Topic
Buying Leads
What lead marketplaces actually cost, whether the leads convert, and how to get out when they do not. Angi, Thumbtack, HomeAdvisor, Porch and the shared-versus-exclusive question.
56 articles · browse the full archive
GrowthAre Home Warranty Jobs Worth It? The Real Margin
Frontdoor spends 45% of revenue on service. Choice's network pays net 45 by virtual card, fees on you. How to price a warranty job against a direct one.
16 min
Lead GenerationContractor Lead Generation Company: 3 Models
Three different businesses share that name. LSA leads averaged $53 across 888 contractors in Feb 2026. Tell the models apart before you sign anything.
18 min
Lead GenerationCheapest Place to Buy Contractor Leads: 9 Ranked
Thumbtack lists leads at $5 to $20. Pros report paying $20 to $200. Nine lead sources ranked by sticker price, then re-ranked by what they actually cost.
14 min
Lead GenerationHow to Check if a Lead Company Is Legit: 6 Checks
A court held a lead buyer liable for its vendor's calls, with $126M to $379M in exposure. Six free public-records checks to run before you pay a cent.
17 min
GrowthHow to Stop Paying for Shared Leads in 90 Days
Your contract's Termination Charge is 100% of the remaining term, not the 30% they quote. The exit sequence that gets you out without paying it.
16 min
Lead GenerationIs Bark Worth It for Tradesmen? 2026 Credit Costs
Bark credits cost CAD 2.70 (GBP 1.80), about 13 per lead, expire after 90 days, and ghosted leads are non-refundable. When Bark is worth it for trades.
17 min
Lead GenerationIs Houzz Pro Worth It? 2026 Review for Contractors
Houzz Pro leads need a $685/mo ad package on top of a $99 to $559 plan, on a 12-month term you cannot cancel early. Same contract in Canada. Nine findings.
19 min
Lead GenerationNetworx vs HomeAdvisor (Angi) for Contractors
HomeAdvisor is now Angi Leads. Networx leads run $10 to $100+ with no annual term and 14 days to dispute, vs Angi at about $50 a lead and 30 days.
16 min
Lead GenerationThumbtack vs Angi for Contractors: 8 Facts
Thumbtack lets you set the exact lead price. Angi sets it for you. Angi's own filings show its pro network shrank 17% in Q2 2026. Here is the real math.
14 min
Lead GenerationGood Cost Per Lead for Contractors: 6 Trades
Your CPL ceiling is job gross profit times close rate times what you will spend. For 5 of 6 trades it lands below the median search CPL. Here is the math.
15 min
Lead GenerationPorch Contractor Leads: Are They Worth It? 9 Facts
Porch contractor leads are shared, priced at Porch's discretion and refunded only as credit that expires in 90 days. How Porch Pro works, and 9 facts.
19 min
Lead GenerationAre Yelp Ads Worth It for Contractors in 2026?
Yelp ad clicks fell 5% while ad revenue held flat, so the price went up. What Yelp's own May 2026 contract says before you take the sales call.
16 min
Lead GenerationIs Thumbtack Worth It for Contractors? 2026 Math
Four Thumbtack rule changes landed in 2026, and every guide on page one describes the old platform. The break-even math, the refund traps, who profits.
15 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Garage Door? $1,145
Angi charges garage door $35 to $75 a lead. Against a $1,145 average ticket, the lowest of any trade, a booked job eats 24% to 37% of the revenue.
17 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Pest Control? 1 in 9
Angi prices pest leads at $25 to $50, third cheapest of eleven trades. The math that decides it is not close rate, it is how many booked jobs become plans.
16 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Garage Door Leads: The 1.7x
Exclusive garage door leads close 1.7x better than shared but cost 3 to 5 times more. It is the one trade where paying for exclusivity loses money.
14 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Pest Control Leads: 7x Gap
Exclusive pest control leads return about 7x more revenue per lead than shared. Not because they close better, but because of what the customer is worth.
16 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Garage Door Leads Cost? $18 to $280
Garage door leads cost $49 on LSA and $173 on non-branded search. The trade with the lowest average ticket pays the second-highest price. Here is why.
18 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Pest Control Leads Cost? $28 to $58
Pest control leads run $28 to $58 by pest type. Sort that board by what the lead actually buys and the cheap ones win. The 2026 math, with sources.
18 min
Lead GenerationGarage Door Leads Not Converting? 4 Real Leaks
The average shop books 46% of bookable calls, the best book 85%. Four diagnosable leaks explain the garage door gap, and none is your ad budget.
16 min
Lead GenerationWhy Pest Control Leads Don't Convert: 4 Gaps
Owners blame the lead source. Pest control call data says the close rate you quote is 15 to 25 points too high, and the count breaks at four points.
18 min
GrowthHow Much Do Solar Leads Cost? $25 to $250
Solar CAC hit $0.84 per watt in 2026, up from $0.60. Lead prices barely moved. Why the price of a lead stopped predicting the cost of a customer.
9 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Solar? The 2026 Math
Angi's filings show it shrank the shared-lead product 56% in a year. What that plus the dead 25D credit means for solar installers buying leads in 2026.
16 min
Lead GenerationWhy Restoration Leads Aren't Converting: 5 Gates
Published restoration close rates run from 25% to 75% and both are real. They measure different gates. Here are the five a water loss passes through.
16 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Electricians? 2026
Angi's CEO says the average pro pays $600 a month for 12 leads and wins 2: about $300 per job, against a $351 average electrical ticket. When it pays.
17 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Landscaping? $240/Job
Angi prices the average lawn care job at $300 and sells you the lead six times. The one number that decides it: how many Angi wins become route customers.
15 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Plumbing? The $4k Gap
Angi's CEO says the average job on the platform is about $4,000. The average plumbing call bills $350 to $750. That gap decides your answer, by category.
17 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Restoration? 6 to 17%
An Angi-booked restoration job costs $900 to $2,400 in lead fees. On a $13,954 water claim that is 6% to 17%, which is exactly what a TPA charges you.
16 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Electrical Leads: 27x Spread
Shared electrical leads run $15 to $85, exclusive $45 to $150. But the same breaker call is a $150 job or a $4,000 panel, so price the scope, not the word.
17 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Landscaping Leads: $34 vs $85
The exclusivity premium barely exists in landscaping. 99 Calls sells exclusive leads at $33.99, Angi shared reaches $85. What actually decides it.
15 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Plumbing Leads: 2-Lane Rule
Plumbing runs two demand lanes, and only one has a price war. Buy exclusivity for planned work, buy speed for emergencies, and stop paying a premium twice.
17 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Restoration Leads: 60 Seconds
A water extraction lead breaks even near $880 cost per lead. So exclusivity is not what decides the job. Speed to the loss is, and so is what the lead carries.
16 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Solar Leads: The $90 Gap
Run the published solar lead numbers and exclusive beats shared by about $90 per install. Here is what actually moves the money in 2026, and what expires.
16 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Restoration Leads Cost? $81 to $637
Restoration leads run $81 to $637 in cash. But the fee on a TPA job can hit $8,399 for one lead, and nobody publishes that rate. The real math.
15 min
Lead GenerationHow to Dispute a Bad Lead Credit: 4 Deadlines
Bark gives you 7 days. Angi's two documents say 30 and 45. Google removed the dispute button. The reason codes that get credited, by platform.
15 min
Lead GenerationHow to Cancel an Angi Contract: The 35% Fee Math
Angi's early termination fee is 35% of unused contract value, with no 3-day cooling off. Use the 65% rule to pay it or ride out the term, plus the script.
16 min
Lead GenerationHow to Tell If a Lead Is Fake: The 90-Second Test
Four of the five fake lead types involve a real person with a working phone number, which is why captchas never catch them. The checks that do.
16 min
Lead GenerationShould I Sign a 12 Month Lead Contract? 5 Tests
A 35% termination fee turns a 12 month lead contract into a 4.2 month minimum spend. The 5 tests to run before signing, and the clause voiding rep promises.
17 min
Lead GenerationWhy Electrical Leads Don't Convert: The Scope Gap
Most electrical leads die in the gap between the job they asked for and the job you quoted. Here are the six gaps, and the order to close them in.
16 min
Lead GenerationWhy Landscaping Leads Don't Convert: Not Price
Homeowners explain in their own words why they did not hire a landscaper. Almost none of them say the quote was too high. Here is what they say.
17 min
Lead GenerationWhy Plumbing Leads Don't Convert: The 24% Trap
Plumbing shops with fewer than 5 techs book 24% of their calls. Shops with 25+ book 59%. Same leads, same trade, and the gap is not sales skill.
16 min
Lead GenerationWhy Solar Leads Aren't Converting: The 2nd Funnel
Solar has two funnels and most owners measure only the first. Close rates run 8% to 17%, and deals you already signed leak out between signature and PTO.
16 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Roofing? The $21M Tell
Angi bought a roofing company in 2021, lost $21.4M of EBITDA on it in one year, and sold it. What that tells roofers about the leads they are buying.
17 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for Security Alarm?
Angi's own guide tells your prospect a security system runs $746 and install is often free. Run Angi leads through the 30x creation multiple test.
14 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Roofing Leads: The 57% Trap
In hail states 57% of roofs are nine years old or newer. That base rate, not exclusivity, decides whether a roofing lead was ever sellable. The real math.
19 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared Security Alarm Leads: RMR Test
Exclusive alarm leads cost $80 to $150, shared leads $30 to $80. The gap that matters is RMR: every $1 you discount to win costs $36 of company value.
17 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Electrical Leads Cost? $39 to $220
Electrical leads average $39 on Local Services Ads, the cheapest of any trade. They also carry the smallest ticket. Here is the real cost per booked job.
15 min
Lead GenerationPlumbing Leads Cost: $30 to $256 per Lead in 2026
What you pay for plumbing leads in 2026: $30 to $110 on LSA, $183 on Google Ads, $40 to $85 on Angi, plus pay per call. Why 10.9% of the ticket matters.
19 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Roofing Leads Cost? $124 to $228
Roofing has the highest cost per lead of 16 home service trades at $228. Not because clicks cost more, but because roofing converts at 3.7%. The real math.
16 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do Security Alarm Leads Cost? $20 to $200
Alarm leads run $20 to $200 by type. But your real ceiling is set by RMR times your resale multiple, and attrition moves that ceiling by 40 percent.
15 min
Lead GenerationWhy Roofing Leads Aren't Converting: 4 Numbers
Four rates explain nearly every roofing lead that dies: set rate, sit rate, close on sits, and signed to built. Most owners track a blend of all four.
16 min
Lead GenerationSecurity Alarm Leads Not Converting? The 6% Test
Professional install ranks last of 12 buying factors at 6 percent. Your alarm leads are not failing at the close, they are failing at the pitch.
16 min
Lead GenerationAre Angi Leads Worth It for HVAC? The 20% Floor
Angi sells each HVAC lead to 3 to 8 contractors. That caps your odds at 20% before anything else happens, and HVAC is the slowest trade at responding.
12 min
Lead GenerationExclusive vs Shared HVAC Leads: The 3.75x Rule
Exclusive HVAC leads close at 40-60%, shared leads at 9-15%. That ratio tells you what exclusivity is worth, and most contractors pay the wrong side of it.
11 min
Lead GenerationHow Much Do HVAC Leads Cost? $72 to $343
Water heater leads cost $343. Performance Max leads cost $72. Same business, same month. Why one number for HVAC leads hides everything that matters.
11 min
Lead GenerationWhy Your HVAC Leads Aren't Converting: 5 Leaks
Leads rarely fail for the reason contractors think. They die at five specific points, and four of them happen before anyone talks about price.
11 min