Florida Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Florida does not publish its drywall class figures online. Across the 25 states that do, the median typical premium is about $4.08 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current Florida figure.
No official Florida figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
Florida class code for drywall
- 5445: Wallboard Installation - Within Buildings & Drivers
- 5480 (Plastering NOC & Drivers)
- 5491 (Paperhanging & Drivers)
Drywall work carries lifting injuries from heavy sheets, dust exposure, and ladder and scaffold falls on high walls and ceilings.
What comp costs per drywall installer in Florida
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 6,000 drywall and ceiling tile installers on payrolls in Florida (May 2025), the 2nd largest workforce of the 49 states with published figures. The median wage is $23.54 an hour, 17% below the US median of $28.33.
Drywall and ceiling tile installers make up about the same share of Florida jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 1.13).
At the US median of $4.08 per $100 of payroll (Florida does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.96 for every hour worked, or $1,998 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $5,993 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Florida pay runs from $16.09 an hour at the 10th percentile to $29.58 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.66 an hour on a new hire and $1.21 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Florida
- Coverage required: 4+ employees; 1 for the construction industry
- Owners and sole proprietors: Construction owners are automatically employees and cannot exempt out; officers may exempt up to three
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive if disability exceeds 21 days
- Penalty for going without: Stop-work orders plus a penalty of twice the premium avoided over three years (minimum $1,000)
Florida's construction carve-out drops the threshold from four employees to one, and construction owners cannot exempt themselves the way corporate officers can.
Florida vs neighboring states
Florida does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, Alabama is the cheapest for drywall comp at about $3.67 and Georgia the most expensive at about $10.98 per $100 of payroll.
If your crews work across the line, list those states under item 3.A or 3.C of your policy before the job starts. Rates follow the state where the work is done, not where your office is.
What moves a drywall comp bill
- Drywall hangers and tapers usually share one class. Stilt and scaffold falls and lifting injuries are the claims to manage.
- Piece-rate pay is common in drywall. Comp is still charged on the full amount paid, so piece-rate crews do not lower premium.
- Drywall subs without their own coverage are the largest audit risk in this trade. Collect certificates before the first board goes up.
- If you also frame or do acoustic ceilings, those can be separate classes. Record payroll for each kind of work.