Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: The 2025 chart lists 238140 for masonry contractors and 238110 for poured concrete foundation and structure contractors. Whichever you use goes on line B beside your line A description. A mason who mostly pours concrete, or the reverse, may find the other row reads closer, depending on the principal source of your receipts.
Two rows for two kinds of masonry and concrete work
The chart splits this trade across two lines. One is worded around masonry, the other around poured concrete for foundations and structures.
| Code | Wording on the IRS chart |
|---|---|
| 238140 | Masonry contractors |
| 238110 | Poured concrete foundation & structure contractors |
A crew that lays block or stone work is reading the first line. A crew that forms and pours footings and slabs is reading the second.
Putting your work into words for line A
Line A asks for a description of the work: “Describe the business or professional activity that provided your principal source of income reported on line 1.” Line B asks for the code: “Enter on line B the six-digit code from the Principal Business or Professional Activity Codes chart” The code goes in the box on line B, beside the description.
An example of the kind of description, not IRS wording: laying block walls and pouring driveways for homeowners. The line A phrase can be as plain as that, and line B then carries one code from the chart.
Nearby rows for related site and structure work
Several other rows describe work that overlaps with concrete and masonry crews.
| Code | Wording on the IRS chart |
|---|---|
| 238190 | Other foundation, structure, & building exterior contractors |
| 238910 | Site preparation contractors |
| 237310 | Highway, street, & bridge construction |
| 327300 | Cement & concrete product mfg. |
Exterior and structure work not named elsewhere reads as “Other foundation, structure, & building exterior contractors”. Excavation and grading reads closer to “Site preparation contractors”, while public road and bridge work sits under “Highway, street, & bridge construction”. The last row, “Cement & concrete product mfg.”, is a manufacturing row, so it is about making products rather than building on a site.
The chart’s rule has two steps: “Select the category that best describes your primary business activity”, and then “Then select the activity that best identifies the principal source of your sales or receipts”.
A crew that does both masonry and concrete
Plenty of small contractors do both kinds of work in a single season. The chart has no row that names both together, so the two lines are compared rather than combined.
The second step of the rule is the one to weigh: “Then select the activity that best identifies the principal source of your sales or receipts”. If the masonry side and the concrete side are truly separate businesses, the instructions address that case: “If you owned more than one business, complete a separate Schedule C for each business.”
Where to go next
The code sits on line B next to the line A description on Schedule C (Form 1040). Other building trades are grouped on the construction trades code page, and the handyman page covers general repair work. the full list of Schedule C business codes shows every row at once.
Edition and chart year
This page reads the 2025 Schedule C (Form 1040) and its 2025 instructions, the files for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The schedule says “Attach to Form 1040, 1040-SR, 1040-SS, 1040-NR, or 1041”. Check the tax year printed on the schedule you are filling in and use the chart that comes with that year’s instructions, because a different year’s chart can list different codes or reword them.
Common mistakes
- Looking for one row that covers both trades. The chart lists “Masonry contractors” and “Poured concrete foundation & structure contractors” separately.
- Choosing the manufacturing row because it contains the word concrete. That row reads “Cement & concrete product mfg.”.
- Splitting one activity across two codes. The instructions say “Then select the activity that best identifies the principal source of your sales or receipts” so one activity leads on line B.
Related: Schedule C (Form 1040), Schedule C business codes: the full IRS list, the construction trades code page, and the handyman page.
Find the right next step for your situation
About how much do you have invested? Pick the range that fits; your next step appears immediately below.
Advisor help for a self-employed masonry contractor
For U.S. investors with $250,000 or more in investable assets. WiserAdvisor is an independent service matching you with 2 to 3 vetted advisers. Its form asks for your ZIP code and answers to a few questions; a match is not guaranteed.
Free to request, with no obligation to hire. By submitting, you consent to calls, texts and emails from WiserAdvisor and up to three advisers. Advisers pay for introductions.
Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment for a qualifying completed form. An introduction is not a Clear Money Guide recommendation.
Opens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.
Retirement saving options for self-employed contractors
Considering financial advice? Request an adviser introduction with no obligation to hire.
The form is run by Kapitalwise, our advisor-matching partner. Requesting an introduction is free. Submitting the form shares your contact details with advisers, so expect calls and texts. Advisers pay for introductions. Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment for a qualifying submitted form, whether or not you hire anyone. A match is not guaranteed.
The Kapitalwise form opens here; you stay on this page.
What happens when you press the button
It asks about nine questions: age, investable assets, location; then your name, email and phone number, and verifies the phone by text. Nothing loads and nothing reaches Kapitalwise until you press the button.
Prefer flat-fee or hourly pricing instead? Compare ranges here.
Answer againSources
- Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040), Profit or Loss From Business (2025): IRS archived PDF (irs.gov)
- Schedule C (Form 1040), Profit or Loss From Business (2025): IRS archived PDF (irs.gov)
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 30, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.