Checkatrade, MyBuilder, MyJobQuote: Electricians

There is no single best lead platform for every electrician. The useful question is which payment model fits the way you win work in your area.

• Checkatrade suits businesses that want an ongoing profile and planned local visibility, with fixed-plan and pay-as-you-go campaign options.
• MyBuilder lets you express interest in posted jobs and charges a shortlist fee when a customer shortlists you.
• MyJobQuote sells access to job details using credits, through monthly subscriptions or pay as you go.

That is how the platforms described their trade products when we checked them on 20 July 2026. Plans and prices change, so check the amount shown inside each platform before committing.

A platform can be useful for filling gaps in the diary. It becomes risky when it is your only route to market. The healthiest setup is usually a measured platform budget alongside a Google Business Profile, your own website and a simple way to keep in touch with past customers.

Platform	How you pay	What you control	Worth testing when
Checkatrade	Approved profile, fixed-plan tiers or pay-as-you-go campaigns, depending on the product offered	Categories, postcode areas, campaign budget and whether campaigns are active	You want an established profile and planned visibility in chosen areas
MyBuilder	A non-refundable fee when a customer shortlists you; the fee is shown before you express interest	Which posted jobs you express interest in	You prefer choosing individual jobs before risking a fee
MyJobQuote	Credits through a rolling subscription or pay as you go	Which jobs you spend credits on and the plan you use	You want a credit-based marketplace and clear control over which details you unlock

The table describes charging mechanics, not lead quality. None of the platforms can tell you in advance whether a particular enquiry will become a profitable job. Your own numbers have to answer that.

Checkatrade is broader than the old idea of paying one annual fee for a directory listing. Its current trade guidance describes an Approved profile, Fixed Plan options and pay-as-you-go campaigns. An Approved profile can establish your presence on Checkatrade, but Checkatrade says it does not appear in standard search results. The paid options are what increase access to job opportunities and visibility.

With campaigns, you choose categories and postcode areas. Checkatrade's campaign guidance says fixed plans use a tier tied to expected lead volume, while pay-as-you-go campaigns use a monthly budget. Read the pause and billing rules carefully: stopping new activity does not necessarily cancel charges already generated.

For electrical work, the entry checks matter. In its explanation of Checkatrade Approved, Checkatrade says applicants need the qualifications required for regulated work and gives NICEIC or an equivalent body as its electrical example. Its joining guidance also asks for public liability insurance. That can help a customer understand your credentials, but it is not a substitute for explaining the scope, exclusions and certification attached to the job you are actually quoting.

What to watch: fixed spend is only attractive if the right enquiries arrive in the areas and categories you selected. Measure results by job type and postcode, not by the total number of contacts shown in a dashboard.

Customers post work on MyBuilder and tradespeople choose whether to express interest. The important payment moment is the shortlist. Under MyBuilder's trade terms, you pay the displayed, non-refundable Shortlist Fee each time a customer shortlists you. The amount varies with the job's size and value, and you can see it before expressing interest.

That corrects a common description of MyBuilder as a simple credit purchase to respond. The current terms make the customer's shortlist the chargeable event. A shortlist is still only an introduction; it is not a booked job or a promise that the customer will accept your quote.

The model can suit an electrician who is selective about job type, travel and likely value. Read enough detail to decide whether the work fits before expressing interest, then respond promptly if shortlisted. Do not treat speed as a reason to skip the normal questions about access, existing installation condition or what the customer expects to receive.

What to watch: log every shortlist fee, not only the jobs you win. Otherwise a busy month can feel successful while the acquisition cost quietly eats into the margin.

MyJobQuote uses credits. Its fees and charges guide says tradespeople can use a rolling monthly subscription, which includes credits, or buy credits on a pay-as-you-go basis. Each job has a credit price, and the current monetary price is shown inside your account. Credits expire after six months under the current terms.

You decide which job details to unlock, so it is possible to be disciplined about service area and the work you want. MyJobQuote also says electricians must provide evidence of relevant qualifications during its checks. As with any platform badge, use your quote and customer communication to make clear exactly who will do the work and what paperwork is included.

What to watch: subscription credits are not savings if they push you to unlock weak-fit jobs before they expire. Judge the plan against the jobs you would have chosen anyway.

The three headline platforms are not the whole UK market. These alternatives use meaningfully different models:

• Rated People: its current trade offer includes an Unlimited subscription for many smaller jobs, alongside other plans and credit-based access. Rated People says a lead can be bought by no more than three tradespeople. See its current explanation for tradespeople.
• Bark: a broader services marketplace where you spend credits to contact leads you choose. Bark says it does not charge commission on work won. Its seller guide explains the model.
• TrustATrader: an annual membership directory rather than a per-lead marketplace. It says membership is limited by trade and area and that it charges no commission or lead fee. Read its join information.
• Which? Trusted Traders: an assessed endorsement and directory. Applicants pay for an assessment and, if accepted, membership. Its trader FAQ explains the assessment route, including arrangements for some scheme-registered electricians.

These are worth separate articles because they solve different problems. Rated People and Bark are closer to job marketplaces. TrustATrader and Which? Trusted Traders are closer to reputation and directory products. Comparing them as though every contact is the same kind of “lead” hides the real buying decision.

Do not judge a platform by notifications, profile views or the number of jobs in its feed. Track the journey to paid work.

• Cost per usable enquiry = platform spend divided by enquiries that fit your trade, area and availability.
• Cost per quote = platform spend divided by quotes you were able to provide.
• Cost per won job = platform spend divided by jobs accepted.
• Gross profit after acquisition = job gross profit minus the platform cost attributed to winning it.
• Customer value beyond the first job = later work and referrals that came from that customer, recorded separately from the first lead.

Run the comparison over a fixed review period long enough to include completed jobs and collected payments. Keep each platform in its own column. If you cannot identify where a won customer came from, you cannot make a sound renewal decision.

Also record why you declined an opportunity. A low conversion rate can mean weak enquiries, but it can also mean the wrong service radius, slow response, unavailable diary space or a quote that did not match the brief. The fix depends on which one it was.

A lead platform gives you access to its audience. Your own website gives customers a direct route to your business. You control how your services, areas, reviews and previous work are presented, and customers can return to the same address without finding you again inside somebody else's marketplace.

That does not make a website a magic lead machine. It needs to be connected to a complete, verified Google Business Profile, clear local service pages and a contact route you actually answer. Google says a Business Profile can show your phone number and website on Search and Maps at no charge.

Ownership matters most after the first job. Keep the customer's details with permission, record the work completed, follow up when it is useful, ask for a review and make it easy for them to come back or refer someone. The website is the front door; the customer record and follow-up are what improve retention.

If building and maintaining that front door keeps falling to the bottom of the list, Tradehand can build and run a free trade website around your services, areas and reviews, with web chat for new enquiries. You can still use a platform to fill capacity. The point is to give your business a channel it controls as well.

For more owned-channel ideas, read our guides to getting an electrician business onto Google's first page and 18 practical ways to find more electrician customers.