Checkatrade vs Your Own Website: Which Should UK Tradespeople Use?
Both, but for different reasons. Tradespeople often treat this as an either/or decision. It isn’t. Checkatrade gets you found by strangers searching for any tradesperson. Your own website gets you found by people specifically looking for you. Understanding what each one does changes how you spend your budget.
Cost: which works out cheaper over time?
Checkatrade costs £80 to £150 a month before extras. That’s £960 to £1,800 a year, plus £5 to £30 or more per lead if you opt into their paid referral scheme. The fee is ongoing. Stop paying, and your profile disappears.
A professionally built website costs more upfront but runs at a fraction of that annually. A done-for-you tradesperson website typically runs £10 to £20 a month in hosting costs after the initial build. Checkatrade at its cheapest costs four to eight times more per year.
Over three years, the gap is significant. For a full breakdown of what a website costs against other options, we’ve covered the real numbers in How Much Does a Small Business Website Cost in the UK?.
Enquiry quality: where do better leads come from?
Direct website enquiries convert at a higher rate. When someone finds your website through Google and contacts you directly, they’ve already decided they want you specifically. There’s no competitor listed below your name. No other quotes being generated at the same time.
Checkatrade leads are shared. The platform’s model is built around customers getting multiple quotes. You win some, you lose some, and you pay whether you win or not. Direct enquiries from your own website don’t carry that dynamic.
Ownership and control: what happens if you stop paying?
With Checkatrade, everything stops. Your profile goes, your reviews disappear from search results, and you lose the ranking it took months to build. The moment your subscription lapses you have nothing.
Your own website is an asset. The content stays. The Google ranking it has earned stays. A strong website continues generating enquiries even during quiet months when you haven’t logged in or done anything new with it.
If you want to understand whether the investment in a done-for-you website makes sense for your situation, Should I Hire Someone to Build My Website? covers the question honestly.
Local SEO: which gets you found for your own name?
When someone searches “[your business name] plumbing” or “[your name] electrician Bristol”, your Checkatrade profile will not usually appear at the top. Your own website will.
This matters more than most tradespeople realise. As you grow, a larger proportion of your work comes from referrals and repeat customers. These people are not typing “plumber near me” into Google. They’re typing your name. If you don’t have a website, that search returns nothing useful, and they may contact a competitor instead.
Checkatrade helps strangers find you. Your website helps people who already know about you find you again.
Which should you use?
Use both, but for different purposes.
Checkatrade (or similar directories) is a good starting point, especially if you have few reviews and need to build a reputation quickly. The platform gives you social proof and initial visibility while you’re getting established.
Your own website becomes more valuable as your reputation grows. It is where referral traffic lands, where people verify you’re legitimate before calling, and where you build a presence that isn’t dependent on paying a third party every month.
The long-term strategy for most tradespeople is to reduce directory spend as direct enquiries from the website grow. Many tradespeople who build a strong website find that within 12 to 18 months, their website generates more enquiries than their directory profile at a fraction of the cost.
For a broader look at whether you need a website as a tradesperson at all, the full answer is in Does a Tradesperson Need a Website in the UK?
Before you launch your website, one thing worth checking is whether it meets UK legal requirements. Every business website needs a privacy policy, a cookie notice, and the right information in the footer.
Already have a website? Run it through our free compliance checker to see what’s there and what isn’t.
Get your own website sorted
Stop paying for space next to your competitors. Own the place online where people find specifically you.
Duport’s website build starts from £360. Mention this article when you get in touch and we’ll honour the £144 rate. We build it for you: 30 minutes of your time, live in 72 hours.
For those also registering a limited company, the full bundle is £244 upfront. That covers company formation, your website, email, and compliance tools together.
FAQs
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Is Checkatrade worth it for UK tradespeople?
Yes, especially in the early stages when you need reviews and visibility, but the fees are high and the leads are shared, so it works best alongside rather than instead of your own website.
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Can I cancel Checkatrade once I have my own website?
Yes. Many tradespeople reduce or cancel their directory subscriptions once their own website generates enough direct enquiries, typically within 12 to 18 months of launch.
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Does Checkatrade rank on Google better than my own website?
Checkatrade’s domain authority means it ranks well for generic category searches (e.g. “plumber Exeter”). For searches including your business name, your own website will almost always rank higher.
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How long does it take a tradesperson’s website to generate leads?
A properly built, mobile-friendly website with a Google Business Profile to support it typically starts generating enquiries within two to four weeks of launch.
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Is my website legally compliant in the UK?
Not automatically. UK law requires your website to include a privacy policy, a cookie notice, clear terms and conditions, and specific business information (such as your registered company name and number if you’re a limited company). Most website builders include template pages for some of these, but they don’t check whether your content is accurate or complete. Use our free website compliance checker to see what your site has and what it’s missing.
