’s Club tier. The pool carries 1,354 customer reviews between them at a mean rating of 4.857. The statistical area had a 2024 population of 159,651, a change of 2.01% against the 2020 census base, per the U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates.
How these Decatur rankings were produced
Every contractor in the Decatur, AL 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 2 hold President’s Club standing and 0 Master Elite, against a metro mean rating of 4.857. The top five were then researched individually against Better Business Bureau records, state licence registers and manufacturer directories. Anything unflattering that research surfaced appears above alongside the rest, and no company bought its position.
Set aside in Decatur. Contractors that would otherwise have scored into the top five were removed for the reason stated. The score is computed from public data, but where the research pass finds evidence undermining an input to that score, the score is set aside.
- Deep South Construction Pros, which scored 73.6: Excluded on core trade. Its own site is titled Alabama Foundation Experts, BBB files it under foundation repair, roofing appears as one line on its general construction page, and Decatur’s permit reports show one roof replacement in 31 months.
- Willoughby Roofing & Sheet Metal Inc, which scored 50.3: Excluded on service area and core trade. A Cullman commercial and industrial roofer that BBB files under commercial roofing and that markets Birmingham, Mobile and Huntsville rather than Decatur; it has no permit in 31 months of Decatur’s reports.
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: 2026-10-08. Corrections go to the editor and are actioned on verification.
Common questions about roofers in Decatur
Who is the best roofer in Decatur, AL?
Impact Roofing of Athens, AL scores highest in the Decatur metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score, at 96.1 out of 100 as of October 2026. It holds President’s Club certification with a 5.0 rating across 812 reviews. Highest-scoring is not the same as best fit for your specific job, and the four companies behind it score within 34.4 points.
How many certified roofing contractors serve Decatur?
5 contractors on the GAF certification registry serve the principal cities of the Decatur, AL statistical area as of October 2026, of which 2 hold President’s Club status.
How much damaging hail does Decatur get?
The Decatur, AL statistical area recorded 45 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 4 of 2 inches or larger between 2016 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Events Database. The largest hailstone reported measured 3.0 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 Decatur in the last ten years?
The largest hailstone logged by the National Weather Service in the Decatur, AL statistical area between 2016 and 2025 measured 3.0 inches, reported near Red Bank on 20 May 2025. That is baseball sized, comfortably past the point where a roof is written off rather than repaired. Across the decade the metro recorded 62 hail reports. Reported property damage from hail, severe wind and tornado over that decade totalled $1.2 million; flood and winter-storm losses are counted separately and are not included.
When is the worst time of year for roof damage in Decatur?
Severe-weather reports in the Decatur, AL statistical area cluster in April, May, March, on the NOAA record for 2016 to 2025. Booking non-urgent roof work outside those months usually means shorter lead times, because local crews are not simultaneously triaging storm callouts.
Do roofers need a licence in AL?
Alabama requires a residential roofer licence from the Home Builders Licensure Board. The board’s own application packet states that a residential roofer who contracts directly with a homeowner to perform residential roofing is required to hold a residential roofers licence when the total cost of the undertaking exceeds $2,500. The board issues three residential licence types. An Unlimited licence, earned by passing the Alabama Business and Law and Skills exams and filing a credit report, carries full homebuilding authority including roofing. A Limited licence covers a restricted scope that does not include residential roofing over $2,500. A Roofers licence covers residential roofing only and takes no exam: the applicant files a $10,000 licence and permit bond naming the board as obligee, renewed each year, and shows a contractor business licence held within the past year or proof that it is a manufacturer-certified roofing installer. Every licensee must complete six hours of continuing education each year before the licence is renewed.
What should I check before hiring a roofer in Decatur?
Because the Roofers licence involves no competency exam, it evidences bonding and registration rather than skill, so manufacturer certification carries proportionally more weight in Alabama; the board itself accepts manufacturer certification as one route to the licence. Licences and the roofer’s bond run to 31 December and must be renewed each year, so check the licence is current, not just that it exists.
Night tornadoes and homes outside the licence?
The strongest tornado of the decade arrived at 8:40 pm on 29 November 2016, an EF3 from Danville toward Basham in Morgan County. NWS found a home with complete roof loss and partial wall collapse, and an anchored mobile home obliterated, its contents thrown more than 100 yards, consistent with 140 mph winds.
Is Decatur a hard market to find a good roofer in?
The Decatur area’s worst roof damage comes from tornadoes at night: an EF3 near Danville in November 2016 took the whole roof off a home, and on one March 2023 night two EF2s crossed Morgan County. One home in four in Lawrence County is a manufactured home, which Alabama’s roofing licence does not cover at all. Alabama licenses roofers on other homes over $2,500, without an exam. Seven certified firms appear in the directory for Decatur; one is a foundation contractor and one a commercial roofer outside the metro, both excluded, and five are ranked.
Is wind or hail the bigger risk to a roof in Decatur?
Wind, by a wide margin. The Decatur, AL statistical area logged 474 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports against 45 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.
Why is Deep South Construction Pros not on this list?
Excluded on core trade. Its own site is titled Alabama Foundation Experts, BBB files it under foundation repair, roofing appears as one line on its general construction page, and Decatur’s permit reports show one roof replacement in 31 months..
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 Huntsville, AL, about 20 miles from Decatur
- Best roofers in Florence, AL, about 42 miles from Decatur
- Best roofers in Birmingham, AL, about 73 miles from Decatur
- Best roofers in Tuscaloosa, AL, another AL metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Montgomery, AL, another AL metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Chambersburg, PA, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in State College, PA, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in Jackson, TN, also scored, about 128 miles away
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 Decatur, AL: 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.