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Believe Websites vs Checkatrade: a membership that sends you leads, or a website you own?
Checkatrade is a vetted-trades directory that sells leads on a membership, with basic plans from around £30 plus VAT a month and higher prices by trade, postcode and lead volume. Believe Websites is £0 to build, from £49 a month, 0% commission, with a bespoke site on your own domain. Every Checkatrade figure read on 8 November 2026.
·7 min read
The short answer
- Checkatrade is a UK directory where homeowners find vetted tradespeople, and tradespeople pay a monthly membership to be listed and to receive leads.
- Checkatrade's own pages say there is no joining fee and that basic plans start from around £30 plus VAT a month.
- Checkatrade's own page, updated in May 2026, says a basic plan lets you build a profile but does not put you in Checkatrade search results; to appear in search you choose a yearly lead volume.
- Checkatrade does not publish a price list: it says the cost depends on your trade, your postcode area, competition locally and the lead volume you pick, and its trade sign-up page is an application flow rather than a pricing table.
- A Checkatrade profile is a page on checkatrade.com; it is not a website on your own domain, and a tradesperson cannot take that profile elsewhere.
- Believe Websites builds a bespoke website on your own domain for £0 upfront and from £49 a month, with 0% commission on every booking and unlimited team members.
- Believe Websites does not send you leads, has no marketplace, has not switched on text reminders or card payments yet, and has a 12-month minimum term.
- The two do different jobs, so many trades use a directory for leads and their own website for everyone who already knows their name.
Checkatrade is the best-known name in UK trades. A homeowner searches for a plumber, an electrician or a roofer, sees vetted businesses with verified reviews, and gets in touch. In return, the tradesperson pays Checkatrade a membership.
Believe Websites does something else. We design and build a bespoke website on your own domain, with enquiries and bookings built into it, and we keep changing it for you. So this is not really a question of which is better. It is whether you want to rent a place in someone else's directory, or own a website that is yours.
We make Believe Websites, so read this with that in mind. Every Checkatrade statement below comes from Checkatrade's own public pages, read on 8 November 2026, and those pages are listed at the bottom.
The short answer
- You want strangers who are searching for a tradesperson to be sent to you: Checkatrade. We have no marketplace and send nobody.
- You want a proper website of your own, on your own domain, built and kept up to date for you, for one flat price: Believe Websites.
- You want both: many trades do. The directory brings new people; the website is what everyone else finds when they search your name, and nobody can raise its price.
What Checkatrade says it costs
This is the awkward part, and it is a finding in itself: we could not find a public Checkatrade price list. The trade sign-up page at join.checkatrade.com opens an application app with no pricing table, and entering our details to get a quote would mean applying to join, which we did not do. So the figures below are what Checkatrade's own help articles say, and they are deliberately vague.
From checkatrade.com blog articles, one last updated 19 December 2024 and one updated in May 2026, both read on 8 November 2026. Checkatrade's membership articles state VAT is charged on membership fees and can be reclaimed if you are VAT registered.
| Question | What Checkatrade says |
|---|---|
| Joining fee | None"there is no joining fee" |
| Basic plan | From around £30 + VAT a monthprofile, photos, business information, reviews |
| Does a basic plan put you in search? | No"you won't appear on the Checkatrade search" without choosing a lead volume |
| Plans that bring leads | Priced by trade, postcode, local competition and lead volumeno figure published in those articles |
| Larger businesses | Bespoke planssuggested for businesses spending over £1,000 a month on advertising |
| Guarantee | Up to £1,000 on jobs booked through Checkatradeterms apply; from the December 2024 article |
| Trade discounts | Offers with suppliers, insurance and softwaredepending on what is available at the time |
Checkatrade's May 2026 article says the plan that gets you into search depends on how many leads you want over the year, and that some trades in high-demand areas pay more because of competition. It gives no price for that tier. If you are weighing it up, the only way to get your number is to ask them for a quote for your trade and postcode.
Checkatrade and Believe Websites, side by side
| Believe Websites | Checkatrade | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A bespoke website with enquiries and booking built in | A directory of vetted tradespeople with a membership |
| Monthly price | From £49£0 to build | Basic from around £30 + VATlead plans: no published price |
| Know your price before you ask | Yes | Not from its public pages |
| Commission per booking | 0% | None mentioned; you pay the membership |
| Website on your own domain | Yes, www.yourbusiness.co.uk, built and changed for you | No, a profile page on checkatrade.com |
| Sends you new customers | No marketplace | Yes, on lead plans |
| Vetting and a guarantee | No | Yes, checked members and a guarantee up to £1,000 |
| Verified reviews | Your own reviews shown on your site | Verified by Checkatrade |
| Team members | Unlimited, same price | Not stated |
| Email confirmations and reminders | Yes | Not stated |
| Text reminders and card payments | Built, not switched on yet | Not stated |
| Analytics, monthly report, AI Search Readiness score | Yes | No |
| A new article about your town each month | Yes | No |
| Who owns what you build | The site can become yours after 12 months | The profile and its reviews stay on Checkatrade |
| Contract | 12 months, then month to month | Not stated in the articles; its offers mention 12-month fixed plans |
What the money buys
profile only, not in search; lead plans cost more and are unpriced
£0 to build; a full website on your own domain, hosted and changed for you
These are not like for like: £30 buys a profile that does not appear in Checkatrade search, while £49 buys a whole website. The price of a Checkatrade plan that sends leads is not published, so we cannot chart it.
A plan that sends leads costs more than £30, and the real figure depends on your trade and postcode. Our £49 is the same whether you are a sole trader or a team of ten, and it does not change with the number of enquiries you get.
Where Checkatrade wins
- It sends you people who are looking. Checkatrade's own article describes visitors who are usually already searching for someone to hire. We send nobody; we have no marketplace.
- Vetting, verified reviews and a guarantee. Members are checked, reviews are verified and jobs booked through Checkatrade carry a guarantee of up to £1,000. A customer who has never heard of you may trust that tick more than a new website.
- It is quick to start. Apply, get checked, and you are on a site homeowners already know. A bespoke website takes us a short while to design and build.
- Trade discounts. It lists offers on supplies, insurance and software for members.
- No website needed. For a brand-new business with nothing online, a profile is a start.
Where Believe Websites wins
- It is yours. A bespoke site on your own domain (www.yourbusiness.co.uk), designed and built for £0 upfront, which we host and change whenever you ask. A directory profile lives on someone else's site.
- The price is public and flat. From £49 a month, with unlimited team members. You know the number before you start.
- 0% commission on every booking, from anyone.
- It works for the people who already know your name. Recommendations, vans, quotes and word of mouth all end up searching for you, and they land on your own pages.
- Things that help the site be found. Analytics, a monthly report, an AI Search Readiness score and a new article each month about your town and services.
Where we lose, plainly
So which one?
- Pick Checkatrade if you need new customers now, are happy to pay for leads and want a vetted badge and guarantee behind you.
- Pick Believe Websites if you want a website you own, one flat price, and a site that works for every customer who finds your name by any route.
- Pick both if you can afford it: the directory for strangers, the website for everyone else.
Plumber? We compared job-management software and the other ways to be found in the best booking and job software for plumbers in 2026. We also compared a very different way to get a site built in Believe Websites vs Wix, and the whole offer is on our home page.
Common questions
- How much does Checkatrade cost for a tradesperson?
- Checkatrade's own articles say there is no joining fee and that basic plans start from around £30 plus VAT a month. It says plans that bring leads depend on your trade, postcode area, local competition and the lead volume you choose, and we found no published price for those. Read on 8 November 2026.
- Does a basic Checkatrade plan get you in search results?
- No. Checkatrade's article, updated in May 2026, says a basic package lets you build a profile but you will not appear in Checkatrade search; to appear you decide on a lead volume for the year.
- Does Checkatrade give you a website?
- No. A Checkatrade membership gives you a profile on checkatrade.com, not a website on your own domain. Believe Websites builds a bespoke website on your own domain for £0 upfront and from £49 a month.
- Does Checkatrade charge commission on jobs?
- Checkatrade's membership articles describe a monthly fee and did not mention commission on jobs. Believe Websites charges 0% commission on every booking.
- Does Believe Websites send me customers like Checkatrade does?
- No. Believe Websites has no marketplace and does not send you leads. We build and maintain your own website, with enquiries and bookings built in, and set it up with structured data and a monthly article so it is easy for search engines and AI assistants to read, but we cannot promise what they do with it.
- Can I use Checkatrade and Believe Websites together?
- Yes. Many tradespeople use a directory for new customers and their own website for everyone who already knows their name. Believe Websites has a 12-month minimum term, then runs month to month.
Sources
- Checkatrade: Does Checkatrade cost money? (last updated 19 December 2024) — checked 8 November 2026
- Checkatrade: Is Checkatrade worth it? (updated May 2026) — checked 8 November 2026
- Checkatrade trade sign-up (application flow, no price list) — checked 8 November 2026
- Believe Websites pricing and terms — checked 8 November 2026
Competitors' prices change. Every figure here was read from the company's own public pricing page on the date shown. If something is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.