Workers’ comp insurance cost for painters in Florida

Q: What does workers' comp cost painting contractors in Florida?

Modeled from the 2024 filed manual rate of $6.68 per $100 of payroll: a <5-employee painting business lands around $2.2k–$8.8k per year before experience mods and schedule credits.

Q: What drives the rate up or down?

Three levers: payroll (the exposure base), claims history (the experience modifier), and schedule credits/debits the insurer applies. Painting work is NCCI class 5474 (Painting NOC, ‘not otherwise classified’) — the general classification for interior and exterior building painting that isn’t assigned a more specific painting class.

Published 2026-06-11 · by Brokly

Direct answer: Florida painting contractors pay a filed workers’-comp manual rate of $6.68 per $100 of payroll (2024 filed rate) — the 12th-highest of 51 US jurisdictions. Modeled on real payrolls, most <5-employee painting contractors land around $2.2k–$8.8k/yr, before experience mods and schedule credits.

80% of FL painting contractors have <5 employees — the chart below prices every size band from its own observed payroll.
Florida sits 12th of 51: CA pays more ($7.41), WI less ($6.03).
Workers’ comp is one of several coverages — see everything your painting business needs in Florida →

What do Florida painting contractors pay for workers’ comp?

Modeled annual premium across the real size distribution of FL painting contractors

bar height = how many painting contractors are that size · figures = modeled annual cost

typical · most FL painting contractors

▼

<5 emp

≈$3.3k/yr

5–9 emp

≈$17k/yr

10–19 emp

≈$38k/yr

20–49 emp

≈$100k/yr

50–99 emp

≈$280k/yr

SMALLER

MID-SIZE

LARGER

A <5-employee FL painting business: modeled $2.2k–$8.8k/yr in workers’-comp premium (that band’s own average wage, before experience mods and schedule credits). Bar heights show how many of the 4,421 FL painting contractors fall in each size band.

Cohort: size distribution of 4,421 FL painting contractors (Census CBP 2023); premiums modeled from one filed rate ($6.68/$100 payroll, 2024). Bands shown cover 4,411 of 4,421 establishments (99.8%) — 10 establishments in larger, very small-count, or data-suppressed size bands are not shown. 2023 payroll dollars, not inflation-adjusted. Illustrative benchmark — not a quote or coverage recommendation.

Filed manual rate (FL)

$6.68 / $100 payroll

as of 2024

Typical <5-employee painting business (80% of FL)

$2.2k–$8.8k / yr modeled

as of 2024 · CBP 2023

Sources: Oregon DCBS workers' compensation premium rate ranking study, June 2025 (calendar-year 2024 rates) (as of calendar year 2024, retrieved 2026-06-04) · US Census County Business Patterns 2023, state file (Painting and wall covering contractors (NAICS 238320)) (as of 2023, retrieved 2026-06-05)

How does Florida compare to nearby ranks?

Calculated manual rates, $ per $100 payroll, NCCI class 5474 (Painting NOC), 2024. See all 51 jurisdictions →

Rank	State	Rate / $100 payroll
8	Connecticut	$7.34
9	South Carolina	$7.06
10	Minnesota	$6.86
11	Montana	$6.76
12	Florida	$6.68
13	New Hampshire	$6.65
14	Rhode Island	$6.47
15	Vermont	$6.23
16	Louisiana	$6.10

Sources: Oregon DCBS workers' compensation premium rate ranking study, June 2025 (calendar-year 2024 rates) (as of calendar year 2024, retrieved 2026-06-04)

Frequently asked questions

What does workers' comp cost painting contractors in Florida?

Modeled from the 2024 filed manual rate of $6.68 per $100 of payroll: a <5-employee painting business lands around $2.2k–$8.8k per year before experience mods and schedule credits.

What drives the rate up or down?

Three levers: payroll (the exposure base), claims history (the experience modifier), and schedule credits/debits the insurer applies. Painting work is NCCI class 5474 (Painting NOC, ‘not otherwise classified’) — the general classification for interior and exterior building painting that isn’t assigned a more specific painting class.

Painters in nearby-ranked states: Minnesota ($6.86) · Connecticut ($7.34) · California ($7.41) · Wisconsin ($6.03)

Stay informed

We’ll notify you when we’re ready to benchmark your painting business’s coverage.

No spam — one email.

Illustrative benchmark — not a quote or coverage recommendation. Figures are modeled from public filings and Census data for 4,421 Florida painting contractors; your premium depends on your payroll, claims history, and carrier.