Angi, Thumbtack and HomeAdvisor: Are Paid Leads Worth It?

You got the email. "New lead: water heater replacement, 2.4 miles away." You're charged before you've even opened it. By the time you pull over and call, the homeowner says someone already came out.

That's the deal with paid leads. Sometimes it's a good one. Often it isn't. Here's how to tell which one you've got.

Short answer: sometimes, if you do the math per job

Angi, Thumbtack and HomeAdvisor sell you contact with people who are looking for your trade. You pay for the contact, not the job.

Thumbtack says it plainly on its help pages: you pay for leads, and prices vary with the type and size of the job, how many pros are available, and your market.¹ When a customer reaches out to you directly and the job matches your preferences, the fee comes out automatically.

So the question isn't "are leads expensive?" It's "what does it cost me to book one job this way, and is that still worth it?"

How paid leads actually work

Every platform has its own flavor, but the shape is the same:

• A homeowner fills out a form describing the job.
• The platform matches them with pros in the area who do that work.
• You pay a fee for the contact, usually whether or not you get hired.
• Often you're not the only one. The homeowner may hear from several companies within minutes.

That last part is the one that bites. You're not buying a customer. You're buying a spot in a race.

Work out your real cost per job

Here's the math most owners never do. Pull last month's lead charges and your job list, and fill this in:

• Spent on leads last month: $900
• Leads received: 20
• Jobs actually booked from them: 4
• Cost per booked job: $900 ÷ 4 = $225
• Average profit on one of those jobs: $600

Those numbers are made up to show the math. Use yours.

If you're a remodeler clearing thousands per job, $225 to book one might be a bargain. If you're doing $180 drain clears, the same math loses money on every job. And if you can't answer "how many jobs did the leads book?" that's your first problem to fix, before spending another dollar.

When paid leads make sense

We're not against them. They earn their keep when:

• You're new or it's slow. You need work this week, not in six months.
• Your jobs are big. A high average ticket can absorb a lead fee easily.
• You can reply in minutes. Someone on your crew watches the app and answers fast, every time.
• You're testing a new service or area. Leads tell you quickly whether there's demand before you invest in anything bigger.

When they drain you

Leads turn sour when:

• You reply at lunch or after dark. By then, somebody else is already on their porch.
• You're the fourth company to call. The customer is price shopping, and you're in a bidding war you didn't choose.
• They become your only source of work. Turn the spend off and the phone goes quiet.
• You can't dispute the junk. Wrong numbers, wrong trade, wrong zip code. Know the refund rules before you need them.

There's a bigger reason to go in with your eyes open. In 2023, the FTC ordered HomeAdvisor, a company affiliated with Angi, to pay up to $7.2 million. The FTC's complaint alleged the company made false, misleading or unsupported claims about the quality of the leads it sold, and told pros its leads turned into jobs at rates it couldn't back up.² Whatever platform you use, trust your own numbers over anyone's sales pitch.

If you buy leads, win the race

Most shared leads go to whoever answers first with something useful. So don't send "call me." Send a reply they can act on.

Then do what the platform doesn't want you to do: make that customer yours. Do great work, ask for a Google review, and make sure they save your number. The next time the water heater goes, they should be calling you, not filling out a form again.

The better long-term move: get found directly

A lead site rents you customers one at a time. Your own name on Google keeps working after you stop paying.

That means a complete Google Business Profile, a steady flow of reviews, and a simple website that makes it easy to call. People check reviews before they call anyone. In BrightLocal's 2025 survey, just 4% of consumers said they never read online business reviews.³ Every customer you win from a lead site is a chance to add one more.

If you want a place to start, see how to get more Google reviews without being pushy and what to post on your Google Business Profile. And if the calls you do get are going to voicemail, read what happens when you miss a call from a new customer. No point paying for leads, or earning calls on your own, if nobody picks up.

The bottom line

Paid leads are a tool, not a plan. Use them when you need work fast and you can answer faster than the other guys. Track your cost per booked job every month. And turn every customer they bring you into someone who calls you directly next time.

The goal is to need the lead sites less every month, not more.