Short answer: As of September 2026, the five highest-scoring roofing contractors in the Rockford, IL metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score are RPM Contracting (93.9), Pro Restoration (89.2), Martin Exteriors Roofing & Siding (80.3), Warner Roofing & Restoration (78.7), Honeybee Roofing (73.5). Each holds a certification we verified on the manufacturer’s own register, every rating was corroborated elsewhere, and placement on this page is not for sale.
The Roofing Brief scored 8 certified roofing contractors serving the Rockford metro on a published, reproducible formula, then researched each of the top five individually to confirm its record. Illinois is one of the few states that licenses roofers directly, with an examination behind it, and that turns this page into something more useful than a ranking. Every licence below was checked by number against the state’s own public register, which publishes not just status but the Limited or Unlimited tier and any disciplinary history. Five of the six certified contractors in this metro hold an active Unlimited licence with a clean record. One does not: the licence behind the third-highest score in Rockford shows as not renewed, expired at the end of 2025, and carries two disciplinary findings for aiding and assisting the unlicensed practice of roofing. Under section 9 of the Act it is unlawful to engage in the roofing business without a licence, so that is a documented exclusion rather than a footnote.
Hail, codes and what they cost a Rockford homeowner
Winnebago and Boone counties are a moderate storm market. Across 2016 to 2025 they logged 77 hail reports, 72 of them an inch or larger, against 170 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 19 tornado events, with $141,000 in reported property damage, a figure that reflects how patchily NOAA’s damage fields are filled rather than the true cost of losses. The largest stones on record are two 3.00 inch reports, at Rockford on 2 May 2018 and Winnebago on 7 April 2020. A representative recent hail day was 10 July 2025, when the National Weather Service logged multiple reports across the county between 15:47 and 16:13, including 1.50 inch stones at Machesney Park and Loves Park. The biggest wind day in the record is 15 July 2024, with 19 logged events across the two counties, including a 70 mph gust at Rockford Airport where roughly 100 empty metal barrels were reported moved.
The licensing regime is the reason this page can be more specific than most. Under the Illinois Roofing Industry Licensing Act, 225 ILCS 335, section 9 makes it unlawful to engage in the business of professional roofing without a licence. The Act creates two tiers: a Limited licence, defined in section 2(h) as available to contractors whose roofing business is limited to residential properties of eight units or fewer, and an Unlimited licence covering everything else. Every licensed company must designate a qualifying party, an individual who sits the state examination on the company’s behalf and who must actively participate in day-to-day operations afterwards. Applicants must also show public liability and property damage insurance and workers’ compensation cover for their roofing employees. Section 9.8 makes a first violation a Class A misdemeanour with a fine of up to $2,500, rising on a second or subsequent conviction. All six licences discussed on this page were verified against IDFPR’s register published on the State of Illinois open data portal, which carries the tier and the disciplinary history alongside the status.
Permits here are straightforward but the roofing licence is built into them. The City of Rockford states on its own building permits page that permits are required for all roofing work as required by state law, and that roofing contractors must hold a licence from the State of Illinois, which the permit application captures by number and tier. The fee is valuation-based rather than flat: residential alteration and remodel work is charged at 0.0055 of the total reported project value. Rockford does not require general contractors to register with the city separately, so the state licence is the credential, though some neighbouring municipalities do add their own requirements and the Winnebago County Building Division handles several villages outside the city. Illinois has no statewide residential building code of general application, so the code governing a Rockford reroof is the city’s own adoption rather than a state one, which is worth confirming with the building department for your address.
The housing stock is the oldest of any metro in this batch. The median year built is 1971 across Winnebago County and 1962 within the City of Rockford, and 19,266 of the county’s 124,959 housing units, 15.4 percent, were built in 1939 or earlier. Vacancy is also high by national standards, at 7.6 percent countywide and 9.6 percent inside the city. Old stock and high vacancy together mean a lot of roofs on their third or fourth covering, a lot of decking that has been opened up before, and a meaningful share of properties owned by someone who does not live in them. On a house built before 1940 the questions that matter are what the decking is actually made of, whether it will take modern fasteners, and whether the quote covers replacing it if it will not.
The 5 best roofers in Rockford, IL
Scored 2026-09-30. The metro mean rating used as the Bayesian prior for Rockford is 4.789, across a pool of 8 certified contractors.
| Rank | Company | TRB Score | Certification | Rating (reviews) | Adjusted | In business since | Based in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RPM Contracting | 93.9 | President’s Club | 5.0 (197) | 4.957 | 2011 | Machesney Park, IL |
| 2 | Pro Restoration | 89.2 | President’s Club | 4.8 (396) | 4.799 | 2018 | Machesney Park, IL |
| 3 | Martin Exteriors Roofing & Siding | 80.3 | President’s Club | 4.6 (243) | 4.632 | 2006 | Roscoe, IL |
| 4 | Warner Roofing & Restoration | 78.7 | Master Elite | 4.8 (225) | 4.798 | 2011 | Rockford, IL |
| 5 | Honeybee Roofing | 73.5 | Certified | 5.0 (241) | 4.964 | 2022 | Rockford, IL |
1. RPM Contracting — TRB Score 93.9
RPM Contracting is based in Machesney Park, IL, in business since 2011, led by Jon Moore, President and Founder, BBB accredited, A+ rating, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: President’s Club (GAF), Illinois roofing contractor licence 104-018603, Unlimited, ACTIVE, verified on the state register. 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 | 38.3 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 12.5 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 8.1 | 10 |
| Total | 93.9 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Record 104018603 shows RPM Contracting LLC of Machesney Park, Winnebago County, as a licensed roofing contractor, Unlimited tier, status ACTIVE, originally issued 15 January 2020 and expiring 31 December 2027, with no disciplinary history recorded.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Lists RPM Contracting, LLC at 5024 Willow Creek Rd Unit C, Machesney Park, as accredited with an A+ rating.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Residential roof replacement, commercial roofing, roof repair, hail and storm damage restoration, asphalt shingle, metal and flat roofing, and siding.
Why it ranks here. The top score in the metro on President’s Club certification and a clean 5.0 across 197 reviews, and it does the thing this page most rewards: it publishes its licence number in its own website footer, and that number matches an active Unlimited Illinois roofing licence with no disciplinary history, valid to the end of 2027. In a state where roofing is genuinely licensed, publishing a number you can check in thirty seconds is the strongest signal a contractor can give.
Best fit for: The default first call in the metro, on the cleanest combination of rating, certification and verified licence.
What we would want clarified. It publishes no manufacturer credential outside GAF, and at 197 reviews its customer record is shallower than three of the firms below it. It is based in Machesney Park rather than Rockford itself, though that is four miles from the city and inside the county. 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 (877) 776-3981, 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. Pro Restoration — TRB Score 89.2
Pro Restoration is based in Machesney Park, IL, in business since 2018, led by Troy Zitzke and Brandon McNames, partners, BBB accredited, A+ rating, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: President’s Club (GAF), Illinois roofing contractor licence 104-020404, Unlimited, ACTIVE, verified on the state register, Illinois qualifying party credential 105-010681, Unlimited, ACTIVE, Wisconsin licence 2502-DCFR (self-published). 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 | 32.0 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 14.1 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 8.1 | 10 |
| Total | 89.2 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Record 104020404 shows Pro Restoration Solutions, LLC of Machesney Park as a licensed roofing contractor, Unlimited tier, status ACTIVE, issued 8 April 2025 and expiring 31 December 2027.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Record 105010681 shows Brandon A McNames of Loves Park as an ACTIVE Unlimited qualifying party roofing contractor, the individual credential the Act requires a licensed company to designate.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Lists Pro Restoration, LLC at 7848 Burden Rd, Machesney Park, in its business directory.. Greater Rockford Chamber of Commerce
What they actually do. Roof replacement and repair, roof inspections, storm and hail damage, shingle, flat and metal roofing, siding and gutters.
Why it ranks here. Second on score with President’s Club certification and 4.8 across 396 reviews, and one of only two firms here that publishes both its company licence and its named qualifying party credential, both of which we verified as active and Unlimited on the state register. Publishing the qualifying party number matters, because that is the individual who actually sat the state examination and whom the Act requires to be involved in day-to-day operations. It also holds a Wisconsin licence, relevant this close to the state line.
Best fit for: A homeowner who wants the examined individual behind the licence identified by name and number.
What we would want clarified. There is an entity question worth asking about. The live licence is held by Pro Restoration Solutions, LLC and was issued in April 2025, while an earlier licence in the name Pro Restoration LLC shows as not renewed. Both numbers the company publishes check out on the register, but we found no filing confirming the succession between the two entities, so ask which legal entity will sign your contract and confirm it is the one holding the current licence. Its Wisconsin number is self-published and unverified. 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 (833) 509-7663, 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. Martin Exteriors Roofing & Siding — TRB Score 80.3
Martin Exteriors Roofing & Siding is based in Roscoe, IL, in business since 2006, led by Justin Martin, President and Founder, BBB accredited, A+ rating, and holds President’s Club standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: President’s Club (GAF), Illinois roofing contractor licence 104-017824, Unlimited, ACTIVE, verified on the state register, CertainTeed ShingleMaster PRO, confirmed on CertainTeed’s own 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 | 35 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 25.3 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 13.0 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 7.0 | 10 |
| Total | 80.3 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Record 104017824 shows Martin Exteriors, Inc. of Roscoe, Winnebago County as a licensed roofing contractor, Unlimited tier, status ACTIVE, originally issued 4 December 2017 and expiring 31 December 2027, with no disciplinary history, alongside an ACTIVE Unlimited qualifying party credential for Justin M Martin.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Reported that Martin Exteriors of Roscoe, Illinois was named among the Financial Times list of America’s fastest-growing companies.. Roofing Contractor magazine
- CertainTeed’s own profile for Martin Exteriors Inc, 11704 Main St, Roscoe, confirms its standing in the manufacturer’s programme.. CertainTeed contractor directory
What they actually do. Residential roof replacement, commercial roofing, asphalt shingle and flat roofing, siding and gutters, from Roscoe and a second Rockford location.
Why it ranks here. The only contractor on this page whose second manufacturer credential is confirmed on that manufacturer’s own directory rather than self-declared, as a CertainTeed ShingleMaster PRO, and the only one with independent trade-press coverage. President’s Club certification, an active Unlimited licence with a clean disciplinary record, and a named qualifying party also active on the register.
Best fit for: Roof and siding together, and homeowners who want a second manufacturer’s judgement alongside GAF’s.
What we would want clarified. Its 4.6 rating across 243 reviews is the lowest of the five ranked here. Founding dates conflict: its own site says since 2003 while the BBB records 11 December 2006 and the trade press reports 2006, so we have used 2006. It is based in Roscoe, about ten miles north of Rockford, though it lists a Rockford location too. 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 (815) 624-6278, 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. Warner Roofing & Restoration — TRB Score 78.7
Warner Roofing & Restoration is based in Rockford, IL, in business since 2011, Not accredited, A+ rating; filed under Warner Contracting, LLC dba Warner Roofing & Restoration, and holds Master Elite standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: Master Elite (GAF), Illinois roofing contractor licence 104-016514, Unlimited, ACTIVE, verified on the state register, Wisconsin licence 051800115-DC (self-published). 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 | 24 | 35 |
| Adjusted rating | 31.9 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 12.8 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 78.7 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Record 104016514 shows Warner Contracting LLC of Rockford, Winnebago County as a licensed roofing contractor, Unlimited tier, status ACTIVE, originally issued 19 August 2013 and expiring 31 December 2027, with no disciplinary history recorded.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Lists the business as Warner Contracting, LLC, dba Warner Roofing & Restoration, 417 S Winnebago St, Rockford, rated A+ though not accredited.. BBB business profile
What they actually do. Residential roof replacement, commercial roofing, roof repair, storm and water damage restoration, metal and slate roofing, siding, windows and power washing.
Why it ranks here. The only contractor ranked here based inside the City of Rockford itself, and the only one on this page offering slate roofing, which matters in a city whose median house dates from 1962 and where 15.4 percent of county housing predates 1940. Master Elite certification with 4.8 across 225 reviews, an active Unlimited Illinois licence with a clean record, and a published ten-year workmanship warranty. It serves northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin and holds a Wisconsin licence as well.
Best fit for: Older Rockford housing, slate work, and anything where storm damage has also let water into the building.
What we would want clarified. Its BBB profile is not accredited and is filed under the company’s legal name rather than its trading name, in a category described as not elsewhere classified, so it is harder to find than it should be. No owner or principal is named anywhere we could find. Its Wisconsin licence number is self-published and we did not verify it against a Wisconsin register. 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 (815) 877-7663, 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.
5. Honeybee Roofing — TRB Score 73.5
Honeybee Roofing is based in Rockford, IL, in business since 2022, led by Adam Rossman, President and Founder, Not accredited, A+ rating, and holds Certified standing on the GAF certification registry.
Certifications held: Certified (GAF), Illinois roofing contractor licence 104-020240, Unlimited, ACTIVE, verified on the state register, Illinois qualifying party credential 105-010745, Unlimited, ACTIVE. 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 | 38.5 | 40 |
| Review corpus depth | 13.0 | 15 |
| Metro proximity | 10.0 | 10 |
| Total | 73.5 | 100 |
Independently corroborated:
- Record 104020240 shows Honeybee Roofing PLLC of Rockford as a licensed roofing contractor, Unlimited tier, status ACTIVE, originally issued 22 January 2025 and expiring 31 December 2027, with no disciplinary history.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Record 105010745 shows Adam Rossman of Rockford as an ACTIVE Unlimited qualifying party roofing contractor, issued February 2024.. Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licence register
- Lists Honeybee Roofing as an associate member under roofing contractors.. Greater Rockford Chamber of Commerce
What they actually do. Roof replacement, metal roofing, roof repair, roof inspections, hail and storm damage inspections, and pre-sale roof inspections.
Why it ranks here. A clean 5.0 across 241 reviews, which is the highest rating combined with the second-deepest review count on this page, and the founder is himself the named qualifying party on the state register, so the person who sat the examination is the person running the company. Both its company licence and his individual credential are active and Unlimited with no disciplinary history. It is the only firm here selling pre-sale roof inspections as a distinct service, which is genuinely useful in a market with this much older housing changing hands.
Best fit for: A pre-purchase or pre-sale roof inspection, and homeowners who want the examined individual to be the owner.
What we would want clarified. It is the youngest business on this page, founded in 2022, with a company licence issued only in January 2025, so the 5.0 rests on three years of trading. It holds base-tier GAF Certified status rather than Master Elite or President’s Club, which is why it ranks fifth despite the strong customer record. Its BBB profile is not accredited, it publishes no manufacturer credential outside GAF, and its BBB and chamber records give different street addresses. 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 (815) 200-9668, 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.
What 3.0 inch hail does to a Rockford 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 Rockford, IL statistical area over ten years, with the dates, the stone sizes and the towns they landed on. Over that decade the metro logged 77 hail reports, 170 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports and 19 tornadoes. The database’s property-damage fields are left blank for most of these reports, so it carries no usable loss total for this metro and we do not quote one.
The biggest hail to fall on Rockford in a decade
| Date | Stone size | Reported near | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 May 2018 | 3.0 in | Rockford | Winnebago |
| 7 April 2020 | 3.0 in | Winnebago | Winnebago |
| 2 May 2018 | 2.0 in | Winnebago | Winnebago |
| 7 April 2020 | 2.0 in | New Milford | Winnebago |
| 7 April 2020 | 2.0 in | Winnebago | Winnebago |
| 15 May 2017 | 2.0 in | Samuelson Corners | Winnebago |
The largest stone on record for this metro fell on 2 May 2018 near Rockford, 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 83 knots, about 96 mph, near Rockton Wgn Wheel Ar on 17 May 2017. Asphalt shingles begin lifting at roughly 67 mph when they are correctly nailed, and considerably below that when they are not.
Tornadoes. 19 tornadoes touched down in these counties over the decade, the strongest rated EF1 near Belvidere Arpt on 17 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 17 May 2017 event near Rockton Wgn Wheel Ar, reproduced verbatim:
A large outbuilding was destroyed and another suffered roof damage. Numerous large branches were snapped and a couple large trees were blown down.
That is what the specification has to anticipate here, written up by the agency that recorded it rather than by a contractor selling the repair.
When it happens. Severe weather reports cluster in July (68), August (41), June (41). The worst years on record were 2020 (43), 2024 (37), 2025 (34). If you are scheduling non-urgent work in Rockford, 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. Rockford 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 a Rockford homeowner should ask for in writing
Licensing is required in IL. Illinois licenses roofing contractors at state level under the Roofing Industry Licensing Act, 225 ILCS 335, administered by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. Unlicensed roofing work carries a civil penalty of up to $15,000 per offence, and any violation of the Act is a Class A misdemeanour, rising to a Class 4 felony on a second offence.
There are two classes: a Limited licence for residential properties of eight units or fewer, and an Unlimited licence covering residential, commercial and industrial work. Each licensee designates a qualifying party who must pass an examination covering roofing practice and Illinois roofing law. The statutory bond is $10,000 for a Limited licence and $25,000 for an Unlimited one, alongside liability insurance set by the Department, workers’ compensation and an unemployment insurance account. Since Public Act 104-427, effective 15 August 2025, every roofing contract must include a 72-hour rescission clause with a full deposit refund and a statement that the contractor cannot pay, waive or rebate any part of your insurance deductible.
Check here: IDFPR roofing licence register (open data). The licence number and the name on it must appear on every contract, bid and advertisement, and a local permit official must see proof of current state licensure before issuing a roofing permit. Ask whether the licence is Limited or Unlimited, and check it on the Department’s register or its open data file on data.illinois.gov.
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.
The shape of the Rockford contractor market
8 certified roofing contractors serve the principal cities of the Rockford, IL statistical area, of which 3 hold the top President’s Club tier. The pool carries 1,766 customer reviews between them at a mean rating of 4.789. The statistical area had a 2024 population of 337,103, a change of -0.51% against the 2020 census base, per the U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates.
How these Rockford rankings were produced
Every contractor in the Rockford, IL 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 8 certified contractors, of whom 3 hold President’s Club standing and 2 Master Elite, against a metro mean rating of 4.789. The top five were then researched individually against Better Business Bureau records, state licence registers and manufacturer directories. The findings are printed above whether they flatter the contractor or not, and nobody paid to appear.
Set aside in Rockford. A contractor that would otherwise have scored into the top five was 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.
- Apex General Contracting, which scored 84.4: scored third in the metro on President’s Club certification and 4.7 across 573 reviews, the deepest customer record here, and is BBB accredited at A+. It is excluded on its licence. Apex General Contracting is the trading name of Apexteriors Inc, and IDFPR’s public register shows that entity’s Illinois roofing contractor licence, 104-015794, Unlimited and first issued in February 2011, with a current status of NOT RENEWED and an expiration date of 31 December 2025. The same register record flags two disciplinary matters, in 2015 and in 2017, each a reprimand and a fine, both for aiding and assisting the unlicensed practice of roofing. Illinois is a state that licenses roofers directly, and section 9 of the Roofing Industry Licensing Act makes it unlawful to engage in the roofing business without a licence, so an expired licence is not a paperwork detail here. We note that the business was acquired by another roofing company on 21 August 2025, which may well explain a licence in transition, and that a different licence number circulating in search results belongs to an unrelated company in Georgia, which we could not connect to Apex. If it has since been relicensed under a new number that we could not find, we will correct this on verification. Until then we are not going to send a homeowner to a firm whose only public roofing licence has lapsed
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: 2026-09-30. Corrections go to the editor and are actioned on verification.
Rockford roofing questions, answered
Who is the best roofer in Rockford, IL?
RPM Contracting of Machesney Park, IL scores highest in the Rockford metro on The Roofing Brief Contractor Score, at 93.9 out of 100 as of September 2026. It holds President’s Club certification with a 5.0 rating across 197 reviews. Highest-scoring is not the same as best fit for your specific job, and the four companies behind it score within 20.4 points.
How many certified roofing contractors serve Rockford?
8 contractors on the GAF certification registry serve the principal cities of the Rockford, IL statistical area as of September 2026, of which 3 hold President’s Club status.
How much damaging hail does Rockford get?
The Rockford, IL statistical area recorded 72 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 7 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 Rockford in the last ten years?
The largest hailstone logged by the National Weather Service in the Rockford, IL statistical area between 2016 and 2025 measured 3.0 inches, reported near Rockford on 2 May 2018. That is baseball sized, comfortably past the point where a roof is written off rather than repaired. Across the decade the metro recorded 77 hail reports. The database’s property-damage fields are left blank for most of these reports, so it carries no usable loss total for this metro and we do not quote one.
When is the worst time of year for roof damage in Rockford?
Severe-weather reports in the Rockford, IL statistical area cluster in July, August, June, on the NOAA record for 2016 to 2025. If the work can wait, booking outside that window usually buys you shorter lead times and more of the contractor’s attention.
Do roofers need a licence in IL?
Illinois licenses roofing contractors at state level under the Roofing Industry Licensing Act, 225 ILCS 335, administered by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. Unlicensed roofing work carries a civil penalty of up to $15,000 per offence, and any violation of the Act is a Class A misdemeanour, rising to a Class 4 felony on a second offence. There are two classes: a Limited licence for residential properties of eight units or fewer, and an Unlimited licence covering residential, commercial and industrial work. Each licensee designates a qualifying party who must pass an examination covering roofing practice and Illinois roofing law. The statutory bond is $10,000 for a Limited licence and $25,000 for an Unlimited one, alongside liability insurance set by the Department, workers’ compensation and an unemployment insurance account. Since Public Act 104-427, effective 15 August 2025, every roofing contract must include a 72-hour rescission clause with a full deposit refund and a statement that the contractor cannot pay, waive or rebate any part of your insurance deductible.
What should I check before hiring a roofer in Rockford?
The licence number and the name on it must appear on every contract, bid and advertisement, and a local permit official must see proof of current state licensure before issuing a roofing permit. Ask whether the licence is Limited or Unlimited, and check it on the Department’s register or its open data file on data.illinois.gov.
Is Rockford a hard market to find a good roofer in?
Illinois is one of the few states that licenses roofers directly, with an examination behind it, and that turns this page into something more useful than a ranking. Every licence below was checked by number against the state’s own public register, which publishes not just status but the Limited or Unlimited tier and any disciplinary history. Five of the six certified contractors in this metro hold an active Unlimited licence with a clean record. One does not: the licence behind the third-highest score in Rockford shows as not renewed, expired at the end of 2025, and carries two disciplinary findings for aiding and assisting the unlicensed practice of roofing. Under section 9 of the Act it is unlawful to engage in the roofing business without a licence, so that is a documented exclusion rather than a footnote.
Is wind or hail the bigger risk to a roof in Rockford?
Wind, by a wide margin. The Rockford, IL statistical area logged 170 severe thunderstorm and high wind reports against 72 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 Apex General Contracting not on this list?
Scored third in the metro on President’s Club certification and 4.7 across 573 reviews, the deepest customer record here, and is BBB accredited at A+. It is excluded on its licence. Apex General Contracting is the trading name of Apexteriors Inc, and IDFPR’s public register shows that entity’s Illinois roofing contractor licence, 104-015794, Unlimited and first issued in February 2011, with a current status of NOT RENEWED and an expiration date of 31 December 2025. The same register record flags two disciplinary matters, in 2015 and in 2017, each a reprimand and a fine, both for aiding and assisting the unlicensed practice of roofing. Illinois is a state that licenses roofers directly, and section 9 of the Roofing Industry Licensing Act makes it unlawful to engage in the roofing business without a licence, so an expired licence is not a paperwork detail here. We note that the business was acquired by another roofing company on 21 August 2025, which may well explain a licence in transition, and that a different licence number circulating in search results belongs to an unrelated company in Georgia, which we could not connect to Apex. If it has since been relicensed under a new number that we could not find, we will correct this on verification. Until then we are not going to send a homeowner to a firm whose only public roofing licence has lapsed.
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 Madison, WI, about 60 miles from Rockford
- Best roofers in Chicago, IL, another IL metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Peoria, IL, another IL metro on the same formula
- Best roofers in Green Bay, WI, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in Boulder, CO, a metro of comparable size
- Best roofers in Milwaukee, WI, also scored, about 79 miles away
- Best roofers in Davenport, IA, also scored, about 93 miles away
- Best roofers in Cedar Rapids, IA, also scored, about 136 miles away
- Best roofers in Appleton, WI, also scored, about 144 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 Rockford, IL: 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.