New York Painting Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published New York loss cost for painting workers comp, class 5474 (Painting or Decorating - NOC - All Operations to Completion & Drivers), is $8.058 per $100 of payroll (effective October 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $12.09.
A loss cost covers expected claims only. Each carrier files its own multiplier for expenses; in the states that publish the full list, the median is about 1.5, which is what the typical premium here uses. Your quote can be lower or higher. Source.
New York class code for painting
- 5474: Painting or Decorating - NOC - All Operations to Completion & Drivers
New York is an independent bureau state: it uses 4-digit codes that look like NCCI codes, but several NCCI classes do not exist in New York (no 5551, 5537, 5478 or 5436), roofing is split by roof pitch, and carpentry is split by building type and height.
Painting carries ladder fall risk, solvent exposure and lead paint hazards in buildings built before 1978.
What comp costs per painter in New York
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 13,040 painters on payrolls in New York (May 2025), the 4th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $28.64 an hour, 21% above the US median of $23.75.
Painters make up about the same share of New York jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 0.93).
At a typical New York premium of about $12.09 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $8.06 for class 5474 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $3.46 for every hour worked, or $7,202 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $21,606 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. New York pay runs from $21.95 an hour at the 10th percentile to $53.63 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $2.65 an hour on a new hire and $6.48 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in New York
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: A sole proprietor with no employees is exempt; adding one employee triggers the full requirement
- State fund: Competitive state fund (New York State Insurance Fund)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive to day one if disability extends beyond 14 days
- Penalty for going without: $2,000 per 10-day period (under 10 employees), $5,000 for larger, plus criminal exposure
New York uses the independent NYCIRB (not NCCI) and separately mandates statutory Disability Benefits Law coverage alongside workers comp.
New York vs neighboring states
- Connecticut: about $5.82 per $100 of payroll
- Massachusetts: about $3.21 per $100 of payroll
- New Jersey: about $8.88 per $100 of payroll
- Pennsylvania: about $5.68 per $100 of payroll
- Vermont: about $6.20 per $100 of payroll
New York has the highest painting comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges less 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 painting comp bill
- Painting rates are set by height and surface: interior repaint work and exterior or industrial painting can fall into different classes in many states. Describe your mix accurately at quote time.
- Ladder and scaffold falls are the costly claims. Scaffold training and inspection logs help when you ask a carrier for safety credits.
- Painting crews lean on 1099 labor. Without a certificate of insurance on file, the auditor will add those payments to your payroll.
- Seasonal exterior work makes payroll hard to forecast. Estimate the year, not your busiest month, so the deposit and the audit stay close.