Shipments of asphalt roofing products in 2024 followed a years-long trend of declining in the final quarter but set records in three product categories, according to the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association.

In the final 2024 Quarterly Product Shipment Report from the association, shipments — tracked in squares — of domestic and Canadian shingles, modified bitumen and BUR all declined in Q4 compared to the previous quarter, as seen below:

• U.S. shingles: 37.4 million, down 16.5%
• BUR: 1 million, down 20.7%
• Modified bitumen: 9.7 million, down 18.8%
• Canadian shingles: 1.5 million, down 36.9%

These declines are consistent with previous Q3 to Q4 comparisons, where shipment amounts for all products have experienced a decrease since 2017. The decline could be explained by colder, inclement weather slowing down business in various regions nationwide.

On average, U.S. shingle shipments have decreased from Q3 to Q4 since 2017 by 17%. BUR declines have averaged 14.7% in that same time, while mod bit has dropped by an average of 17.2%. This year, Canadian shingles fared better than their average decline of 42.4%.

It should be noted, however, that the Q3-Q4 decrease in BUR shipments is among the largest in ARMA’s reports. The biggest decrease occurred from Q3 to Q4 2022 (19.7%).

Shingles, Mod Bit Finish Strong

2024 saw several record-breaking shipment amounts in nearly every category tracked by ARMA’s report. In every quarter but Q4, mod bit experienced its largest shipment numbers in the report’s history. Meanwhile, BUR had its worst Q1, Q2 and Q3 shipment numbers. As a result, 2024 set the record for the highest and lowest shipment totals for these products, respectively.

Although there weren’t any record-setting quarters for U.S. shingles in 2024, the product category saw 172 million squares shipped, the largest end-of-year total since ARMA started tracking it in 2017. The next largest total occurred in 2021 with 169 million.

Overall, 2024 shipment totals either modestly improved or saw minor dips when set against the previous year. The amounts were as follows when compared to Q3 2024 total shipments:

• U.S. shingles: 172 million, up 2%
• BUR: 4.8 million, down 8.4%
• Modified bitumen: 45.2 million, up 4.2%
• Canadian shingles: 9.5 million, up 5.3%

The increases and decreases are comparable to 2023 with one notable exception: In 2023, Canadian shingles shipment totals saw a drastic 25.3% drop from the previous year, resulting in the smallest amount of shipped squares in the report’s history. This year, as noted, shipments rose 5.9%. It’s the first time Canadian shingle end-of-year totals increased since 2021-22.

ARMA creates its quarterly reports using roofing product shipment data collected from participating manufacturers by an independent third party, Association Research Inc.

“ARMA members and others interested in the industry value ARMA’s shipment report for the relevant, important insights it provides into the asphalt roofing industry,” said ARMA Executive Vice President Reed Hitchcock in a news release.

Shifting Markets

Shingles, both domestic and Canadian, appear to be on the rise, which tracks with ARMA data showing about 80% of American homes feature either three-tab or dimensional asphalt roofs. As a popular roofing material, homeowner expectations for asphalt products are growing alongside their attitudes toward environmental impacts and durability.

With more severe weather events tearing up roofs, roofing manufacturer GAF is teaming up with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety to train contractors in becoming FORTIFIED Certified. FORTIFIED is a voluntary beyond-code construction and reroofing method from IBHS that helps protect homes against hurricanes, severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

"This alliance between IBHS and GAF helps to build an elite pipeline of qualified roofers to provide FORTIFIED Roofs to homeowners looking to increase the durability of their home, which lowers the risk of storm damage and reduces the likelihood of being displaced by a storm," said Fred Malik, managing director of FORTIFIED at IBHS, in a news release.

Even so, the information arrives as officials in Florida, one of the U.S.’s biggest roofing markets, are pushing for alternative roofing materials than asphalt shingles.

As reported by RC’s Bryan Gottlieb at the beginning of 2025, Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky said it might be time for Floridians to consider more resilient roofing materials.

“It’s probably time to look past asphalt shingles,” Yaworsky said. “Asphalt shingles are... Maybe it’s time to start writing them out of the plot in Florida.”

Yaworsky’s office issued a statement calling for more durable roofing materials to withstand Florida’s extreme weather conditions and potentially lower insurance premiums. It’s something the Metal Roofing Alliance is encouraging roofing contractors and homeowners alike to ponder.

"Threats are increasing, home insurance premiums are increasing," said Renee Ramey, the Metal Roofing Alliance’s executive director. "The time for short-term thinking has passed, and now it's all about realizing what the long-term costs really are for using less resilient building materials and methods."

It’s not just the hurricane-prone states that might look to metal in the future. Extreme weather events like wildfires, hail and high winds are on the rise across the country, and along with it, metal roofing is slowly gaining traction for its durability. Whether consumers will ditch the cost-effectiveness of asphalt shingles for metal remains to be seen.

Material Pricing

According to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by the Associated Builders and Contractors, construction input prices decreased 0.2% in December 2024 compared to the previous month. Overall construction input prices are 0.9% higher than a year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 0.6% higher.

ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu said material prices have been virtually unchanged over the past two years, with much of the recent moderation due to lower energy prices.

“For the industry, however, the fact that overall input prices have remained flat in recent quarters is purely good news,” he said. “Just 20% of contractors expect their profit margins to decline over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”

Construction input prices were unchanged last November compared to the previous month. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 0.1% for the month.

“The year-over-year rate of price increase, at 2.7%, remains close to the Federal Reserve’s 2.0% target, yet the recent uptick suggests that inflation may prove more stubborn than previously expected,” Basu said in a December news release.