Iowa Drywall Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Iowa rate for drywall workers comp, class 5445 (Wallboard, Sheetrock, Drywall, Plasterboard or Cement Board Installation Within Buildings and Drivers), is $3.58 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Your experience modifier and any carrier discounts adjust it.
This is the published manual rate, so it already includes carrier expenses. Source.
Iowa 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 Iowa
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 290 drywall and ceiling tile installers on payrolls in Iowa (May 2025), the 40th largest workforce of the 49 states with published figures. The median wage is $24.53 an hour, 13% below the US median of $28.33.
This trade is a smaller part of the Iowa job market than it is nationally: drywall and ceiling tile installers hold 0.35 times their national share of jobs there.
At the published Iowa rate of $3.58 per $100 of payroll for class 5445, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.88 for every hour worked, or $1,827 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $5,480 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Iowa pay runs from $17.67 an hour at the 10th percentile to $32.53 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.63 an hour on a new hire and $1.16 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Iowa
- Coverage required: 1 employee; no payroll or headcount floor
- Owners and sole proprietors: A full-time sole proprietor or partner is auto-excluded; may decline in writing or elect in
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive if disability continues more than 14 days
- Penalty for going without: An uninsured employer loses tort immunity and can be sued for uncapped civil damages
Iowa has no small-employer exemption at all, requiring coverage from the first employee with no payroll floor.
Iowa vs neighboring states
Iowa has the lowest drywall comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges more 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.