Their business model depends on tradespeople competing against each other. Your own website puts customers in front of you - and only you. £49/month, live in 7 days.
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If you're on Checkatrade, MyBuilder, or Bark, you've probably felt at least one of these.
Every customer who finds you on Checkatrade also sees 3-5 competitors right next to you. You're not being found - you're being compared.
Lead costs, subscription fees, and "profile boosts" add up fast - even when you don't get the job. The platform gets paid either way.
Your reviews, your profile, your visibility - it all lives on their platform. If they raise prices, change the algorithm, or go under, you start from zero.
Checkatrade has raised its prices. Changed its algorithm. Made reviews harder to get. And there's nothing you can do about it - because you're renting visibility, not building it.
Side by side, the difference is stark.
| Checkatrade | Your Own Website | |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | Listed alongside competitors - customers compare you by price | Customers see only you - your services, your prices, your brand |
| Enquiries | Customers may contact several trades at once | Calls and quote requests go directly to you |
| Cost | £50–£150+/month subscription plus per-lead costs | £49/month all-in - no lead costs, no extras |
| Ownership | Platform controls your profile, reviews, and visibility | Your domain and Google presence are yours |
| Branding | Your business lives inside another company's brand | Your own brand, front and centre |
| Long-term value | Stops when the subscription ends | Builds long-term Google presence that compounds over time |
| If you leave | Reviews, profile, and visibility - gone | Your domain and its Google history stay with you |
When they need the job doing, they usually ring whoever appears in search and looks professional, trustworthy and ready to help. If that is not you, the work goes elsewhere.
| Job | Typical value |
|---|---|
| Boiler replacement | £2,500 |
| Full rewire | £5,000 |
| New bathroom | £6,000 |
| Roof replacement | £7,500 |
| Kitchen extension | £30,000+ |
Your website costs £49 a month - £588 a year. One missed job pays for years of it.
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Checkatrade's subscription is just the start. Here's what the real monthly cost tends to look like.
And you still compete on price with every other tradesperson in your area.
Every enquiry comes directly to you. No per-lead charges. Ever.
Some tradespeople run both at the same time - keeping Checkatrade while the website builds up local Google visibility. That's completely fine.
But most find that within a few months, the website is generating more direct enquiries than the platform - at a fraction of the cost. At that point, the decision makes itself.
The question isn't whether a website is better than Checkatrade. It's how long you want to keep paying them while you wait to find out.
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I'm Mike, a web designer based in Lincolnshire. I've been building websites professionally for 18 years, and Trade Sites UK exists because I kept seeing the same thing: tradespeople paying agency prices for a five-page site, or paying lead platforms hundreds a month forever. Every site here is built by me, personally. When you email, I answer. When something needs changing, I change it. You'll see my work before you pay anything, and if it's not right, you walk away owing nothing.
I build and manage your website. You just do the work.
Designed specifically for UK tradespeople - not a generic template adapted to fit.
Most customers search on their phone. Your site looks great and loads fast on any device.
Customers contact you directly. No platform in the middle, no competitors alongside you.
Optimised to help nearby customers find you when they search for your trade.
All included in £49/month. No extras, no technical work needed from you.
I register it in your name.
Peace of Mind Plumbing stopped relying on lead platforms and started getting direct enquiries instead.
Peace of Mind Plumbing · UK trades customer
See the standard of work for yourself: view the website examples.
See what your site could look like - built for a trade business like yours.
Plumber - Chesterfield
Live in 6 days. Now ranking for local plumber searches.
Electrician - Sheffield
Live in 5 days. Direct enquiries from week one.
Roofer - Nottingham
Live in 7 days. No upfront cost, no minimum term.
These are live demo sites I've built – the same standard your website gets. Open them, tap the buttons, try them on your phone.
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Less than most Checkatrade subscriptions - and that's before you add up the lead costs.
£1.63 a day. No VAT. No hidden charges.
No setup fee · No minimum term · Cancel anytime
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“It was seamless, he did everything and even amended stuff as and when I needed... his trade experience is a massive bonus..
Can I use a website and keep Checkatrade at the same time?
Yes, and for some trades that makes sense in the short term while your website builds up local Google visibility. Most customers find they're getting more direct enquiries from their website within a few months - at which point they decide for themselves.
How quickly will my website start getting enquiries?
Local SEO takes time to build - usually a few weeks to a few months before you start showing up consistently in local searches. I set your site up correctly from day one, but local SEO is not instant. That's why running both in parallel for the first couple of months makes sense for some trades.
What if I'm not happy with the website?
I build your site and send you a free preview before it goes live. You can request changes and I'll make them where possible. If it still is not right, you walk away owing nothing.
Is £49 really the full price?
Yes. £49/month covers the website build, hosting, a domain if needed, updates and ongoing support. I'm not VAT registered, so nothing is added on top. There is no setup fee.
Do I need to do anything technical?
No. You fill in a short form, I build the site and send you a free preview. If you're happy with it, you make your first £49 payment and I put it live. I handle the design, build, hosting, domain, SSL and updates.
Is there a contract?
There's no minimum term. Cancel anytime, with no notice period and no fee.
