HVAC contractors in Texas — 2,546 companies across 95 cities, checked against the TDLR register.
Texas has 2,546 HVAC contractors listed across 95 cities, 2,214 of them matched to an active license on the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation register. We check licenses against state records; we do not inspect workmanship. The license number must appear on the contractor's advertising, contracts and vehicles. Houston, San Antonio, Austin account for 37% of listings. See what HVAC replacement actually costs in Texas for the state-specific price breakdown.
How Texas licenses HVAC work
The license number must appear on the contractor's advertising, contracts and vehicles. Here is how to read a license, and what the class actually limits.
No size limit
May install and service systems of any capacity — residential, commercial and industrial.
Up to 25 tons cooling
Limited to 25 tons of cooling and 1.5 million BTU/h of heating per system — more than any house needs, so fine for residential work.
E and R
E — environmental air (comfort heating and cooling). R — commercial refrigeration and process cooling. Home HVAC work needs E.
- Licenses renew annually and require liability insurance to be on file.
- Cities issue permits, not the state: Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and Fort Worth all require a mechanical permit for a system replacement.
- Minimum efficiency for new equipment: 14.3 SEER2 for split-system air conditioners under 45,000 BTU/h (DOE South region, 2023 standard).
Where the contractors are
Listings and license-verified share for the 12 largest Texas markets. The share varies by how each city's data was matched, not by how honest its contractors are.
All 95 Texas cities, A–Z
Hiring HVAC help in Texas
Answers specific to state rules. City pages add the local permit and utility details.
Class A or Class B — does it matter for my house?
Not for residential work. Class B is capped at 25 tons of cooling per system; a large home uses five. Both classes sit the same exam on environmental air and carry the same insurance requirement.
Do I need a permit to replace an AC in Texas?
Permits are issued by cities, not the state. Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and Fort Worth all require a mechanical permit for a system replacement, pulled by the licensed contractor; many unincorporated areas don't. Your city page says which applies.
How do I check a Texas HVAC license?
Ask the contractor for the license number and search it on the TDLR lookup (official site). Every verified profile on AirProHQ links straight to it, with the number already on the page.
Why is one Texas city mostly verified and another isn't?
It reflects how each listing reached us. Listings pulled straight from the license register verify at very high rates; listings that came from permit filings or public business profiles stay unverified until we can tie them to a license. A low share is a data gap, not a warning about the city.