Where the self-employed buy a bond and a policy
Where should a self-employed Illinois contractor buy a bond and a policy?
What this page lists, and what it does not
This page lists where the self-employed buy the two halves of this stack — the surety bond a registration demands and the policy behind a certificate — with each vendor's own published prices.
It does not score anyone. Every figure comes from the vendor's own page on the date shown. Quotes are individual, and published starting prices describe the cheapest end of each vendor's own book, not what any one contractor will pay.
The order to buy in comes first, not the vendor. Check what your registration demands on the bond requirements page, then buy the paper it names, from whoever prices it best for your file.
from $19 per monthERGO NEXT publishes general liability insurance starting at $19 per month, reflecting active policies as of April 1, 2026, with individual premiums not guaranteed. — ERGO NEXT general liability insurance page, retrieved 2026-09-29
The published prices side by side
Two of these vendors sell policies; two sell bonds. None sells both halves, which is why a self-employed contractor's stack usually has two vendors in it.
Read the table as starting points, not quotes. The bond percentages apply to the bond amount your registration demands; the monthly premiums apply to the general liability end of each carrier's own book. What your file prices at is the quote, and the credit tier behind it is on the lower premium guide.
| Vendor | Sells | Published starting price | How it is paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| ERGO NEXT | Policies: general liability, workers' comp, BOP | General liability from $19 per month | Monthly or annual, cancel anytime |
| biBERK | Policies, direct from the insurer | General liability from $27.50 per month | Direct billing, no broker |
| Bryant Surety Bonds | Surety bonds, all 50 states | Illinois bonds at 1%-4% with high credit, 5%-15% otherwise | Annual premium |
| Bonds Express | Surety bonds, bad-credit programs | Rates as low as 5% on some bonds | Annual premium |
from $27.50 per monthbiBERK publishes general liability premiums starting as low as $27.50 per month and states its direct model can save up to 20% compared to traditional providers. — biBERK general liability insurance page, retrieved 2026-09-29
1%-4% or 5%-15%Bryant Surety Bonds publishes Illinois surety bond rates of 1% to 4% of the bond amount for applicants with high credit scores and 5% to 15% for those with lower credit. — Bryant Surety Bonds, Illinois surety bonds page, retrieved 2026-09-29
Where each kind of vendor fits the stack
Match the vendor to the paper. A policy carrier sells the certificate's cover; a bond house sells the registration's bond; a bad-credit surety exists for the applicant the standard market priced out.
ERGO NEXT sells policies online and lists 1,300-plus professions, including the contractor and janitorial trades. It publishes general liability from $19 a month and takes 10% off when two or more policies are bundled. The vendor's own pages describe a quote and purchase in less than ten minutes.
biBERK sells direct, as the insurer, with general liability from $27.50 a month and a stated saving of up to 20%. Workers' comp from the same carrier is what a one-person trade adds on the first hire.
Bryant Surety Bonds sells the bond itself, with instant online quotes and Illinois rates of 1% to 4% with strong credit. Bonds Express runs programs for applicants with bad or no credit history, with rates as low as 5% on some bonds. Nothing here is a grade; confirm each price on the vendor's page before buying.
1,300+ professionsERGO NEXT covers over 1,300 professions and publishes janitorial insurance with savings up to 25% and up to 10% when bundling two or more policies. — ERGO NEXT janitorial insurance page, retrieved 2026-09-29
as low as 5%Bonds Express advertises programs for applicants with bad credit or no credit history, with rates as low as 5% on MVD and contractor performance bonds. — Bonds Express home page, retrieved 2026-09-29
What none of these prices include
No vendor's price covers the parts the state sets. The registration fees ride separately, and so does the wording work the certificate demands.
The plumbing registration is $150 a year on top of any premium. The roofing application is $125. The pesticide applicator license is $300 for three years. None of that reaches an insurance or bond vendor — it goes to the agency, with the form attached.
The certificate's details are also yours, not the vendor's: the certificate holder, the exact business name, and the additional insured endorsement a contract may demand. Those mechanics are the certificate of insurance guide, and the workers' comp line on the same document is the exemption page.
$150 and $125The annual Illinois plumbing contractor registration fee is $150, and the roofing contractor application fee is $125. — Illinois Department of Public Health, plumbing contractor application, retrieved 2026-09-29
Buy for the paperwork you actually hold
Pick vendors from the documents, not the other way round. A roofer needs a $10,000 or $25,000 bond on the state's form plus a $500,000 insurance form; a cleaner needs a policy and nothing else; a pesticide applicator needs a license fee and either a bond or a certificate.
That order makes the comparison narrow, which is the useful part. Most self-employed contractors buy two products from two vendors and renew both annually, and the annual cost is dominated by the bond percentage and the credit tier behind it — not by which carrier's app loads faster.
Start with what your trade demands, then the full order of purchase, then come back here for the prices. What bonding costs by trade does the arithmetic per trade once the percentage is known.
$500,000 / $250,000An Illinois roofing contractor files proof of liability insurance of at least $500,000 per occurrence of personal injury and $250,000 of property damage, on the Department's RF-INS form. — Illinois Dept. of Financial and Professional Regulation, roofing contractor application, retrieved 2026-09-29
Questions
Should I buy the bond and the policy from the same vendor?
Usually they cannot be the same vendor. The vendors that publish bond rates here do not underwrite general liability, and the policy carriers here do not print Illinois bond forms. The stack is two vendors for most self-employed trades.
Do these prices include workers' compensation?
Not unless it is quoted separately. Workers' comp is its own policy, priced per employee and payroll. A self-employed contractor with no employees usually files an exemption instead, and the paperwork for that is on the workers' comp exemption page.
Why is there no local insurance agent on this page?
Because no agent route publishes prices to compare. The four vendors here publish figures on their own pages, which is the only kind of price this page lists. A local agent quoting your exact file may well compete — the quote, not the published floor, is where that comparison happens.
Are these the only vendors a self-employed contractor can use?
No. This is the set whose own pages publish prices and open without a login. A vendor whose page refuses automated fetches or publishes no figures is absent for that reason.