C-27 — Landscaping

What Is a C-27 Landscaping License?

A C-27 Landscaping license is the California specialty contractor license that authorizes you to design, build, install, and repair landscape systems — everything from irrigation and drainage to hardscape, lighting, and planting — for private yards, commercial grounds, and public spaces. It’s issued by the Contractors State License Board (CSLB) under California Code of Regulations, Title 16, §832.27, and is one of the broadest specialty (C) classifications because it legally bundles several skill trades — irrigation, masonry, drainage, lighting, and horticulture — under a single license instead of requiring separate ones for each.

Per the CSLB’s own classification language, a landscape contractor “constructs, maintains, repairs, installs, or subcontracts the development of landscape systems and facilities for public and private gardens and other areas” designed to improve grounds “aesthetically, architecturally, horticulturally, or functionally,” and also “prepares and grades plots and areas of land” for that work (16 CCR §832.27; Bus. & Prof. Code §§7008, 7059).

What C-27 Contractors Actually Build

The scope is wide enough to cover most of what a homeowner or property manager would call “landscaping” — not just planting. Typical C-27 projects include:

• Irrigation system installation and repair — laying valves, controllers, and drip or spray lines for a residential yard or an HOA common area.
• Hardscape construction — poured or paver patios, walkways, retaining walls, and freestanding garden walls that tie into the surrounding landscape design.
• Drainage and grading — French drains, bioswales, and site grading to route stormwater away from a foundation.
• Outdoor lighting — low-voltage landscape lighting circuits, transformers, and controllers for pathways and gardens.
• Water features — decorative ponds, fountains, and streams built as part of a landscape plan.
• Planting and tree work — installing trees, shrubs, and turf, plus pruning, tree removal, and stump grinding when it’s part of a broader landscaping job.

The C-27 Exam: What to Expect

Every CSLB applicant must pass two separate exams: the Law & Business exam (required for every classification) and the trade exam for the classification applied for — in this case, Landscaping (C-27). Per the CSLB’s official C-27 Study Guide (effective for exams scheduled on or after July 1, 2026), the trade exam is closed-book, multiple-choice with four answer choices per question, and covers six content areas with these approximate weightings:

• Hardscape Installation — 21% (flatwork, masonry, posts/fences/retaining walls, water features)
• Drainage, Irrigation, Lighting, and Plant Installation — 21% (drainage systems and bioswales, irrigation valves and controllers, lighting controllers and transformers, plant/tree/mulch installation)
• Planning and Estimating — 18% (project planning, hardscape/drainage/irrigation design, estimating)
• Safety — 17% (employee and job-site safety, tree work safety)
• Construction Preparation — 12% (site planning, erosion control, trenching and grading)
• Maintenance and Repair — 11% (pruning and tree removal, irrigation troubleshooting, hardscape repair)

A calculator is provided for the math-based questions (irrigation flow, materials estimating, etc.), and there’s no penalty for guessing. CSLB’s Examination FAQ confirms candidates get 3½ hours to complete each exam. CSLB does not publicly publish the exact number of scored questions or a numeric passing score for the C-27 exam specifically — third-party prep sites sometimes cite figures like “115 questions” or “72%,” but CSLB itself does not confirm those numbers for this classification, so treat any specific count you see elsewhere as unverified rather than official.

Requirements to Get Licensed

Experience. You need at least 4 years of journey-level experience in landscaping work within the 10 years before you apply, verified by someone with direct knowledge of your work (a licensed contractor, former employer, or similar). Up to 3 of those 4 years can be substituted with related education or a registered apprenticeship program, but at least 1 year must be hands-on field experience.

Application. Submit CSLB’s Application for Original Contractor License, complete Live Scan fingerprinting, and pay the non-refundable $450 application fee (current CSLB fee schedule, effective Jan. 1, 2022). Once your application is accepted, you have 18 months to pass both required exams. After passing, the initial license fee is $200 for a sole ownership or $350 for a corporation, partnership, joint venture, or LLC.

Contractor’s bond. Licensed C-27 contractors must file a $25,000 contractor’s bond (Bus. & Prof. Code §7071.6); LLCs must also carry an additional $100,000 LLC employee/worker bond. You don’t pay the full bond amount — you pay an annual premium to a surety company.

Workers’ compensation. If you have employees, workers’ comp coverage is mandatory. If you have no employees, C-27 is not currently one of the classifications (C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39, C-49) that CSLB requires to carry coverage regardless of employee status — but under SB 216, that “mandatory for everyone” rule is scheduled to extend to all classifications, including C-27, starting January 1, 2028. Until then, no-employee C-27 licensees may file a workers’-comp exemption.

C-27 vs. Related Classifications

C-27 vs. C-49 Tree and Palm Contractor. C-27’s exam outline does test pruning and tree removal (under Maintenance and Repair), so incidental tree work on a landscaping job is within scope. But if your business is primarily tree pruning, removal, and stump grinding rather than full landscape construction, C-49 (the classification that replaced C-61/D-49 Tree Service on January 1, 2024) is the more direct fit and the one clients searching for a dedicated tree service will expect.

C-27 vs. C-8 Concrete. Both can pour a concrete patio or walkway. The difference is scope: C-8 is defined around forming, pouring, finishing, and setting screeds for concrete flatwork specifically, with no authority over the planting, irrigation, or drainage side. C-27 covers concrete hardscape as one piece of a broader landscape package. If a job is concrete-only work with no planting, irrigation, or grading component, a C-8 contractor can take it; if it’s part of a full yard build, C-27 is the classification that can legally do the whole scope.

C-27 vs. Class A General Engineering. Class A covers large-scale, engineering-driven work — public water systems, flood control, major grading and earthmoving tied to infrastructure. A homeowner’s backyard regrade or a commercial property’s irrigation retrofit falls under C-27. A public agency’s stormwater or flood-control system, or grading tied to road, utility, or large civil infrastructure work, is more likely to require an A license. When a landscape project’s grading or drainage work crosses into public infrastructure territory, that’s the line to watch.

Who Needs a C-27 License?

C-27 is the license behind most of the landscaping and hardscape work Californians hire out: residential yard renovations and new-build landscape packages for homeowners and builders; irrigation retrofits and drought-tolerant conversions for water-conscious clients; HOA and commercial-property grounds maintenance and hardscape contracts; retaining walls, patios, and outdoor living spaces for design-build landscape firms; and drainage and grading fixes for property owners dealing with runoff or erosion. Because the classification bundles irrigation, hardscape, lighting, and planting under one license, it’s also the classification most landscape design-build companies operate under rather than pulling separate specialty licenses for each trade.

C-27 Landscaping FAQ

Does a C-27 license cover sprinkler and irrigation installation?
Yes. Irrigation valves and controllers are explicitly part of the exam’s Drainage, Irrigation, Lighting, and Plant Installation section (21% of the test), and it’s core to the classification’s legal scope.

Can a C-27 contractor build a retaining wall?
Yes — retaining walls are named in the Hardscape Installation section of the official exam outline. Taller or structurally engineered retaining walls may still need engineered plans under local building code, but building them is within C-27’s scope.

Do I need a separate license to remove trees on a landscaping project?
Not necessarily. Pruning and tree removal are tested under the C-27 exam’s Maintenance and Repair section, so this work is within scope when it’s part of a landscaping job. Businesses focused primarily on tree service typically hold a C-49 Tree and Palm license instead.

Can C-27 contractors build pools or water features?
Decorative water features (ponds, fountains, streams) are named in the Hardscape Installation section of the C-27 exam. Full swimming pool and spa construction is its own classification — C-53 Swimming Pool Contractor.

Is the C-27 exam available in Spanish?
Yes — CSLB’s Examination FAQ lists Landscaping (C-27) among the classifications offered in a Spanish-language exam version.

How many years of experience do I need before I can apply?
Four years of journey-level landscaping experience within the last 10 years, with up to 3 years substitutable through related education or a registered apprenticeship (at least 1 year must still be hands-on field experience).

Do I need workers’ compensation insurance to hold a C-27 license?
If you have employees, yes, it’s mandatory now. If you have no employees, C-27 is not currently on CSLB’s mandatory-regardless-of-employees list (that currently applies to C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39, and C-49), but that requirement is set to expand to all classifications, including C-27, on January 1, 2028.

What’s the difference between the C-27 trade exam and the Law & Business exam?
Every CSLB applicant, regardless of classification, must pass both. The Law & Business exam covers contract law, licensing regulations, and business operations and is the same exam for every trade. The C-27 trade exam tests the landscaping-specific technical content above and is unique to this classification.