The 2026 State of Change Orders: Subcontractors.
The data is in: specialty contractors are carrying a huge share of the change order burden, and it's costing them more than they know. Dodge Data & Analytics Senior Director of Industry Insights Research Steve Jones and Clearstory Sales Director Josh Franklin unpack the findings from the 2026 Subcontractor Change Order Report, the most comprehensive independent study of change order management conducted to date. Based on feedback from hundreds of specialty contractors and general contractors, the report quantifies what's actually happening to trade contractors' revenue, cash flow, and GC relationships when the change order process breaks down.
Key Takeaways:
Based on feedback from hundreds of specialty contractors and general contractors, the report quantifies what's actually happening to trade contractors' revenue, cash flow, and GC relationships when the change order process breaks down. Key findings include:
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94% of specialty contractors say unapproved or negotiated-down change orders strain their relationships with GCs
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83% report a direct negative impact to cash flow from change orders that don't get fully paid
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96% have experienced poor or untimely change order processing, with the average approval taking 26 days
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Nearly all start work before a change order is officially issued, putting revenue at risk on every project
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What the most mature contractors differently — and the maturity model built from the survey data