· Lee · 4 min read
Checkatrade vs your own website: what Kent trades actually pay
Directory fees look small until you add them up. Here is what Checkatrade, MyBuilder and the rest cost in 2026 — and the two-year maths against owning your own site.
If you’re a Kent tradesperson looking at Checkatrade or MyBuilder, you’re really asking one question: what’s the most reliable way to keep the diary full without giving away your margin? Directories answer it by renting you their audience. A website answers it by building your own. Here’s what each actually costs, with the two-year maths side by side.
What the directories cost in 2026
None of the big directories puts its full pricing on the open web — most quote you after they know your trade and postcode. These figures combine their published starting prices with what tradespeople report paying. Treat them as a guide, not a quote: all exclude VAT, vary by trade and area, and move often.
| Directory | How you pay | Published starting price | What members report |
|---|---|---|---|
| Checkatrade | Monthly membership, plus lead fees on some plans | Free listing; paid plans from around £30–£59/month | £80–£100/month is typical for a plan that actually gets seen; busy trades report £200–£400 months all-in |
| MyBuilder | No subscription — you pay each time a homeowner shortlists you | From £7 per shortlist | £5–£35 for most jobs, £50+ for big projects. Fees aren’t refunded if the customer goes quiet |
| Rated People | Subscription plus per-lead fees | Around £35/month, billed annually | Roughly £15 per lead on top of the subscription |
| TrustATrader | Fixed membership, no lead fees | Quoted by trade and area | £20–£55/month rolling is commonly reported |
Two things the table can’t show. Renewal prices are regularly higher than the sign-up price. And on the pay-per-lead sites, the same homeowner usually shortlists several trades — so you’re paying to quote against three or four others for every job.
What you’re actually buying
A directory listing is rented ground. Your reviews live on their domain, your profile ranks under their brand, and if you stop paying — or they change their pricing or their algorithm — everything you built there stays behind. The directory’s job is to own the relationship between Kent homeowners and Kent trades, and charge you for access to it. That can still be a fair trade. It’s just worth being clear about what side of it you’re on.
The two-year maths
Here’s a conservative comparison over two years, using mid-range figures from the table above:
| Option | Two-year cost | What you have at the end |
|---|---|---|
| Checkatrade at £85/month | ~£2,040 | Nothing you own |
| MyBuilder, quoting 2–3 mid-size jobs a week | ~£1,800–£3,000 | Nothing you own |
| Rated People, 4 leads a month | ~£2,300 | Nothing you own |
| TrustATrader at £35/month | ~£840 | Nothing you own |
| Your own multi-page website | £800 once, plus a care plan from £15/month — about £1,160 all-in | A website you own, still working |
The website doesn’t just cost less over two years. At the end of year two the directory spend starts again from zero, while the site keeps taking enquiries that cost you nothing per lead.
The honest bit
A new website won’t fill your diary in week one — directories will. If you sign up to MyBuilder today you can be quoting tomorrow, and a new site takes months to climb the local rankings. So this isn’t really Checkatrade or a website. The sensible play for most Kent trades is to use a directory as a tap you can turn down: keep it running while your own site and Google Business Profile build up, then cut the directory spend as free enquiries take over — instead of paying per lead forever.
Where Kent trades win
When someone in Maidstone searches “electrician maidstone”, the results that matter are the map listings and the sites below them. A Google Business Profile with steady reviews plus your own website gets you into both — and every enquiry from there is free. That’s the position the directories can’t sell you, because it belongs to you.
See your site before you pay
We build multi-page websites for Kent tradespeople from £800, fixed price agreed upfront — and you see a free homepage preview within 3 working days before paying anything. No obligation, no card details. Message us with your trade and the areas you cover, and we’ll reply the same working day.