Where to list your trade business in the UK to get jobs (free and paid)
Key takeaways
- Start with a free Google Business Profile.
- Your own website is the one listing nobody else controls.
- Your trade body or register often has a find-a-trader page. Use it.
- Free directories and groups come next: Tradehand, Facebook, Nextdoor.
- Paid lead platforms come last, with a budget and a cost per job won.
Where to List a Trade Business in the UK, and in What Order: The Short Answer
Put your business in these places, in this order. The first four are free to list.
| Order | Where to list | Why it comes here |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Google Business Profile | It is where customers search first, and the reviews are yours |
| 2 | Your own website | It is the one address nobody else controls |
| 3 | Your trade body or register | Customers trust it for gas, electrical and building work |
| 4 | Free directories and groups | Tradehand, Facebook and Nextdoor put you in front of local customers |
| 5 | Paid lead platforms | They fill a gap, and you pay before you know if you have the job |
For the platform comparison, read the best lead generation websites for UK tradespeople.
Google Business Profile: List Here First
Google says a Business Profile can show your phone number and website on Search and Maps at no charge. When someone searches for a plumber or electrician near them, the box of three local businesses is built from these profiles. Finish every field, list each service separately, set your service area and add photos of real jobs.
Google Business Profile suits every trade. The reviews belong to you and keep working in the months you spend nothing. Our guide is how to get found on Google as a trade business.
Your Own Website: The Listing Nobody Else Controls
A trade website gives a customer somewhere to check you out before they ring, and gives a past customer an address to come back to. A directory listing sits on someone else's site. Your website does not.
Tradehand builds a website for every business it lists, on a Tradehand address, with your own domain on a paid plan. If you already have a site, keep it and link it from your Google profile and every listing below.
Your Trade Body or Register: Use Its Find-a-Trader Page
Many trades have a body that checks its members and lists them for customers. Gas engineers, electricians, builders and roofers each have bodies of this kind. If yours has a find-a-trader page, make sure your entry is complete and links to your website. Customers who search the register are already looking for someone checked, so the listing carries weight a general directory does not.
Free Directories and Groups: Tradehand, Facebook and Nextdoor
Tradehand is a UK trades marketplace. Creating a business and being listed on Tradehand is free, there is no fee per lead, and Tradehand takes 5% of each payment taken through it, card fees included. Paid plans are optional: Paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly.
Facebook business pages and local groups, and Nextdoor, cost nothing and work for neighbours recommending you. They are not directories, so expect more repeat and word of mouth work. See the Tradehand plans.
Paid Lead Platforms: Where They Fit in the Order
Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Bark and MyJobQuote are paid lead platforms, and none is the first place to list. They suit a trade with an empty diary that can set a budget and track cost per job won. What each one charges is in one dated cost comparison. Whether to pay a monthly fee, a fee per lead or neither is in trade job sites that don't charge per lead.
A Sensible Order for a Trade Starting Out
- Finish your Google Business Profile this week.
- List on Tradehand to get a website and a place to be found.
- Complete your trade body or register entry.
- Ask every happy customer for a Google review.
- Add one paid platform only if the diary is empty, and drop it if it does not pay back on your own numbers.
For more on owning your customers instead of renting enquiries, read stop paying for leads and own your customers.
Sources and references
Blake Folgado
Blake is a co-founder of Tradehand, a UK trades marketplace More from Blake
