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Every owner has a story about paid leads: the week a lead site filled the schedule, and the month it sent tire-kickers from two counties over. Both can be true of the same platform. What matters is how each source charges, who else gets the same lead, and whether the jobs it brings are the ones you want.
This guide explains how the major paid lead sources generally work and how to test one with numbers instead of gut feel. One warning up front: these platforms change their pricing, programs and rules often. Everything below describes general models, not current prices or features. Always read the current terms and get the important details in writing.
The five ways paid leads are sold
Before comparing names, understand the models. Most platforms use one of these or a mix.
| Model | You pay when | The key question |
|---|---|---|
| Shared pay-per-lead | A customer request is sent to you, often alongside other pros | How many other businesses get the same lead? |
| Exclusive pay-per-lead | A lead goes only to you | How is "exclusive" defined, and for how long? |
| Pay-per-contact or pay-to-quote | A customer contacts you, or you respond to their request | What counts as a contact, and can you dispute bad ones? |
| Pay-per-click advertising | Someone clicks your ad | How many clicks actually turn into calls? |
| Subscription or placement | A monthly fee for visibility or a listing tier | What exactly do you get, and can you cancel month to month? |
A shared lead isn't bad by default. It means speed and follow-up decide who wins. An exclusive lead isn't automatically good either, if it costs more than the job is worth to you.
The main platforms, in general terms
Angi
Angi is a home services marketplace and directory. Homeowners describe a project and get connected with local pros, and businesses can pay for leads and for advertising. Depending on the program, the same request may go to more than one business.
Check before you sign: whether leads are shared and with how many pros, how you control job types and service area, whether there's a monthly commitment or contract length, how credits or disputes work for bad leads, whether you can pause, and what happens if activity runs past your budget.
Thumbtack
Thumbtack is a marketplace where customers describe a job and compare local pros. Pros set preferences such as job types, travel distance and budget, and generally pay per lead or contact rather than a flat monthly fee. The exact trigger for a charge has changed over time, so read the current rules.
Check before you sign: exactly which action you're charged for, how your spending is capped, how your profile, reviews and response time affect how often you appear, and what happens when a customer never replies.
Yelp
Yelp is a review site first. Your business page can exist whether you pay or not, and customers can review you either way. Businesses can buy advertising to appear more prominently, and customers can request quotes from businesses through the platform.
Check before you sign: how ads are billed (per click, per lead or another way), whether there's a minimum term, what reporting you get, and how to cancel. Also read Yelp's current guidelines on asking for reviews before you include Yelp in any review request process. Yelp has long discouraged businesses from soliciting reviews.
Google isn't one lead source. It's three, and they work very differently.
- Google Business Profile is free. It's your listing in Maps and the local results, and you don't pay for the calls it sends. It deserves your attention before you spend anything on paid leads. See our Google Business Profile tips.
- Local Services Ads appear at the top of some local searches for service businesses. They're generally priced per lead rather than per click, and they involve a verification or screening process before you can run them. Which trades and areas are eligible varies.
- Google Ads search campaigns are the classic text ads, generally priced per click. You choose keywords, areas and budget, and you pay for the click whether or not it becomes a call.
Check before you sign: for Local Services Ads, how disputes for invalid leads work, what screening your trade requires, and how budget and hours are set. For search ads, who manages the account, which keywords you're paying for, and whether you can see the actual searches that triggered your ads. Our guide to Local Services Ads vs Google Ads goes deeper.
A side-by-side view
| Source | How you generally pay | Is the customer comparing? | Often suits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angi | Per lead or advertising, depending on program | Leads can be shared, depending on program | Businesses that respond fast and follow up | Lead quality, contract terms |
| Thumbtack | Per lead or contact | Customers often compare several pros | Solo operators and small crews who reply quickly | Paying for contacts that go nowhere |
| Yelp | Advertising, often per click | Competitors appear on the same pages | Businesses with a solid Yelp review history | Clicks that never become calls |
| Google Local Services Ads | Per lead | Several providers are shown together | Trades with urgent, high-intent searches | Screening requirements, dispute handling |
| Google search ads | Per click | Several ads and free results on the page | Businesses with a strong website and call tracking | Wasted spend on broad keywords |
Treat this as a starting point, and confirm current terms directly with each platform.
Match the source to your trade
The same platform can work well for one trade and poorly for another, because what a lead is worth varies.
- Emergency work (burst pipes, no-cool calls, broken garage door springs, power outages): the customer often calls whoever answers first. Sources that send phone calls reward businesses that answer live. If calls go to voicemail, you're paying to hand a customer to your competitor.
- Big-ticket projects (roofing, HVAC replacement, landscape design, panel upgrades): customers get several quotes and take their time. Shared leads can still work, but you need follow-up that lasts weeks, not hours.
- Recurring services (house cleaning, lawn care, pest control): one lead can turn into a year or more of visits. You can afford to pay more for a lead that sticks, so judge the source on customer value, not the first ticket.
- Small jobs (handyman work, minor repairs): watch the math closely. If a lead eats most of a small job's profit, the source only works when those customers come back.
Do the math before and after
Two numbers tell you whether a source is worth it.
Cost per booked job = total spent on the source ÷ jobs booked from it
Profit from the source = gross profit from those jobs − total spent on the source
Use gross profit, not revenue. A source that brings a lot of revenue at a thin margin can be worth less than one that brings less revenue in profitable work. Our guides to working out your real profit margin and job costing help you get the gross profit number right.
Run a 60-day test
Don't sign up for four platforms at once. Test one source at a time so you know what's working.
- Set a cap. Decide the most you'll spend in 60 days, and set that limit inside the platform if it allows it.
- Narrow the targeting. Only the job types you want, only the areas you can reach profitably.
- Log every lead. Date, source, job type, how fast you responded, the outcome, the job value, and whether you disputed it.
- Respond fast. Set a rule for how quickly every lead gets a call or text, and track whether you hit it.
- Dispute bad leads. Wrong area, wrong trade, fake numbers. Know the dispute window and use it.
- Review at 30 and 60 days. Work out cost per booked job and profit from the source. Keep it, adjust it or stop.
A simple lead log looks like this:
| Date | Source | Job type | Response time | Booked? | Job value | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Example row | Marketplace | Drain clog | 6 minutes | Yes | [amount] | Asked about a water heater too |
Put every lead in it, including the ones that went nowhere. The empty rows are the ones that tell you the truth.
Speed and the first response
With shared leads especially, speed and a clear next step often decide who gets the job. Have your first messages ready before the first lead arrives.
If nobody on your team can respond quickly during working hours, fix that before you buy leads.
Questions to ask a lead platform's sales rep
Get the answers in writing, and save a copy of the terms on the day you sign.
Don't let rented leads replace owned ones
Paid lead sites can fill gaps, test a new service or area, or carry you through a slow start. But you're renting access to customers. The channels you own, like your Google Business Profile, your website, your reviews, your past customer list and your referrals, keep working after you stop paying. Read lead marketplaces vs your own website for how to balance the two, and marketing analytics: which calls came from where for how to track it all.
Before you spend on any paid source, it helps to know how you already show up when someone searches for your trade in your town. Zome's free AI report checks your Google presence, website and nearby competitors.
