Checkatrade vs Rated People vs Your Own Website

Lead platforms like Checkatrade and Rated People can fill gaps in the diary. For some plumbers, they are a useful short-term source of enquiries. The problem starts when they become the whole plan. You are competing next to other firms, paying for access and building value on someone else’s platform. This guide compares Checkatrade, Rated People and your own website so you can decide where your next lead should really come from.

The quick answer

Marketplaces can help, but your own website gives you more control. Platforms are quick to switch on and can put you in front of homeowners who are ready to book. What they cannot give you is ownership. The reviews, the ranking and the relationship all sit with them, and you pay for access every month.

Your own website and Google presence take longer to build, but the leads are yours, the price competition is lower and the value compounds. The smart move for most plumbers is to use platforms as a top-up while you build a pipeline you actually own.

Your options compared

Factor	Checkatrade	Rated People	Your own website and Google system
Cost	Monthly membership, varies by area	Pay per lead or per credit, varies	Website build plus ongoing SEO or ads, but leads you own
Lead quality	Mixed, homeowners often browsing several firms	Mixed, often shared with competitors	Higher intent, people who chose to contact you
Competition	You sit next to rivals on every listing	You often quote against several plumbers	Little to none once you rank and convert
Ownership	Profile and reviews stay on their platform	Leads and reputation stay on their platform	You own the site, data, reviews and rankings
Trust	Borrowed from the platform’s brand	Borrowed from the platform’s brand	Built on your own brand and proof
Scalability	Capped by their model and pricing	Costs rise as you buy more leads	Compounds over time, cost per job falls

Checkatrade: pros and cons

Checkatrade is mostly a directory and profile model. You pay to be listed, homeowners search, and you build reviews against your profile.

Where it helps:

• Quick to start. You can be live and visible without building anything yourself.
• Homeowner trust. The brand is well known, which reassures cautious customers.
• Review engine. It gives you a structured way to collect reviews from jobs.

Where it costs you:

• You pay to belong. Membership is an ongoing cost whether the leads come or not, and pricing varies by trade and area.
• You are one of many. Every listing shows competitors right next to you.
• The value is not yours. Cancel and the profile, reviews and ranking stay behind.

Rated People: pros and cons

Rated People leans towards a lead-buying model. Homeowners post a job, and you pay for the contact or the chance to quote, often alongside other plumbers.

Where it helps:

• Pay as you go. You can buy leads when the diary is quiet rather than commit to a big retainer.
• Active buyers. The homeowner has posted a real job, so there is intent behind it.

Where it costs you:

• Shared leads. The same enquiry often goes to several plumbers, so you compete on price and speed.
• Cost per lead adds up. Buy more to grow and the bill grows with you.
• No lasting asset. You are renting access to enquiries, not building anything that keeps working.

Your own website and Google lead system

This is the pipeline you own. A fast, trustworthy website, a strong Google Business Profile, real reviews, local SEO and paid ads that send enquiries straight to you.

• Higher intent. Someone who found you and chose to call is usually further along than a shared platform lead. Our guide to getting more plumbing leads from Google walks through how.
• A site that converts. The website does the selling, so visitors actually enquire. See website essentials that convert.
• Reviews that build your brand. They feed your Google ranking and your trust, not a platform’s. See how to get more 5-star reviews.
• Ads you control. You set the spend and keep the data. See Google Ads costs for plumbers.

Lead quality and long-term risk

The real difference is not just cost per lead. It is what you are left with.

• Platform leads are borrowed. They flow while you pay, and stop the moment you cancel. You have no asset to show for it.
• Price competition is baked in. When several plumbers get the same enquiry, the conversation often turns to who is cheapest.
• You build someone else’s brand. Every good review and job strengthens the platform, not you.
• Owned leads compound. A ranking, a review base and a converting website keep working, and the cost per job usually falls over time.

The long-term risk of relying on platforms is simple: you never build anything of your own. If they change pricing or you stop paying, your enquiries disappear overnight.

When to use lead platforms

Platforms have a place. Use them when:

• The diary is quiet and you need enquiries this week, not this quarter.
• You are early and your website and Google presence are not pulling their weight yet.
• You want a top-up, a steady trickle of extra jobs alongside your own marketing.

Treat them as one channel with a cost you watch, not the foundation everything sits on.

When to prioritise owned marketing

Shift your focus and budget to assets you own when:

• You want to grow steadily rather than pay more every time you need another job.
• You are tired of competing on price against the same firms on every listing.
• You want to build something that lasts, a brand and a pipeline that keep working when you stop paying for a subscription.

Our complete guide to getting more leads for UK trades businesses in 2026 sets out the right order to build it in.

Where your next lead should come from

Checkatrade and Rated People can keep the diary ticking over when you need work now. But they are rented ground. The plumbers who stop worrying about quiet months are the ones who use platforms as a top-up while building a website and Google presence they own.

If you want a pipeline that belongs to you, our Booked Solid System builds and runs it for trades businesses, from £1,500 + VAT a month plus ad spend. The first step is a straightforward conversation about where your leads come from today and where they should come from next.